Solus

At his master’s point, Solus originally swam alongside the pod and followed it. With no need to breathe and able to stand the underwater pressure, there was no issue with allowing the others to have a bit more free space. Plus, if something happened to the pod, the Shard could help on the outside much quicker. However, his guilty mind got the better of him. He would rather be closer to his master. And this newcomer interested him. The force acted so weird here. “Perhaps with more looking into the impossible geometries” Solus commented to himself as he came in behind his master into the pod. “I could get an idea of what this...Inmortos is. Its such a strange sight. The shapes of his life are so...not correct. Like broken, but still running. Such an odd thing…” Solus let the water drip off of himself as his master began talking. His attention was focused on the lizard beings nearby. The appearance they gave looked more like corpses then beings. And a quick glance into the Impossible Geometries revealed that just as so. Much like Inmortos, the shapes around the lizards were much more jittery and paused for much longer periods of time. They were more dead than alive in every sense of the word. Then the pain came. Solus’ joints tightened instantly as every circuit in his body began to fire off. The world around him was suddenly closing off from him. This world of worlds was disappearing rapidly, as his own connections from the chassis were being severed in unseen ways. His voice broke into a screech. "You may wonder why my apprentice? Why invoke my Wrath. Why do this after such success, it is simple. You jeopardized our mission, one given by the Dark Mistress for your own personal glory. You nearly cost the clan everything. You nearly cost me everything” “Ma-Master I-” Solus screeched in pain as his chassis acted up again. His feet left the floor as every limb franticly tightened and loosened over and over. His begging could not be heard over his shrieking frequencies. The world was losing sight for his sensors. No, Solus realized, his sensors were losing connection with his Shard. With the chassis, he was a being, but without it, he was a simple rock. And Akheron’s actions were forcibly separating the two. “Disregard my lessons, my words at your peril Solus. Consider this your second lesson. There is nothing you do that is not without consequences. Think before you act and heed my words of caution. War is no game, no mere childs play, nor is the life you chose by accepting my tutorlage. I warned you about this...disregard my words again and jeopardize what privilege we were given and you shall be cast aside, I'm sure Krath Inmortos here would just love a new puppet like you. Do I make myself clear?” “Ye...yes!” Solus fought, his voice a mixture of blaring of noises and shrieks of static and voice. “I..swear I...will remember! I ...swear!” Solus fell to the ground with a clang, his body suddenly back under his full possession. "Now get up and act the Sith you wish to become. You are a child no more, you are a Warrior, act like it." A sudden fear came from Solus’ shard, followed immediately by a thick cloud of rage. He looked at his master and the new non-alive being. Hadn’t he done well? He had killed so many Gungans. He had found the plasma. He had found the gungan village. He was going to kill so many more! So he made a mistake... Was that worthy of so much pain? Was his master just like his shardmates, willing to throw Solus away for simply being himself? Solus picked himself up, slowly. His chassis felt a bit foreign at first, as if he needed to resettle in it all over again. His body parts shook slightly at first, but worked into place. The shard however still kept his gaze focused on Akheron and Inmortos, saying nothing. He needed to let his anger cool off. No doubt Akheron could sense it. Solus briefly took a glimpse into the Impossible Geometries and called the red cloud away from the others. Perhaps he could hide it for now. It wasn’t like he couldn’t use it later on those stupid Gungans. Just needed to call it back for now. Store it away, like a battery, and use it later.

To say the ice spear that ran near his master surprised Solus would be an accurate, if under exaggerated, statement. Solus detected the spear not by force sight but by thermal vision. What could only be described as a cloud of cold consumed an area, and then shot out. “Amazing…” Solus exclaimed as if he was looking at a work of art instead of a weapon of destruction. The spear of ice….such a deadly tool. Another power of the Wicked Flame? Solus looked at where the spear had come from. Another submersible had arrived, and Solus could tell something was on board. Something powerful, much like Akheron. But different. Solus decided to feel how much different. With a quick focus, Solus peered into the Impossible Geometries, and directed his sight towards the submersible and those on board. Usually when Solus looked at living things, the shapes, colors, and sounds were in a constant state of flux. Constant churning change, overlapping with growing and shrinking. Emotions would cover each other up as unworkable shapes morphed into other ones. But on the submersible, it was very different. The geometric shapes did not move as smoothly as they should have. They were constantly jerking and stopping randomly, like broken gears carrying on a purpase past its expected lifetime. When the thing spoke to him via the Force, Solus saw how the shapes moved wildly into a spin for one moment, then go back into their usual patterns of jerking and stopping. And the colors around them were ashen pallid and drab. There were some colors of emotion, but they were partially greyed out. A state much closer to the dead bodies of the gungans that were nearby then to the Linnorms. “Anti-Life” Solus could only describe it as he broke his gaze from the vessel. “I will find the city, my Master!” Solus then proclaimed, and turned his attention away from the battle. The others were handling it well. Now was his time to shine once again. Again, the Impossible Geometries came into view. Solus focused on his conglomeration of shapes and the colors that came from them. The anger was there but Solus noted there was more fear than anger around. “No no, this won't do. I need anger...more anger...focus on the anger…” Solus called up the memories of his shard mates leaving him all alone in the void. He focused on the images of Tear not obeying his commands. The idea that your master will not recognize your greatness. Yes, those images. Focus on those images. Let the anger flow out from you. That red cloud of anger...now spread it out. Let it cloud the area… Good. Now the envy. Supply it. It isn’t too hard. Remember that vision back on Korriban? The feeling when that thing was taking your things? Or earlier up above with your master? Supply it. Give those feelings to me… There. The lines of envy...now...throw them out there. Solus obeyed and intensified his focus further. He could feel the darkness around him and within him, pushing him to grow. With a wave of his hand, the lines of envy traveled with the cloud of anger, making a pattern of solid objects like a lidar radar. Mostly rocks and plants, nothing out of the ordinary at first. But as Solus pushed further, stretching his anger as far as possible, he found something. “There!” Solus pointed westward in the dark abyss, and spoke on all channels so that way he could be heard in the vehicle at this short range. “Large structures! At least, that’s what it looks like. Perhaps I and our, er, new ally, should go to it and destroy them?"

Solus received the lightsaber gratefully, and nodded to his master. He hoped that this mistake would be overlooked and he would receive more chances in the future to prove himself. Solus activated the blade and looked at the other monsters. One was starting to flee the scene. Solus’ anger flared up and he gave chase. Within a moment, he caught up, and hacked its tail off, then a fin, and then finally a head. While it didn’t make him feel any better, at least he was doing something productive now. Solus stopped and focused himself on the impossible geometries. He had to make sure he wasn’t missing anything. It was slightly different down here. The air had a different tinge and shape then the water around him. It was more organically shaped...it formed different kinds of kaleidoscopic scenes. It felt… Solus stopped. A tiny splotch of yellow and red rapidly approaching from behind. Solus barely reacted in time to spin around and block the oncoming plasma ball. “Haha! Well timed! We were just running out of targets!” Solus called out and charged forwards. The gungans were after at the same thing the Linnorms were after. It was his duty to prevent that from occurring. In the ensuing battle, Solus was surprised at one thing: The gungans were much fiercer down here compared to when they battled above. They were smoother. They had more grace. They fought in all three dimensions. Still, Solus fought. The death pleased him. The fighting made him happy. He could feel the presense of the Fanged God along side him, a terrible force of power giving him fuel to kill more and more. At one point, Solus grabbed one of the gungans by the throat and pulled him close. A bragging was in order. “You really think you can stop us? You are weak! We are so much stronger!” The gungan did something surprising. He smiled “Yousa will nebber beat all-n ussa. Wesa'll always combackie. Wesa'll crush yousa whena yousa least spect it puny sith.” Solus was surprised. Such confidence was not what he expected. Still, it did not prevent him from stabbing the gungan's heart and leaving him for dead. “Master! Master!” Solus rushed towards Akheron. “Master, I believe the Gungans have more reinforcements nearby. A city perhaps!” Perhaps this would give him a chance to redeem himself in his master’s eyes.

For those first few moments in the fish’s stomach, Solus felt fear. The adventure of being swallowed whole by another creature was a wholly new and unpleasant experience. “Let me out, let me out, let me out!” Solus shouted as he thrashed about. He could see nothing. It was pitch black in the creature’s stomach. And his thermo sensors couldn’t see anything beyond the creature’s hide. “Let me OUT! LET ME OUT!” Solus raised in pitch and volume as his panic continued to crescendo. Even his force sight wasn’t helping. His own fear was practically choking. He had no weapon. No sight. No direction. No escape. “HELP!” Suddenly a blade of red energy sliced inches from the Shard’s face. The top half of the Colo Claw fell away as Solus burst out into the water. “Oh master! Thank you! Thank you so much!” Solus couldn’t see the look on Lord Akheron’s face. His own was covered with fish slime and digestive liquids. However, once he wiped the obscuring muck off, it became clear. “Master I...oh um…” Solus instantly silenced. He didn’t need force sight to tell what Akheron was feeling. Solus did what he knew best. Sell himself. “I master, I...I found the plasma! Yes, in that hole there, a large storage of plasma from the planet’s core. I was able to pierce it with the blade and then the creatures awoke and...um…” Solus fell silent again. Without his blade, there wasn’t much he could do. So instead he watched in dread and shame as the others cleaned up his mess, and awaited a response from his master. For the first time in his life, Solus knew what shame was.

