Korriban

[Emily]

The tomb was not as dark and quiet as it should have been.

 

As soon as she stepped in, Emily felt the presences of the intruders more clearly. It was astonishing--they seemed to have penetrated quite far. The tomb's defenses should have prevented that--the ones she had installed as well as the hulking white tuk'ata who should have been guarding his master's body. But she hadn't taken very many steps inside before that mystery was solved. Vex'aedr lay crumpled in the corner, surrounded by a pool of fresh blood. She immediately went to him, giving him a once-over with the Force while Roe'gall growled angrily, whipping his head back and forth for his brother's attackers. Poisoned, Emily suddenly realized. But not dead. That was a relief. "He'll be alright, Roe'gall," she told him.

 

With a prodding of the Force, she quickly purged the poison from the white tuk'ata's system. After a few seconds, the beast stirred, then leapt to his feet. Emily smiled. It was good to see him again. The way the two tuk'atas suddenly gamboled about each other for a moment showed their pleasure at the reunion too. But none of them would be distracted for long. "Come," Emily whispered. She continued through the tomb, both tuk'atas now on her heels. The traps and defenses slowed her up a little, but not as much as they normally would have. They had all recently been set off, leaving bodies in their wake. Some had already reset--those, she disabled easily--but others hadn't yet. With every step, her anger grew. These were strange tomb robbers though--clearly determined to break in no matter what the cost to their party. An uneasy thought came to her. Perhaps something else was going on here.

 

As she approached the central burial chamber, that became more and more clear. The Force was swirling, a maelstrom of power, but what it's purpose was, she couldn't define. With a quick application of the Force, the burial chamber door slid open, and she stepped inside. There were three living beings and multiple dead. A vortex of blood and lightning lashed through the stone room. She didn't get a chance to observe more, for suddenly two things happened at once. The first was that one of the men in the room ran at her to attack her. She barely spared him a glance--a withering blast of the dark side melted the flesh from his bones in an instant, reducing him to a pile of organic matter. The second was that a voice suddenly rang through the chamber, a voice of power, of strength--a voice she knew almost better than her own.

 

Quietus... Her breath caught in her throat. Were these people trying to...raise him? No, it's impossible. Not now, not after all this time. How could it be possible? Yet she couldn't deny the sense of certainty that came over her though the Force. It just might actually be possible.

 

Just as the thought penetrated her mind, she was suddenly aware of more. If this was going to work, the Force had a part for her to play. Without thinking, she shut off her lightsabers. If there was even a chance, she would play her part.

 

It was as if her acceptance was all the Force was waiting for. Suddenly, she knew just what to do. Taking out a small knife, she approached the sarcophagus as the two tuk'ata prowled the edge of the room. Slitting her hand, she let her blood pool, then used it to slowly draw a reddish brown line down the center of Quietus' forehead and nose. She then painted two parallel lines, one on each of his cheeks, then finally a horizontal line across his broad chest. The remaining two cultists continued their chant, speeding up the tempo, and suddenly the full power of the ritual channeled through Emily. It poured into and out of her, using her as a conduit. But it wasn't just looking for any host--she knew clearly what she had to do. Her control and finesse were required to take the tempest and make it serve them.

 

As the raw power of the Force ritual poured into Quietus' body, she added her voice to the mix, speaking not the words of the chant, but something else entirely. "Mans kungs, modināt. Atgriezties pie mums. Atgriezties pie manis. Atgriešanās!!!"

[Alora]

Footsteps grew closer and moments later the door to the room slid open to show two men dressed in black robes. One moved to stand in front of her and bowed low, the other moved to a panel just inside the room and began to input the codes that would turn off the statis field. The Sith Mistress fell forward as soon as she was released from her containment, the man in front of her ready to catch her. It took a few moments for her legs to remember how to hold her up. She staggered for the first few steps before getting the hang of walking once more and was guided out of the ysalamiri clad room – the door sealing behind them. The rush of Darkside energies once she was out of range of the Force deadening creatures was a welcome return. Alora breathed in deep, stretching as she straightened up. Eyes flashing, she stared into those of the man assisting her, “Take me to him… NOW!” It was clear who she meant… the one who’s voice had been tormenting her ever since she had found herself within that statis field. “Yes My Lord”, the cultist murmured, his caution justified as he felt the power crackling the very air around them.