Solus recited the mantra slowly after Akheron spoke them, imprinting it into memory. A unique mantra to be sure. Solus couldn’t help but feel the equivalent of a shard chill at the words, the lines in his shard jumping erratically with each syllable. But they were quickly set aside. Solus had a new task ahead of him. Swimming. Solus approached the water slowly, not sure what to expect. When the liquid touched his metal chassis it felt strange, but not uncomfortable. A slight pressure, but nothing else. “Well, time to do something that none of my shardmates would never get the chance to…” Solus stated, and with that, jumped in. The feeling of sinking into the liquid slowly, as his own density was heavier than the water, was fascinating. To slowly drift downwards and watch the world above become harder and harder to spot. The sound was so much different down here. It was so much louder. Noises came from every direction as the vibrations from the water struck Solus at every single angle. For a moment, Solus was scared. But then he instinctively activated his propellers. “Haha! What...movement! What speed! What...haha! Behold!” Solus cried in laughter as his body moved through the water effortlessly. He did a sort of dance with the waves, just appreciating the movement. “Never before would I have thought! I...I am flying! But not flying! Water! Oh such a beautiful thing! Haha! You! Linnorms! Is this what your life is like all the time in this liquid?” Several Linnorms of Quarren and Man Calamari had joined the Shard. They were entirely focused with the mission and not with Solus’ discovery of liquid. One of them, a Quarren, pointed downwards into the dark depths. “Ah! Yes yes, quite right. We are on a mission! But look at this! Haha!” Solus performed a somersault, quickly adjusting to his propellers mode of transport. He received a smack to the head by the Quarren, who was glaring at this point. They needed to focus. Solus was leading this group. There was no time for amusement. “Fine, fine. Follow me! I will prove to Lord Akheron my worth!” With that Solus adjusted himself and began diving into the darkness below. Minutes turned into hours. Solus’ excitement quickly gave way to curiosity, and then boredom as the light from above became dimmer and dimmer. Still, even as he approached pitch blackness being lit up only by the Linnorms lights, he wasn’t frightened. Unlike the darkness of when he wasn’t connected to his chassis, here he could still see and feel things. The pressure especially. As the group swam deeper and deeper, Solus could feel the pressure on his chassis. It was a squeezing feeling, with each plate fighting back against the waters seeking to crush him. Still, Solus pressed on. At one point he had to stop and study the surroundings. The aquatic life was almost absent, as if the fish knew what was happening on the surface and went into hiding. No doubt, the gungans had found one of their own hidden cities to escape destruction. But when Solus focused on his Force sight, he noted a few things. One was that the ground was going to slope sharply downwards soon. And another was the corpses of a few large fish. A quarren explained that the corpses were Opee Sea Killers, killed from the bombardment above. The group was lucky. No doubt, more leviathan creatures awaited further below. Solus had a Linnorm contact the sub about the corpses, and continued onwards. Nothing else of importance was here. The darkness was now a maw, swallowing those who dared to descend. ------- Solus lost track of time. Unlike any kind of droid, he had no way to tell how much time had passed without some kind of external giveaway like light. The Naboo Abyss lived up to its name. Everywhere was only more water, rock, and inky blackness. Despite the lack of life the group saw, the noises had grown much louder. Deep in these abysmal waters, Solus could hear and feel the waves of monstrous things moving about. Roars from behemoths echoed across vast distances while monstrous leviathans stalked the nearby casms. The ground they followed shuddered as if the planet could feel the pain from above. The noises and the darkness were getting on everyone's nerves, especially Solus. It felt like something would emerge from an unseen passage to devour the group whole. But every time Solus stopped and looked with his newfound sight, he found only empty water. Solus was visibly getting frustrated. "Finally, something up ahead!" Solus exclaimed. A large hole opened up in the ground ahead, like some kind of mouth at the bottom of the sea. Nothing unusual, except... "I can see, way deeper inside, a heat signature… a very large one! Hoho! But when I look with the force, I see nothing. How odd! I simply must inspect this! Yes, most definitely inspect…" The Linnorms gave the shard a concerned look. This hole didn't seem all that promising, and the shard hadn't paused like he usually did to sense the force. Was he that bored that he would lie to the others to break the monotony? Still, he was the leader... "You stay here! Guide the sub to us...I'll be back momentarily!" With that, Solus went deeper. The hole would be barely wide enough for the sub. It went for a couple hundred meters, banishing into pure darkness. Solus was now completely relying on his own heat sensors to guide him to the floor, and even then he was essentially blind. The cavern was so hot. Something was down here. Eventually, he landed. The ground churned and rolled under his feat. It was a strange feeling. Solus could see the water around him begin to almost boil from the heat. "What secret are you hiding here? " Solus unhooked the borrowed lightsaber, and activated it. The red hissing glow revealed nothing more but rock. But the ground was much too soft, and moved as if it was on a liquid… Following instinct, Solus stabbed the ground and pulled back as a jet of liquid plasma shot up, boiling tons of water instantly before the hole was sealed up by melting rock. Solus disarmed his weapon. Time to swim back up and give the others the good news. Oh how his master would praise him! Just as Solus' feet left the ground, the cavern was bathed in a biolumescant glow. --------- One way gungans find where plasma will be is by finding what they called Claw Hatcheries. The Colo Claw Fish, known for its size and ferocity, lays a clutch of eggs in the warmest spots they can find. These spots tend to be where the ground between the water and Naboo's plasma core is thinnest and where the plasma could erupt soon. Had Solus actually used the force to see down here, and not rushed in out of boredom, he would've seen there were five very young Colo Claw Fish. Each one big enough to big three beings whole. And each with a monstrous appetite to match. ------- The first fish came crashing out of the hole with Solus in its jaws. The shard was barely holding the upper jaw separated from the bottom, trying to avoid a crushing death. The fish was attempting to swallow the robotic being whole. The other four Colo Claws raced afterwards, hoping to steal a morsel of the food from the lucky one. When they came out and saw the other beings, they changed their minds and went for these fleshy snacks. Laser fire opened up as the Linnorms, caught off guard, attempted to kill the monsters. Solus screeched out as the jaws pushed down tighter and tighter. "Shoot it! Shoot it no-auuugh " The Colo Claw's tounge wiggled under the shard. Solus slipped slightly and lost his grip. The jaws came down and Solus was swallowed whole. Then the beast turned and swam straight for one of the Linnorms, leaving nothing but a sinking lightsaber hilt.

"I did wonder about those. Our Master Of Cloth seems to have taken leave of his senses again....those attachments were not necessary, you have legs with which to swim like a sentient and arms. No matter, we shall have to make do for now. Solus stared at his master and his words, confused. For the first time, he didn’t understand why Akheron thought this way. Stitch-Mouth seemed completely sound of mind, at least from what Solus could see. Solus never heard him speak a word, but the glares when the shard spoke, the meat he gave to Tear, the utter sense of contempt for everyone… For the first time, Solus realized that not everyone in the Sith thought alike. “As to your suggestion, it is a excellent idea. Your uses become more, keep it up. Take a scouting party of our Mon Calamari and Quarren Linnorms with you. Guide our submersible craft a path through the Abyss, it shall each excellent test of your capabilities, to truly test your awareness in the force” Solus beamed a bit with pride, at least silently. It was hard to express emotion with no facial muscles. Still, he did straighten up and his arms and hands reflexively tightened with excitement. “But before that, you must learn how, as such here is your next lesson. You may have stretched out on a small scale before but for this...more is required. As before, relax, and focus your hatred and rage. Only this time, expand it outwards…” Solus nodded and began to disconnect from his body again for a moment, like he did back on the transport down to the surface. It was a little easier this time. Perhaps it was because of the wound in the force, or because he was more relaxed, or because he had just gotten a word of praise from his master, but Solus found it much less frightening to try to open himself to the impossible geometries. It was still beautiful as always. Solus doubted that the Impossible Geometries would ever be ugly. It was much more sickly now, with all the death and destruction that had just happened. But it was still beautiful. Solus could see and recognize Akheron’s presence, a powerful cacophony of shapes, colors and lines that were almost overbearing. Like a cloud of death or a wind of murder given a new form. Solus could also see himself a bit better. The presence of his own body as a conglomeration of images and smells and tastes. But it was less red now. Less anger. Less rage. “Odd” Solus pondered, not realizing he was still connected to his body and thus spoke out loud. “Still, maybe it's always like that. Perhaps I must...focus.” "But focus on what? Anger? But what gives me...them...my Shardmates.... Indeed. They did that torture to me. But now they are gone. But I am here. Yet why did they feel good and I didn’t? That’s not fair. No...not fair at all. I should have experienced peace like them. But I wasn’t good for them. No no no…” Solus could see it now. A cloud of red. Anger emitting from his body. But there were some stripes of sickly yellow-green. Envy. His sin that he identified with back on Korriban with Lady Sirena. “Anger and Envy. A deadly combination” Solus mused, and put more thoughts about his shardmates and how lucky they had it. The lines of envy grew alongside the clouds of anger, dashing about like the lines inside Solus’ shard. “Now...to just let it...not go...um...search? Yes, search…” The anger began to spread out from his body into the impossible geometries. It filled those odd spaces where nothing existed, and wrapped around new objects. Objects Solus hadn’t seen before. As the cloud did that, the stripes of envy slashed towards the objects and gave them shape. The leaves, the bodies, his master...they were a little clearer now. He could see the individual bugs crawling up his torso. The fires consuming the bodies. The… Solus stopped. Behind him in the impossible geometries he saw a splotch of red, green, and yellow. The splotch was growing in intensity. Solus focused on that spot, letting the clouds of anger drift towards it. It was in a tree. Solus focused harder, guiding the envious lines. They began to make a trace of something. Something humanoid? And the center of the colors Solus could see… Solus whipped around, his hands barely catching the spear that had been hurled at the shard. “There! We missed one!” Solus called out, pointing out the Gungan who had somehow avoided the slaughter. The Linnorms quickly rushed and killed the last warrior, eager to get another kill in. Solus chuckled, for it was Tear who got to the Gungan, knocked him out of the tree, and tore him apart. Solus turned back to Akheron, his pride not hiding at all. True his body still felt a bit drained, but not as intensely as when he pulled the Gungan into the charge. “How was that my master? Oh ho ho, the Force is truly amazing! Haha! Truly I will be a god-like being soon if I continue this, correct? Haha, yes, truly amazing...”

Solus straightened up in pride at his master’s words. Just that piece of praise elated him even further. Still this time the words of caution didn’t fly right over his head. At least this time the words registered with the Shard. However, whether or not he would follow them would be something only time could tell. “Be on your guard and ever aware in the Darkness of the force, while down there. Use it as a guide where your eyes fail you. That said contact the flagship, let them know the area is secure and to send down the submersible transports." Solus nodded and went to find the nearest Linnorm who could do that. He wasn’t exactly equipped with a way to contact the ships. A few moments went by. One of the transports was carrying a rather large submersible down to the swamp. Someone explained to Solus that it was an old Imperial submarine, Class-S. Large enough to carry 6 people, but small enough to navigate some of the tight tunnels in the Naboo Abyss. True, it had required some modifications. There were several harvester claws attached to it now, at the cost of taking off one of the laser cannons. Still, it would survive down there provided it didn’t fly into the teeth of a large fish. As the submarine was placed into the waters, Solus had a thought, and, at the water’s edge, asked his master quietly. “My great lor.....er, my master…” Solus shook his head, still trying to get used to the term. “Er, that Sorcerer back on the ship, he attached these…” Solus showed off the metal tubes with the propellers attached to his shoulders and ankles. For added effect, he spun them and rotated them in a full 360 degrees with but a thought of his shard brain. “I now can see where they may come into use. Shall I scout ahead a bit outside of the sub, allowing you to take another Linnorm with you? After all, I don’t believe I breathe, and could be of great use getting into the smaller crevices that this machine might struggle with.” Part of this question was to simply test out the new attachments. But another was to have another opportunity to show how much use he could be to Akheron. After all, a Sith who didn’t need to breathe and could do the most unique tasks would be of much higher value, and deserving all the more praise.

Solus brought up an arm and slammed his chest in a salute. “Yes my master! With eagerness I shall clear these Gungans!” Without waiting for another word, Solus rushed forward. Solus felt his entire body practically fly through the air towards the Gungan forces, feet barely touching the ground. He noted briefly through his side sensor how Tear was running alongside of him, eager to continue the kill. This hunt was a good one. There was much death to cause. Solus activated the loaned blade, this time not fumbling as much. A Gungan on his right was cut in half as the shard passed by. To the left, then back right, Solus brought his blade across, splitting a polearm in twain before ending the warrior who held it. Through the overgrowth the metal chassis charged, unable to stop itself from the excitement of battle. Tear jumped and landed on a Gungan, biting a face off, before racing to keep up. Solus saw a group of four in front, readying their slings with plasma orbs. As one, they began to throw them at their attacker. Solus gave into his instincts and leapt. With only the power a machine could bring, Solus flipped up and over the shots, one actually striking his blade harmlessly. Feet came down first on one Gungan, crushing bones and cartilage. Solus then spun wildly, catching another warrior’s ear. The other two warriors reacted accordingly. They backed off a step, reading another shot, and took aim. Solus was fortunate that Tear was with him. The hound didn’t even pause as he jumped, landed on one, and then pushed off to the other, slitting its throat with aimed claws. Meanwhile, his long whip-like tail actually snapped and sliced off an eye of the previous target. Laughter began to emit from the sith apprentice. It was the laughter of someone having the best day of their life. The laughter didn’t pause for a breath, even as Solus grabbed the warrior with a missing ear, spun, and threw his target into a tree. The laughter only changed when Solus began charging again towards the war beasts that were flinging plasma balls at the Linnorms behind their shield generators. As Solus charged across a clearing towards his new targets, his laughter changed to song. “Let me get by, gonna kill them all Gonna kill, gonna kill, gonna kill them all! Can’t hold back, Gungan’s gonna fall Gonna kill, gonna gonna kill them all!” Even as he sang, Solus was still aware of his surroundings. When a Gungan charged from the side, thinking the droid had no peripheral vision, Solus only stopped, slashed the spear, grabbed the foe's neck, crushed it, then charged on. “Ooh, all that blood, a rushing flood Gonna kill, gonna kill, gonna kill them all! Make dirt into mud with all that good blood Gonna kill, gonna gonna kill them all!” Some Linnorms had caught up with Solus, rushing alongside him. While they didn’t know what he was singing, they understood the repetition, and couldn’t help but join in every other line, fueling their own bloody rage. “Feed the god, make sharp the tooth Gonna kill, gonna kill, gonna kill them all! Death after all is the final truth, Gonna kill, gonna gonna kill them all!” The group passed through the energy energy shield harmlessly. A volley of energy balls came over the group. Solus was able to dodge and weave his way through the fire. Those Linnorms who didn’t get hit nor trip over those who did were able to keep up with him. "Can’t hold back, gotta fight all day Gonna kill, gonna kill, gonna kill them all! We could never have it any other way Gonna kill, gonna gonna kill them all!” At the final verse, Solus made contact with the warriors. Solus wasn’t aware of how much time, whether seconds, minutes, or hours, went by. He couldn’t remember how many warriors fell, nor how many of his own brothers fell. He couldn’t recall any of the words he sang after that. All he could remember was giving into the rage of battle. The joy of killing. The energy that the Force fed him with each death and mutilation. It was overwhelming. Never had Solus felt so alive with each murder. After a period of time later, Solus stood on top of a mountain of corpses, eagerly looking around for more to kill. The Fanged God needed to be fed. He had to kill. The Fanged God demanded it. There needed to be more. But it seemed that all of the nearby enemies were dead. “Is that all? Bring me more! I must kill!” Solus cried out, raising his fists to the air, blade still ignited. The other Linnorms around who were still alive cheered, thinking this to be some kind of war cry. Overhead, the ships began landing some transports. Nearby, the swamp was ready for entrance. Finally, Solus began calmed down and deactivated his blade, and looked around for his master. Surely he would be pleased with the Shard's work.

His master’s words of caution flew right over his head. Perhaps it was the excitement of battle, or the idea that gods like Akheron feared death was abhorrent to him, Solus didn’t give a single thought about caution. His master's words on what to do did catch his attention. As he demonstrated, Solus could briefly see the force shimmer around him. The colors of rage and hatred briefly saturated the air between Akheron and the gungan who toppled over. Fear exploded out of the Gungans like a black gas. The impossible geometries of the Force never ceased to look so amazing and deadly. But how to do it himself? Solus reached a hand out, like those in the visions long ago. He attempted to focus on the colors of emotion around him. The reds of anger and hate, the blacks of fear and terror. He willed the reds coming off of his own chassis to stretch out towards the Gungans. A long, thinning arm of fire, with a deadly hook on the end. Solus focused on the hook. Let it go to the Gungan on the right. Let it grab his ear and… The Gungan was pulled over slightly, but not strongly. The color of red in the force intensified around solus. and with more effort, he willed the hook to not grab the ear, but rather the small wisps of fear that had just leaked from the target. This time the hook caught true. It pierced the fear and ensnared it. Solus' physical hand closed around the invisible rope of rage, and pulled back, willing the invisible hook to retract. To his delight, the Gungan jerked and dropped forward over his mount. The Kaadu veered uncontrollably. The entire line of cavalry were now in a disarray, losing their charging momentum, toppling over themselves. “I did it! Yes! Haha! I...whoah…” Solus stumbled for a moment as he suddenly lost sight of the colors of emotion. “Master my...my body? Why...it feels heavy all of a sudden, like my gears...whoah.” Just as quickly as it came, it left. The drainage of energy was replaced by his usual running of power. His gears whirred back to normalcy. “Master...is that normal to feel that drainage? Does the wicked flame cost my body?” As he asked, Tear was getting to work. With the cavalry toppling over and in disarray, the hound charged into the thick of it. Leaping from target to target, Tear’s claws sunk into chests as his teeth tore off ears and eyes. The Gungans screamed briefly as Tear killed them one by one, and with all of the chaos, were helpless to stop the beast. Tear roared in triumph over his enemies, caked in blood and guts.

As Solus held the weapon in his hand, his excitement was barely containable. While he didn’t understand how it worked, he knew its purpose clearly. A weapon of the gods, in his very hand. A weapon to cause destruction as he saw fit. A thing to cause death on a scale of his choosing. Solus also felt the loss of life in the force when Akheron did. It was an amazing feeling. The loss of life only felt like a tingle, but he could see it. Fading in and out of his sensor's vision, the impossible geometries revealed themselves, shattering and unable to reform. As his lord went to battle, Solus couldn’t help but watch, almost hypnotized by his master’s battle prowess. The force around him was changed color. The air, was it more red now, or was that just the glow of his blade? “Yes my master! Haha! Isn’t it glorious? Oh is the Fanged God enjoying this? Haha! I must join! Yes! I must join in! Haha He calls me to this!” In his elation, the Shard was almost unable to turn on the blade. He shook with excitement as he fumbled with the weapon. But after a moment, the blood-like blade hissed to life. Solus could see the force swirl around the weapon. The red colors were not just from the blades. Solus looked up. An amphibious biped was charging towards the shard, spear in hand. Solus acted on instinct. His free hand reached out and grabbed the spear by the shaft, and with a duck under its pointed tip, Solus brought the blade up. It was so much different then fighting with his previous chassis. Where he would have had momentum, here he had only speed. But where he would’ve felt resistance of metal on flesh, here the only resistance was the energy cutting through burning flesh. The gungan fell lifeless to the ground. Solus couldn’t help but stare at the body momentarily. Then he laughed again. “Hahaha! Such beauty! Yes! The Wicked Flame! The Fanged God! The Dark Side! Death! Death! Death!” Solus began to chant the word over and over again as he charged forward towards the swampy areas. A few more Gungans were waiting, flinging their energy balls with atlatls. Some of the more fresher Linnorms behind Solus took the cue and charged alongside him, eager to kill. “Death! Death! Death!” they all cried out, eager to give the Fanged God his due. When Solus reached the Gungans, he let himself loose. The thrill of killing was still new to him, and with a weapon of the gods in his possession, it was so easy to do! One slash, another slash, a warrior and his weapon were cut down. A spin of the body, and another was decapitated. A bringing of the blade up, then back down, and another Gungan screamed as he lost his arm. “Oh Stitch-Mouth, what a body this is! I can see all the enemies around me! Haha!” Solus continued to hack and slash at the enemies around him. True, it was sloppy and uncoordinated compared to Akheron’s style, with the shard wasting energy and over powering his swings, but still how it filled Solus with glee! A noise caught solus attention. Bursting into the clearing, another gungan charged, this time on some kind of reptavian mount. However, Solus didn’t have time to react, as a blur of motion suddenly knocked the rider off and onto the ground. Tear lived up to his and his brother Rip’s namesake as he pulled the gungan’s throat out. Solus laughed again, and separated the kaadu head from its body. It was clear they both were enjoying themselves greatly. Solus looked up. A line of Kaadu riders charged the Shard, the Hound, and the small batch of Linnorms. Solus readied himself to strike, despite having the numbers and cavalry against him. “Haha! Yes! Come and get me! Come and let me kill!”

“Death comes for all” Solus repeated slowly after Akheron spoke, as if he was tasting every word on his non-existent tongue. What a beautiful phrase. So delicate, yet so powerful. Something about it resonated with the Shard. He liked it immensely. The explanation about the Gungangs was also fascinating, though not as much. The idea that these warrior people utilized something besides technology to combat the forces of this world of worlds was...unbelievable. And Solus voiced that opinion. “Still, to think...not to use the weapons we have at our disposal already and relying on their old contraptions...that is mind boggling, yes? I mean, look at my body! Why, even my last one was a powerful vessel, with all of its crudeness, yes? These Gungans master...bah, if the new empress thinks their weapons will be useful to us, then I wiill do my best to acquire them, but bah!” Solus waved a hand away as if to mock something imaginary. “What pathetic beings we will crush, eh?” Then Akheron spoke those words that Solus was not ready for. “Focus yourself in the Darkness” There was no way Akheron would mean the same darkness that Solus was envisioning. To Akheron, it was probably figurative for the dark side of the force, or the presence of the Fanged God. But for Solus, it was something else entirely. Solus wanted to speak against this command. Solus desperately wanted to beg and ask for just a few guiding words, or permission to let his usual excitement guide his actions. Wasn’t that enough? “Yes...master” Solus instead spoke softly. With that, and a very long pause, the chassis slumped forward slightly as it powered down. Solus was terrified. The darkness that surrounded him was even bigger than before. As impossible as it felt, Solus could sense his robot chassis around him. All it would take was a little jolt from his thoughts, a dash of his shard to the wires on him, and the body would come back online. But he couldn’t. Not yet. “The Darkness” Akheron’s voice echoed in the endless void. Solus was a soul floating on an invisible current, with nothing moving nor anchoring him. Space could only hope to be as impossibly big as this. The gap between him and the edge of everything was too far to sense, yet it was right there. Akheron’s voice echoed again, a memory in a land of silence. Connect your rage, anger...your hate and fear....suffering to it Solus wanted to cry, but he had no voice to sob with. He desired to weep, to mourn, but with no body, how could he make such a desire come true? The silence. The darkness. The shadow of nothing. How terrifying! How dreadful! Oh to be back in that world of worlds! To leave this place! Could anyone hear him from here? Could anyone even speak to him here? Maybe he should flee now. Back to the world of worlds where the light shines and... No...focus Solus. Don’t let it consume us again. Right Solus? We have been here before. For an eternity that was only a moment. Stay... focus…. Remember those words…Let them echo again. Connect your rage, anger... Rage...oh that is a powerful emotion! Yes, we remembered it. The first moments when you, Solus, were cast off into this void. Do you remember that, little Solus? Those first few moments of silence? How quickly you turned to anger with your shard-mates...can you still feel that anger? Oooh it makes me hungry now… I drool with anticipation... Your hate... Oh the hate...how sweet it is to feel that despicable thing. Can you focus on it? Point it in a direction? There we go, Solus...point it. Guide it. Where are we aiming? I don’t know anymore… Akheron? That is a good thing to hate, but why him? Cause he placed us here? He simply commanded you. We obeyed. No...no...not him…no definitely not Roshan, though maybe Lord Helios would do... The Gungans… yes that's a good target. Ooooh that hate is flowing now! We hate the Gungans. We’ve never met them, and yet we already loathe them entirely... I’m sure even Akheron feels that hatred! We certainly do, haha! Oh how my hunger grows in anticipation! Connect suffering to it Yes, connect it. Like you connected with the wires to the body, connect the darkness with our suffering. All the pain we feel. Let it flow into the darkness and back out. In….out….in...out… Who is that? Who is speaking to us? You don’t know? Good...let’s keep it that way. Focus Solus. Feel the darkness. Remember the Force? The Wicked flame? Can you call on it now? There it is... the impossible geometries. The colors of emotions. The sounds of death and guilt. The smells of hunger. My hunger. MY hunger Solus. Can you smell it? Death is my meat Solus. Use your hatred. Yes, like that. Tint all the impossible things with that hate. Make all the life around your scrawny little shard feel it. Make the Force feel your hate...yes...now feed me. Recall the hatred. Bring it back. Focus it on the Gungans. Can you see them? Good. Now kill them...kill them. Kill them all With a start, Solus’ body powered on. The ship was approaching the planet now. It was only a few miles above a swamp where they would land. Surely the Gungans were below. “Let us kill them master!” Solus proclaimed. Next to him, Tear seemed to smile, as impossible as it should have been for such a hound. “I feel the darkness flowing through me! Yes that is what it is! Let us kill the Gungans! Kill the Gungans, haha!”

Solus nodded and studied each word Lord Akheron said intently. Only when everyone was making their way to the ships did he get a chance to expound his thoughts. “Um...master…” Solus started, a little unsure of himself. “I can’t help but question the fact that a new empress is in charge now? Whatever happened to the Spider? Did she kill him? If so, what does that bode for us? And if not, is she truly worthy to lead? I mean, if someone else killed him, then she is...” A few of the Linnorms who could overhear gave Solus a glare. The shard couldn’t help but flinch slightly under their sight, much to the soldiers’ amusement as they strapped themselves in. It was clear that, as their lord stated, Solus needed to prove himself, and questioning their newest Empress was not helping. Solus needing to earn respect not just from Lord Akheron, but to the Linnorms. After all, how many new recruits, full of zeal and unbridled passion, died on their very first mission? Respect couldn’t be wasted on the weak. “And um…” Solus continued as he and Tear boarded a ship, which started up and began to take off. “Gungans? Pardon my inexperience, but what are they? I overheard a few of the others mention them. Warriors of some kind? Or something akin to livestock? Truth be told, I don’t fear either, but it may help me if I knew more…” Outside the ship, the firepower was truly impressive. The metal vessels that hung over the planet reminded Solus of some battle he saw in his visions long ago. The one with the massive city below and two waging armies above. Somewhere in his chassis, despite his ignorance of the situation, Solus tingled with excitement. "My my my... what a beautiful sight..." Tear growled in agreement.

When Solus powered on, his first sight was Stitch-Mouth standing over him, robes covering everything but his scarred face. “Gah!” Solus shouted as he jumped up. Tear was also startled awake, and gave out a yelp in surprise. “Wh...what’s happening?” Stitch-Mouth said nothing, but pointed at Solus’ shoulder, and then ankles. Recently attached to them were metal tubes with propellers inside them. Solus was surprised to discover that he was already controlling them, as wires had been worked into him and attached to them. Solus looked at the devices and then at Stitch-Mouth. “My my, thank you good...um...thank you...You must be akin to some kind of specialized mechanic, with me as your project, no?” The human said nothing, but the glare spoke volumes. Solus instantly quieted. Something about this sorcerer unnerved him. Stitch-Mouth first gave Tear a piece of meat, and then led the Shard and the Hound through the Destroyer, to another hangar, where groups of men and women were preparing for battle. Even as Solus approached the hangar, he could hear the chants and singing of the linnorms, mentally preparing themselves. “We go with blades, and guns alight, Ra-ka-ka-ta, Ra-ka-ka-ta! The mouth is open, we kill tonight, Ra-ka-ka-ta, Ra-ka-ka-ta! Solus found himself swaying slightly with the chants of an old shanty-turned gospel. The people making the noise were clearly into it, as if this ordeal was a religious experience. Course, to them, this was everything. And their energy was practically sucking Solus into it. Stitch-Mouth however, simply turned around and left Solus to his devices. “What greatness! What wonderfulness! What beauty!” Solus commented. Tear growled in agreement. “Cut off their heads and break their bones, Ra-ka-ka-ta, Ra-ka-ka-ta! Feed the gods with their moans! Ra-ka-ka-ta! Ra-ka-ka-ta! Solus entered the hangar. A crowd of the Linnorms were gathered around the ships, chanting, singing, drinking and inhaling mind-altering drugs. They were ready for this. For a bit, Solus only stared at the group, unsure what to do, and unable to turn away from the rowdy choir. Then everyone came to attention. The Lord of Wrath was entering.

As the newly built Exodus-Class Star Destroyer pierced through hyperspace on her maiden voyage, so too did Solus try to tame his hound on his chassis’ maiden combat situation in one of the many hangers.. “Ah! Down Tear! Down I say!” Solus tried to command as he and the hound rolled over and over on the floor. Solus’ metal hands were gripping onto the beasts upper and lower jaw, doing everything in his power from keeping it snapping around his head. Eventually Solus raised his leg and pushed the hound away from him. The hound tumbled on the floor and slammed into a fighter, but quickly back jumped to its feet, while Solus was still getting up. The hound leapt forward, claws eager to fulfill its name’s purpose. It’s master before had kept it contained through sheer violence and size. Now, Solus was almost as small as it was, if just a foot bigger. Solus was weaker, and thus, no longer in charge when the shock leash was off. Solus barely rolled out of the way of the hound’s tumble. His mind flashed back to when he had fought Tear’s brother, Rip, and the rest of its pack. Back then, he was with Lord Roshan and his other warrior, and Solus had his large chassis. He was able to hold Tear down with one hand, and break leg bones just by squeezing. “This is just so stupid. So dumb! Gah!” Solus angrily shouted as he dodged another pounce. This time he was ready and leapt onto the hounds back, grabbing tightly. “Obey me Tear! You know I’m in charge.” Solus commanded to no avail. Instead Tear responded with by rolling over and pressing onto Solus with his back. Solus thanked the force that Tear hadn’t developed spines yet like his brother. Still, he was forced to let go. The two got themselves up and circled each other momentarily. Tear growled and bared its razor-sharp teeth. Solus started to lose hope. This was useless, he did not have the same strength to tame Tear. “Come on Tear, what is it? What will make you obey me again…” Tear barked in response, its glowing red eyes showing no fear nor compassion. It had no reason to listen to this fake thing. Solus tried to think more. He recalled what his master had said. A tuk'ata must have it's allegiance earnt through sheer will, by bending it's will to your own. Dominate his mind. Show him your true self, your darkness, your rage, anger and all your fears. Earning his loyalty, only then will you have a true hound of war to follow you for perhaps centuries to come. For they are not easily bought and rare to find. Let him loose from his chain, break his will on the journey to Naboo, consider this your first real test as a Sith Solus shook his newly made head in confusion. “Bend your will to my own? Isn’t that what I did before? By beating you to a pulp and breaking your legs?” Tear charged, trying to use its teeth instead of its claws this time. Solus stumbled back a bit in surprise and raised an arm up in defense. Tear grabbed the arm and, with the force of a beast, shook Solus around and threw him to the side. The Shard crashed into the wall, shocked from the sheer muscle Tear had. He had been growing since Korriban. He was just so big that Solus never really saw it. “Why won’t you listen to me?” Solus shouted, anger in his synthesized voice. Tear charged again but this time he was ready. As the beast leapt, Solus brought his arm up and struck at the thing’s throat. Solus didn’t realize how much strength he actually did have. While it was nothing compared to his previous chassis, it was still the strength of a robot. With the air knocked out, Tear collapsed onto the ground momentarily. Solus looked at his arm. The dents in it, as well as the strain in Solus’ shoulder, showed the power of Tear’s jaws. If he was an organic, it might’ve been torn off. “You damaged me!” Solus yelled. Tear was getting up. Solus was up first and jumped up and placed himself over Tear. With one hand on its head and the other on its shoulder, Solus pinned the hound with his full weight. “You DAMAGED ME!” Solus shouted, his synthesized voice blaring out slightly. Tear began to struggle, but Solus only pressed down harder. “All you had to do was listen to me. You needed to listen to me! But no! You decided to not listen at all and damge me! Cut me out of everything and leave me! Thats what you all did! Isolate me like some piece of NOTHING!” Tear stopped and looked at the being. The force was coming off of the metal being now. Waves of anger and pain were rapidly intensifying. The shard’s past was being brought forward. With its new body, Solus was more connected to the Force then ever, and the beast not only recognized it, but relished in its nourishment. Inside his chassis, as the pain came to the surface, the shard’s lines became faster and more precise. Their usual chaotic dance began to imitate a more geometric shape as its feelings became focused. “All you, and all the rest of you had to do was listen! I had visions! I saw the world of worlds! I SAW EVERYTHING! And I was right! I was! Not them! ME! ME! AND YOU ALL PUNISHED ME FOR BEING RIGHT!! WELL WHO IS RIGHT NOW!?!?!” With each sentence, Solus’ voice became more garbled and distorted as the dark side surged from the shard inside the thing’s head. With each surge, the lines got closer and closer, until finally, they were perfectly aligned. "WHO"S RIGHT NOW!!!!" Solus grabbed Tear, picked him up, and blared his scream. The shard turned a horrid black. The metallic screech was layered with dark energy from the fury inside the Shard that had been held back for centuries. . The walls shook slightly as the force, starting to be recognized by the Shard, vibrated. True, Solus would probably never be able to do this on purpose without training, but here, Tear was his prisoner and Solus could give into his rage without worry. The screech only lasted for a few seconds. Then Solus’ body collapsed. Despite being robotic, his body was drained of all power. Solus could see but was unable to move. His hound locked eyes on his fallen master who only moments ago. He was completely helpless. Nothing could save him now… Tear calmly walked up and curled himself around Solus’ body. His master had finally shown some of his true colors. His pain. His rage. This is what nourished the Tu'kata more then any kind of meal. Death was its meat. The Dark Side was its drink. And its master could provide equal measures of both. Solus chuckled a bit at this as his body temporarily powered down. It would soon power back up however, when the ship’s broke hyperspace at Naboo.

As the Sorcerers performed their work, Solus’ shard could feel the energies around them. The force, as profane and dark as it was, resonated with Solus’s shard. The lines inside the crystal would reach out to the edges as if to try to touch that unseen energy of life. But Solus also watched. In his old chassis, lumbering over the little beings that worked, Solus observed each piece of metal that was smelted, forged, and shaped. Each piece started out rough, and worn down. Scraps from security droids, weapons, and vehicles, long past any use without repair. But with only the tools of their magic and a few pieces of technology, the sorcerers’ spun cords of wire together, welded plates to each other, and forced screws into holes without delicacy. “It is rather...small...isn’t it? Could it be bigger?” Solus started to complain. One of the Sorcerers, a human whose mouth was stitched shut, glared at the robotic being, earning Solus’ silence. However, Solus continued to worry. The chassis...it was so small! True, he was used to having a towering figure, but even this thing was small by the organics standards. Solus guessed it was only four feet tall as best. And its limbs! So thin! How in the force would Solus kill anyone with such thin limbs? True, the chassis had two attractions to it. It shined for one. The Sorcerers were not conservatives in giving the thing a flaxen tinge to all of its plates, and the runes they carved into the metal were filled with a golden trim. Around its neck was bound a collar of pure gold. "The Golden Slave indeed!" The other feature Solus liked was its face, or lack-there-of. Its facial plate was perfectly smooth, with it all being a series of sensors involving sight, sound, and heat. However, before Solus could study the face further, it opened up, revealing an open cavity. Stitch-mouth, the human, turned to Solus. Without a word, he walked forward and tapped Solus’ chest plate. Tear did not try to even stop him, sensing the dark side energies in this area. Solus was shocked, as without his effort, his body opened up. Like two dead hands revealing their prize, so did Solus’ chest open up to show the Shard’s place. “wha...wait...I…” Solus stuttered, unable to move his body whatsoever. Solus' last sight in his old chassis was Stitch-mouth, unceremoniously, reaching in and tearing the Shard out without care. Pain flooded Solus as each sense was ripped away from him. Banished back into the world of dark silence, Solus began to scream. To the Sorcerers and any others around, they would sense the dark side vibrating violently from the small crystal. However, the scream stopped just as quickly as it started. Solus could see! Not with sight, but he could see! The impossible geometrics, the indescribable colors, the unutterable sounds! The screams of violence, the tastes of fire, the shapes of fear and hatred! The Force, as he had seen it on Korriban under Lady Sirena's guidance. Was that Tear, that collection of hungers, wailings, and reds? Those things over there, were they the sorcerers? Impossible… but then, what were they? And at the center of everything, Solus saw something. And Solus felt deep in his shard, that it saw him. Fanged God, bless me! Solus tried to scream out to the thing And for a moment, Solus could've sworn that it smiled. Then it was done. A rush of electricity shot towards the shard, connecting the tiny crystal with the body. "Rise, Solus The Golden Slave. Come observe the might we shall unleash upon our enemies, while you slept...Falleen progressed. I have received word from one of Darth Mavanger's associates, we are to proceed to Naboo, with what forces we can muster...there we will send a message to our enemies not soon forgotten. Your training it seems is to most unexpectedly intensified. Perhaps this a good thing, use this opportunity to prove to me you are worthy of the training you shall receive. The sensors came on first. Solus became dizzy for a moment. Not only was he seeing forward, his entire head could see in every direction. No longer he looked in one direction, but in all 360 degrees. First Solus raised one hand, to gaze at it. It was smooth and light, nothing like his old body at all. And so small! Still, his master had given an order. Feeling out his entire body, Solus commanded the legs to move. First the left, then the right. The hands helped propped him to the table’s edge. Such a new feeling, since Solus had been slithering his life in this world! “You shall come with me to the surface and deliver vengeance and wrath upon all in our path. Our orders are to not hold back, so feel free to unleash your rage and feed the tu'kata as much as he likes. None must survive.`` Solus attempted to stand up. Not used to his new body’s response time, Solus practically flung himself forward onto the ground. Embarrassed, Solus slowly picked himself up, and took a few steps, testing out his new balance. Then he laughed. “Hahaha! What feeling! What experience! To have legs! Master, what a feeling this is to…” Solus stopped and turned sharply to face Akheron. He nearly fell over again, but it was clear he was adapting quickly. With a few steps, Solus raised a foot and spun slightly, kicking the air. Despite his frontward side facing away from his Master, Solus spoke as if he was facing him. “Master! I will kill! Yes, by my Shard, I will kill and all will fall! Haha! Though I say this chassis is small, I will kill!” Tear barked and growled at the new robotic being. Solus, while it didn’t even seem like he looked at his hound (since his head didn’t even turn), turned his attention. “Tear! Enough! Silence before our master! Yes, silence you dumb thing!” At this, Solus raised a hand to smack the dog. Despite being so much smaller then before, Solus was able to make Tear instantly quiet. When the hand lowered, there was a slight growl in its throat, but it was obvious the dog recognized the shard in the new chassis. As the rest of the sorcerers left, Stitch-mouth came up behind Solus and placed some robes around the shard’s body, stitched with a few runes of the order. With that, he left the three beings to tend to other tasks. “Master, I will prove my worth! Despite this small chassis, I will kill all! Yes! So I swear, haha!” And with that, Solus grabbed the leash that held Tear and followed his new master, excited to earn his Master’s approval, as well as the Fanged God.

"Good...the force is strong in you, I sense a powerful Sith you shall perhaps one day become. But for now you are nothing...nothing but a avatar for weakness. You are not my equal and as such shall only refer to me only as your master, I expect for you to treat me as such and refer to me only as master. Failure to show proper decorum shall be severely punished just as any other such failure either in my presence or others of sufficient rank.” “Yes Lo...Master” Solus corrected himself. This was a different word, but a fitting one. The Shard recognised that he was less than this being. After all, it was the same with Lord Roshan and Lady Sirena. But here was the demands to fully acknowledge it. A true Lord indeed! Solus thought to himself. His new master spoke of philosophies and learning, and each word Solus hung on to dearly. Solus did have a momentary question about what reading was, but he was sure he would pick up quickly. At the talk of a lightsaber, Solus instantly knew what was being talked about. Not just from his time with Roshan, but also the visions he had received before his first ascension. One particular vision was very revealing. Two armies of gods, charging each other in some kind of temple. Blades of fire had clashed with each other, and death filled the air like smoke. Yes, those weapons. Solus had seen them before he was separated from his original ‘family’. Back when he was deemed ‘mad’. Solus nearly shook in excitement realizing that he would have his own ‘weapons of the gods’. “Arise and follow Solus, and begin your rebirth. First we visit the sorcerers of Clan Brasganu who for fair recompense will help craft a new body for you, one to better stand the rigours of training. One fitting with your new station. The Golden Slave. Welcome to Clan Brasganu and the Sith." A new body? Solus wondered, surprised at this. Is not this one fit to destroy others? After all, with this body I made Tear my own. Or perhaps...they will make my body even greater. One immaculate and devastating to see and bear against. Yes, one deemed worthy by the gods themselves! “Yes my master!” Solus agreed eagerly and rather loudly. With a tug on the leash, he and Tear continued behind the Lord of Wrath.

"We shall see what purpose you may yet serve if any at all. However, I do see not such a being before me. Solus The Ascended...I see no ascension, not yet, only weakness…” Solus looked up in shock at the lord’s words. Did he not realize what lowly place Solus had already come from? From the eternity where silence and darkness were one and the same? Where loneliness not only crushed the soul, but entirely twisted it up? No, surely the Lord of Wrath knew of such things. But then if Solus had not truly ascended… The lord’s next words make it clear to Solus what was meant. Solus was ignorant. Yes, Lord Roshan behaved the same way to Solus, calling him a child at heart. Lady Sirena took delight in Solus’ ignorance. However it was clear that this being would not tolerate Solus’ ignorance or stupidity. For almost a moment, Solus felt like he almost had a vision. A revelation that what was truly ahead would be tortuous to say the least. But in his shard, Solus felt like he had been through the worst already. What could be worse then silence? Solus’ energy became nearly palpable as his new master began to ask about Solus’ fealty. The force swirled momentarily around the shard, as his emotions grew stronger with resolve. Solus straightened up before the Lord of Wrath and, with a metal fist, slammed his clawed chest once, then twice, where his Shard was hidden. “By my Shard I swear! From this day, I will no longer be Solus the Ascended until you deem so! I will be Solus the Young! Solus the Wyrm! Solus, Disciple of the Wicked Flame and the Fanged God! Yes my lord! Solus the Disciple! Through all the pain and torment you foretell to me, I will ascend! Yes I swear!”

Arriving at the palace, Solus’ attention was immediately brought to the prisoners. Not the women and children, but the men, and specifically the one tied to the wooden stake. Solus didn’t know much about culture, but he could tell that the one tied up was certainly important. “Tear, do you think that...I wonder what will happen. Why tie someone up? To an object like that no less. Perhaps just as I was ascended, he will descend to my previous status? Yes, wouldn't that be a fascinating task” Tear didn’t answer, too focused on trying to chase after the prisoners the two were guiding. There was so much meat here to eat, and its master could only ponder outloud stupid questions. Solus felt what he could only describe as a chill. Despite having no nerve tissue, his entire chassis shivered in response to some outside force. Some power that Solus could feel only be instinct. Then Solus saw him. Just by sight alone, Solus knew who it was. The figure standing in charge of the entire situation. All attention was on him. Solus could feel in his shard the waves of power coming off of the being. It felt like the fires in that hidden city. It felt familiar, if only because of how close Solus had left that planet. “An echo of Korriban. The Lord of Wrath” Solus whispered. Tear also was staring at the being, feeling the same effects its master felt. As the Lord of Wrath spoke, Solus listened to each word, fascinated with the being. Now that he was seeing the person, the power was so much more obvious. Solus recalled how Lord Helios and Lady Sirena had similar power emanating off of them, Unconsciously, the robotic being’s tail began to shiver and shake in excitement. “I must meet him. I must. By my very shard, I will meet this all powerful god…” Then the soldiers set the man on fire. But even the screams of a man in pain, nor the sight of flesh turning black and then into smoke, could pull Solus’ attention away. But it did not escape his notice. It only strengthened his desire to meet this Lord of Wrath. After all, if he could give the orders to set a man aflame, then he must control the ‘Wicked Flame’ The god approached the droid. Solus practically shook with excitement and nervousness. And when he spoke, each word was beautiful. The Divine itself was speaking to him! Oh what a glorious wonder! "And what pray tell are you...and how in chaos is it a droid has taken to a tuk'ata of all things. I sense the force in you...droid. But this should be impossible. Tell me how this came to be, and how you came by the tuk'ata and you may just make it out here alive to tell the tale of what you just witnessed. Speak quickly, my time is not a commodity to waste. It invokes my Wrath. " Solus attempted to bow as low as he could possibly do so. Being eight feet tall, Solus felt like his size was disrespectful to this deity. Still, he kept his sensor to the ground. Surprisingly, Tear did not fight Solus at all at this point but was entirely focused on the same being. “Great Lord of Wrath! I am Solus...Solus the Ascended, once Solus the Lonely. I am not a simple droid, as many others perceive me, but rather I am much more! I am what my father calls a Shard. My father, Lord Roshan, elevated me from a lowly reality of silence, to this wonderful world of worlds. It was there, on beautiful Ishvara, where I killed Tear’s pack, and took him as my own, and on Korriban I forced him to understand my power. It was there where I became truly aware of what I am. “I, my great Lord, am a conduit. Yes my lord, a conduit for the Wicked Flame. That terrible thing that you command, it flows through me as well. Thus, since you command the Force, and the Force flows through me, you command me as well” Solus started to look up at the being, but thought better of it kept face down. “My Lord, spare this puny life, and you may have a valuable weapon to use. While I am a child of Roshan, I am instructed to become a greater weapon. If you spare me, I could become greater in the shadows of your eminence. Yes my lord, spare your weapon’s life, and I will learn under your greatness. By my Shard, I will swear fealty to you!”

As the mechanical being slithered and glided between the piles of corpses, his entire body shook with what could only be described as excitement. “Oh my my my Tear, look at all these! Oh such beautiful pieces! Oh how I wish we could stop and...Tear! Stop that, we can’t...why you little…” Solus had to stop and tighten the cord that connected directly to his wrist. Despite his sudden pull and stern words, Solus was unable to pull the Tuk’ata on the other end. The Sith hound was enjoying a few chomps of flesh too much to worry about the pain the electric collar caused it. Solus’ yellow sensor flickered red for a moment. With the strength that only a droid could summon, Solus pulled sharply, practically choking the beast. The collar activated, giving a painful jolt. Tear ignored it for a moment and gave a tug, but relented after a moment. It knew better than to try to fight back too much. Besides, Tear had gotten as least two swallows of Falleen flesh. With his beast at his side, Solus straightened up and slithered forward. He looked out of place, being a large droid-like being amongst piles of corpses. The shard's grip tighted in anticipating for Tear to make a run for some of the bodies. Truth be told though, Solus would’ve enjoyed letting Tear loose. So many bodies to look at. So many wounds to examine. So much blood to inspect. So much meat to eat. While on Korriban, Solus had a few chances to look at wounds and bodies, but nothing like this. Nothing like the mass carnage that had occurred here. “I mean Tear, look at all of this!” Solus gestured with his free hand towards the corpses all around them. “No where on Korriban would we have gotten to see something like this. And yet we cannot partake in looking closer. Oh, why in the name of the Force are we even here if we can’t do a little looking…” Tear growled at his owner. Solus nodded, pretending to understand. Truth be told, Solus was beginning to understand his hound better. At Korriban, Lady Sirena and Lord Roshan had to leave, but had instructed Solus to care for Tear, bring him to health, and get him under control. With some help from the locals, and a few nights of angry hallucinations, Tear’s legs had healed and came to the realization that the metal being holding its leash was its master. And with that, Solus gained a fragment of understanding. “But then those people...hmph! Soldiers or whatever they were. They had no respect for us!” Solus paused and adjusted his vocabulator, imitating the voice of a gruff and grumpy man. “You! War Droid! Get on that ship. The Lord of Wrath has no patience for malfunctioning units.” Solus waved his hand towards the imaginary soldier he conjured up in his head. “Bah, as if they had no knowledge that I am a child of Roshan. But still, I must admit...the Lord of Wrath…” Solus spoke these words as if he had a chill saying them, despite being a shard in a robotic chassis. “I am curious about this being. Perhaps, Tear, he will teach us something of the Force? Maybe he is a god like Lord Roshan and Lady Sirena? Oh he must be, to have such a title! Perhaps he will teach us something of the ‘Wicked Flame’? Hahaha! of course he will! Such knowledge must always be passed on to others!” “Droid! Shut that yapping and get over here with that mongrel of yours.” A soldier called out. Solus immediately silenced himself and followed suit. He was ordered to take a group of women and children towards the palace and to kill anyone who didn’t obey. “Fascinating…” Solus pondered. “Well, let's get to it you...Falleen? Oh my, this world of worlds is so fascinating. Anywho, let's move! Solus the Ascended commands it!” With a tug on the leash, Tear leapt forward and snapped at the Faleen. The people jumped and moved away from the hound, in the direction Solus was told where the palace was. Solus chuckled to himself. Organics were so scared of little things like teeth. Weren’t there bigger things to worry about?

Solus flinched under Roshan’s criticism and backed away from the central pot instantly. Despite being such a large being, Solus couldn’t help but flinch under the most simplest of words. Surely he would need to work on that? Listening to Sirena’s words made Solus happy again, especially at the thought of touching the darkness within him. Solus looked down and realized his shard was still exposed. With a few motions of his hands, Solus carefully closed up his own chassis and felt the outer layers seal themselves once again. Aliss’ rantings caught the Shard’s attention again. There was a fear coursing throughout her body. Not that Solus could see such an emotion. But he could see the heavy breathing, the beads of sweat, and the wide eyes. Instinctively, Solus knew this was fear. “Perhaps her sin is not revenge and passion…” Solus thought out loud, “but rather fear? Yes, fear I suspect is a deadly path, no? Course, I have experienced no such thing like you, Sir Aliss. Sir Aliss?” Solus leaned forward to look at his fellow child, studying her reactions. So fascinating. It was a pity he didn’t feel those reactions right now. Why did she get to experience such a consuming emotion of fear? Oh well, best not interrupt Lady Sirena and Lord Roshan Solus mused to himself.

Solus looked at the other, pondering what experiences they had. Did they feel something like he felt? Did they have macabre visions of dead things rising from the ground? Did they witness each other change horribly into strange and deadly monstrosities? In the depths of the darkness, did you find your sin? Your hunger? Your purpose? Did you hear the call and heed its answer? Did your past define your future? Tell me what your experiences were and how it guided you to its inevitable conclusion." Solus looked up at Sirena, both relieved and disappointed at how her form was now. While she still carried a fascinating beauty to her, what he saw in his vision far surpassed this current form. But then again, so was Roshan and Aliss' forms as well. They merged together into something so terrible and unique, that Solus wondered if such a thing was possible to accomplish. “Ah, Lady Sirena, what I saw….what i felt…” Solus struggled for the right words. Where to start? The conclusion or the beginning? The images or the thoughts? The words or the actions? “...desire. Yes, yes….no! It is envy! Yes, we discovered our sin. Heheh, yes, our sin must be envy. A perverted form of desire, yes? Ah, perversion. That is what I saw. What I experienced. Such is the way how the Force should be, correct Lord Roshan? No, you said the Force is unbridled here. Undiluted. That must have been those final images I witnessed! Yes…” As the Shard spoke, his words became more and more lost in thought. Sure as ever, the being began to ramble, unable to contain himself and what he witnessed. Still, he was surprisingly still during this speech, only moving his left hand to reach and pet his observing hound. A brief memory of the tendrils piercing the hound’s hide made Solus want to never let go. “I saw the power of the Force. I saw the monsters that you are. The beautiful and magnificent monsters you are. Ah Roshan, you and Aliss are truly magnificent. Your horridness and fearsomeness is magnificent together! And Lady Sirena, the power in you...the power…” I want that was what Solus was about to say, but stopped himself. “And the spirits! The dead! Aliss, there are ghosts! The damned, long dead, envy us, the free and living! Only the powerful control others. Yes... the powerful, like that shade. He wanted you, but I wanted you more. My power was enough to make him stop! “But I learned as well. The dead spoke to me. At least, I think that thing was dead. It wasn’t chained but it wasn’t alive either. It spoke of perversion, of drawing out monsters, and of control.” Solus looked down at Tear, who for once didn’t growl at Solus’ gaze. Perhaps, because they were already close together physically and because of the hound’s unique connection to the dark side, it had bonded closer to its master. “Yes...control. That is what we do with the Force, yes? Harness it's chaotic and wild power as our own? I believe i saw the Force, in its unbridled form. It was...it was…” Solus sighed and slumped slightly. How could he explain such a phenomenon? “An impossible spiderweb of sounds and shapes. A connection of madness and control. By my shard, it was...beautiful. And frightening. But so...so beautiful. Unlike anything...” Solus’ words had become slow and low, with a touch of longing. It was clear that what he saw affected his being in ways that he didn’t fully understand. He looked down at the bubbling goo in the center of the hutt and began to reach forward for another glop. "Will we be using this more often, in our quest to control the Force for our own uses? Is this how we connect with the Force? But then again, how do you three do it without this stuff?”

On the ground Solus coiled. His body rested backwards against the makeshift hut, preparing himself for whatever was coming. Lady Sirena’s words cured his embarrassment slightly , but only that. So Solus waited. While he could not ‘feel’ the goop laying against his shard core, he could feel something beginning to happen. To the observing eye, they could tell an effect was slowly occurring as well. Specks of black seemed to penetrate the crystalline thing, as if it was no more then water. The white lines of electricity dancing inside seemed to avoid the specks, seemingly knowing there was something wrong with it. Solus felt a rise of energy somewhere. Even as his lines sought to not touch the specks, they dashed closer and closer to the specks, almost kissing them. The goop seeped in more and more. At first the specks were few and far in between, but now they were floating inside the solid object in larger amounts. Floating like ash in water, but in a very solid crystal. Solus’ body jerked once. A line of energy touched a speck. Solus’ neck twitched and glanced to the left then right. A slowly rising fear was settling in. Solus raised an arm and looked at his hand. It was shaking. No, was it shaking? Or was his sensor? Or perhaps the entire world was beginning to shake? Was there a sound? A sound of beating drums and plucking strings? Solus looked down at Tear next to him and tried to activate his voice box. But static silently emerged like a shushed cry that only the shard could hear. Desperate and frightened, Solus tried again. The silent static was louder, deafeningly quiet. Tear’s body seemed to tense, sensing the approach of something. Something wicked. Slowly, like a shadow of an echo, the hound turned its head and faced its master. Solus wanted to flinch back and jump away. Tear was different. Before his eyes glowed with red fire atop a bony skull with black hair growing below its snout and behind its horns. But where there were supposed to be eyes was instead empty space. An endless void of darkness with dying stars slowly flickering in and out of existence. As Solus watched the stars, Tear bared his teeth revealing vile disgusting green worm-like tendrils. Each tendril screamed with the sound of hollow flutes, in perfect and pure agony. In an endless wave they crawled out and over Tear’s horns and hair, piercing his body and slipping underneath his dry hide and bursting out someplace else. Solus tried to move. He commanded his body to leap away to a safe distance.. To uncoil and launch himself out of the hutt. But his tail refused to listen. His chest failed to close itself, hissing in defiance. His metal hands fell uselessly into his lap. Solus wanted to scream in terror at the loss of his body. All Solus could do was turn his neck and head. To the others it would appear there was nothing wrong with him. But those who were attuned could sense the fear rising up inside. And more importantly, curiosity. Yes...curiosity. There was a curiosity in Solus. More then the fear that threatened to consume him, there was a powerful curiosity. To dive deeper. To drive this madness forward and to take him to its destination. Solus looked at Lady Sirena. Her lovely gaze had become different. There was a hunger there. No, not hunger. Her smooth skin had become energetic. Her arm had become a solid energy of flickering and crackling blue energy, which dashed up her smooth skin to her eyes, and then raced back down again, skipping along the skin to her prosthetic fingertips. With each jump of electricity, her skin pulsed softly and became smoother, until it was nothing more then a blank canvas with flashes of blue painting something fascinating. Her shape was there, but it was nothing more than lines of blue on milky white. Solus looked at Roshan and Sir Aliss. The air between them began to swirl slightly in Solus’ eye. The dust below them was trying to seperate the two, but forces unseen were pushing them together. Completely still they were, but being effortlessly shoved together. Solus almost wanted to warn the two. Warn them of their collision. But he was too late. As the two bodies touched, an explosion of red and purple light occurred between the two of them. Solus watched, and as the light faded away, where there were two creatures was instead one. An amalgam of flesh and fur, of blood and skin. Vile black organs loosely rolled out of bulbous sores. Yellow puss oozed from cuts that formed and disappeared randomly. And the mouths...when the lips of Roshan and Aliss moved, there were screams and moans of pleasurable pain. All three of these monsters before Solus amazed and terrified him. Was this the Dark Side? Was this the Force? Something began to rise from the ground beneath Lady Sirena. Solus could see something desperate emerged themselves out of the dirt below. Ethereal hands mixed with dust and ash emerged, humanoid in shape, but with no mass nor weight. Ghosts of an ancient eon, long forgotten. The figures rose, made of swirling mists and churning orange sand, eager to escape the hell they were bound to. Before they could fly away though, crimson chains, somehow bleeding and dripping, formed on their wrists and legs, and bound them to the ground. Unable to flee their horrid fate, the spirits' mouths of red magma spurned out hot thick smoke with a moan, consuming the makeshift hutt in a fog. The walls disappeared. The ground disappeared. The spirits hid in the fog, their chains barely visible. Only the creatures that had mutated before his sensor could Solus see. “Spirits...sacrifices long forgotten?” Solus guessed silently. Then the final figure rose. A cloaked shadow, no more substance then those of the spirits, but infinitely more powerful. The air around it quaked and trembled. Its hands, if the tendrils of mutated, oily flesh could be called that, emerged from the shadows of itself and rested them on Tear’s worm-covered body, clutching tightly at something ethereal, readying to drag the beast away into the fog. “Mine…” Solus growled. He didn’t know where this came from. The sound came not from his voicebox, but it felt so audible to him. It rippled through the air to the floating being, and pushed it back ever so slightly. This shade, stunned momentarily by Solus’ word, looked at the shard. While he could see no eyes, Solus felt its gaze. It called to him. It felt familiar to him, and yet as foriegn as a tree to a rock. Like the presence of a long forgotten relative, but one who bore no bloodline. “N'ghftdrnn mgepog ph'nglui c' ah'legeth… mg uh'enahh ymg' ah, l' mgepuaaah ah'mglw'nafh” With each syllable that came from the shade, it shuddered and echoed randomly through the air. Solus could see the sound approach him, in ripples. Some of them slowed down and danced, while others would speed up. As each word touched Solus’ crystalline shard, he instinctively understood them. Monsters deep inside all lie And slave you are, made to die The shade moved on, and began to rest its hands on Lady Sirena. The blue energy that made up her figure suddenly began to jump to the shade, her life being sucked away. “Mine!” Solus shouted as loud as a whisper could be. The shade stopped again, raised a tendril to block the words from striking it, and then turned its gaze back on the shard. “Sin ymg' ah, l' ahuaaah ngnah mgr'luh... ah'n'ghaor, uaaahnythor, hnah mgephaiagl” Sin is yours, to use and behold Weapon, tool, child of old. Again the shade moved on, gently caressing the form of the monster that was Lord Roshan and Sir Aliss. Solus could see the chains that had bound the other spirits rise up from the ground. Their intention was clear. To bind Lord Roshan and Sir Aliss. “They are also Mine! They are all mine!!!” Solus shouted. “They are my family and they are mine!” Solus words, rimmed with power from the envy and fear Solus had of loosing his loved ones, shot forward and shoved the shade away. The chains dropped to the ground and sunk into the sand. The shade turned its gaze again, like an angry parent studying its child. “Cahff hnahh, ymg' l' ahuaaah? Nafl l', nafl l'. Ymg' zhro r’se.“ These things hmm? Yours to use? Not so, not so. End that Ruse. Finally the shade moved towards Solus. Solus felt sick. He felt vile and putrid. The energy in him was sluggish and slow, with no hope of speeding back up. His shard felt heavy. The goop inside was mixing in deeply now, connecting Solus completely with the dark side of the planet around him. A pounding of stops echoed somewhere. The screaming of winds. The buzzing of insects. The sucking of leeches. The growling of monsters. "Yog luln c' n'ghftdrnn, loeoe f' na'ah'ehye. Ng ph'nglui yar lw'nafhnah uh'enah, ymg''ll gralhn friggm’fy" The shade floated in front of Solus and began to wrap its tendril hands around Solus’ head. Solus felt himself being lifted up, being drawn into the essence of this thing. It was pulling him. Pulling him into itself, to reveal something. Draw out our monsters, loose them free. And in time young slave, you'll have family A world of lights and colors impossible flooded Solus’ senses. Ultraviolet, infrared, gamma and many more flashed before him in a panorama of impossible geometry. A dizzying world of worlds merging and collapsing in on itself, only to expand again and again. The world was becoming one and touching all. The force was everywhere. All things connected to the Force. And the Force connected all things to each other. Inside Solus’ chassis, the shard turned black. The lines inside made their perfect circle like he had done before when he screamed into the void, and again when he screamed into the force momentarily with Sir Aliss on the surface. “Wgah'n force, little ehye. l’ke gnaiih ai, ya lyett’le gnaiigof'n. Prrvt Force, ng ahhai cahf. friggm’fy ymg' ah, oh gof'n ot ehyenah” Control the Force, stupid one...like father says, my little son. Pervert the Force, and when that done...family be yours, oh child of none. The world of impossible colors suddenly collapsed in on itself. Blackness overtook Solus’ mind and spirit. He tried to stop it, but it was like stopping the ocean with a breeze. Solus’ sensor went dead. His body fell over forwards, lifelessly. A few moments later, Solus began to power back on. How much time had passed since he fainted? How many days, or was it just minutes? What about the vision? It felt like it had been both years but also nanoseconds. Solus, now fully recovered of his body, flickered on his sensor and made a groaning sound. He had no words for what had just happened. That vision was not like anything he had ever experienced. He had had visions before his ascension, which led to his separation from his family, but they were nothing like that. His visions before were of times and places he had no business of knowing. This...it was like a deathly visitor from the past invade his very soul. Perhaps Sir Aliss’ comments about Force Ghosts had weight after all. Or maybe it was just an elaborate illusion. But Solus could still hold the feeling that the shade brought Solus. A feeling of fear of losing Tear, Lady Sirena, Sir Aliss, and Lord Roshan. A fear that someone, or something, would take them away from him. A jealous, envious feeling, as well as a desire to make those who would leave him forever bound to him Solus looked at the others, his body now free to move. He slowly forced his chest plate to fold back in on itself, staying quiet the entire time.

Solus relaxed his body slightly when he didn’t receive a rebuking for not knowing his own sin. He didn’t realize he had become tense even. He had spent some of his energy just worrying what his master and what Lady Sirena thought of him. When Lady Sirena mentioned lust being her greatest sin, Solus nodded instinctually. It wasn’t that he was agreeing with her, but that he was acknowledging her statement. Course, it did make sense. While Solus had very little to go on what was attractive to people and what wasn’t, her power and her arm did seem appealing. Course, so did Darth Helios’ burn marks. "You're to mark yourselves and lay down, you especially Solus as you have to mark the Shard within your true form.” Solus shivered at the thought. His own shard? That was his brain. His soul. He was to expose it and rub this strange substance on it? “Yes, Lady Sirena…” Solus said nervously, a warble in his synthesized voice. With ease, Solus sent a command through his body. His chest plating, and the small gears beneath it, whirred and spun slowly. Vertically down the center, a line formed where the plates met and began to open up. With the claw marks that Tear had left on Solus and the glinting of the light, it looked like two deathly hands opening up to reveal some terrible treasure. A small red glow came from inside the mess of wires and gears. Some of the inner workings moved so that way there was a clear view of the Shard inside. White beams of light danced wildly within the crystal, slamming into the wires that connected the shard to the robot chassis. When the plates stopped moving, the lights slowed down and danced slower and more gracefully. For the first time in his life, Solus felt embarrassed. This was the first time he had consciously showed someone his Shard self. While he didn’t doubt that Lord Roshan had seen it during his ascension, Solus couldn’t be sure if Sir Aliss had, and Lady Sirena certainly had no way of seeing this before. But here he was, exposing his mind, his soul, and in all practical terms, his reproductive organ to everyone. It seemed so small, compared to the chassis it inhabited. The words Lord Roshan spoke about Solus didn’t ease the Shard’s embarrassment. He right now just wished that everyone would not pay attention to him. But he also wanted to make Roshan and Lady Sirena proud. “Hopefully, er, the size doesn’t matter much?” Solus asked, not knowing what else to say. As he spoke the lines inside danced a bit more energetically. If one took enough time and had good enough eyesight, they could probably identify when certain movements of the lines indicated. As the others spoke, Solus reached and took up a glob of goop. Feeling it in his fingers and letting it dribble slowly down his hand, Solus enjoyed the texture it gave off. The thought that it was made from something that came out of the blood of a dead beast made him doubly interested. And Roshan calling it a potion? Even more so. Solus offered the glob to Tear, who sniffed and sneezed and turned away. Solus shrugged and, silently, trying to avoid the attention of Lady Sirena and Roshan, reached into his own chest and gently smeared some of the goop over his crystal. Where the stuff touched was where the lines inside the shard suddenly concentrated on. Split between motor functions and trying to touch whatever this stuff was, the lines frantically jumped back and forth like madmen. Solus coiled himself again and leaned against a wall and waited, watching the others, and looking away when they glanced at him.

As the group traveled across the landscape, Solus relished the sights and sounds around him. However, what truly fascinated him was the feeling. The feeling of something great. Powerful. Similar to the feeling that Solus had when the group first landed on the planet, only more powerful. It was like a churning feeling of water and mud. And they were going towards the center of the source. Tear suddenly jerked up and growled. Solus glanced at his hound, expecting a threatening pose or something similar. But was surprised to see that Tear wasn’t bearing his teeth. Instead he was leaning forward as much as possible, and sniffing heavily. Solus understood instantly. He was familiar with this place. Not in a personal sense, but in an instinctual sense. Solus didn’t know Tear’s history, but he guessed that the hound’s own familial history began here, long ago. “Heh, good Tear. Perhaps your wounds will heal faster here…” Solus reached up and attempted to stroke Tear’s neck. The hound instead snapped at the finger. Solus flicked Tear’s nose and continued slithering with the group. At the hut, Solus looked at Lady Sirena intently, studying her form. Once inside, Solus laid Tear down and coiled around him. "Tell me...What is your greatest passion, your greatest sin?" The question perplexed Solus. Greatest passion? His greatest sin? “I...I do not know. I have not yet committed any sins. I do not know my passions except to serve Lord Roshan.” Solus looked at Roshan, expecting an answer from him that might illuminate his own answer.