 

***

 

The cultist knew it was coming. He knew it was only a matter of time and what her actions would be as he followed her progress through the ship on the monitors. When she stepped into the control room he was standing there calmly, a resigned expression on his face. “My Lord, I was just following instruct….. “ His words were cut off with a gurgling sound as his windpipe was crushed. Alora was not just content to choke him… no… she wanted revenge for all the time lost to her. Raising her hand higher, the cultist’s body rose with her gesture and when she whipped her arm sideways, his body smashed into the wall, the sound of bones breaking satisfying to her ears.

 

YOU MUST FINISH WHAT YOU HAVE BEGUN

 

As the familiar voice reached her, the Sith Mistress immediately turned in the direction she felt a growing power surge of dark energies. “Out of my way!” she demanded of the cultist that had assisted her. With a smooth arm motion he went flying backwards down the corridor, closely followed by the Sith woman, her violet eyes flashing with sparks of red. As she glided down the corridor her hands automatically checked for her weapons, finding that they had surprisingly been left on her person. The whip that Slaanesh had gifted her remained coiled around her waist as if it were a belt, her twin sabers hung by her sides. As she thought back over the time she had been restrained she figured it had just been easier for her captors to leave her weaponry in place since she had been frozen motionless in all of that time with no access to the Force. As she continued with her inventory she noticed one of her daggers not in it’s sheathe… had she used it in her defense? She couldn’t recall.

 

As they often had during her incineration, her thoughts turned to her betrothed. Had he given up searching for her? Now her hand went up to hold the pendant that Draken had given her only to find it not there. She paused for a moment wondering if someone had taken it from her knowing that he could trace her whereabouts through it. Was that why he hadn’t come for her? Alora gave herself a mental shake and strode forward once more. The energies seemed to draw her like a magnet, she had to be there… her pace increased and she soon left the ship. Whoever else was on the vessel had kept their distance from her, not wanting to become a target of her wrath.

 

Alora took stock of where she was. She glanced at the other ship in the vicinity, wary but dismissing it as the Darkside energies became more urgent in their tug towards the tomb in which Quietus had been lain. She quickened her pace.

[Raynuk Montar]

“Jūsu laiks ir pienācis, lai atgrieztos!

 

Pure darkness, awash in a sea of hatred and anger.

 

Rasties, un gavilēt vistīrākajā veidā!

 

The deafening silence of eternal winds, being broken by the faintest of whispers.

 

Veikt šo svētību un saņemt mūsu mestrs varas garšu!”

 

Oily shapes begin to stir amidst the sea, taking form.

 

Mans kungs, modināt…

 

Far off in the distance, a fire begins to burn, a blazing inferno that expands and grows.

 

Atgriezties pie mums…

 

The fire burns across the landscape, bringing light to the darkness, but also burning destruction to all else.

Atgriezties pie mums…

 

The whispers grow louder as the inferno approaches, as if carrying the words upon their back...

 

Atgriešanās!!!

 

The fire fully engulfs everything; the oily shapes burn and writhe in agony, as the whispers carried upon the fire turn to screams of hatred and anger. And then, all of it faded to a pair of eyes, shooting open filled with the color of the inferno before fading to brown.

 

Within the tomb of Darth Quietus, naught but chaos was reigning supreme in that moment. 13 cultists lay dead at various points within its halls. The central chamber, where Quietus himself was laid to rest, was a maelstrom of flying items, globs of thick blood, and good old fashioned lightning. At the center stood the leader of this particular cultist party, incessantly chanting in the old tongue, trying desperately not to be distracted by the woman who nearly interrupted his ritual.

 

Incessant fool, what could SHE possibly offer the Master? He began to think, right before everything in front of him pretty much exploded.

 

One moment all the items were flying around the room randomly, and then suddenly they all stopped, as if they had been locked into position in the air. Forming the six points of a star, each item hung in place, as the swirling blood stretched into thin bands connecting one item to all the others. Then the lighting that had been crackling around the room suddenly solidified, striking through all six objects, and coalescing into a single bolt of energy that struck directly into the body of Darth Quietus. The blast sent a shockwave outwards, knocking the cultist and the leader flat on their backs. It also filled the room with blinding light, however not the white coloration of lighting, but that same burning red and orange of an inferno. The lone cultist managed to scramble back to his feet quickly, as his eyes attempted to adjust from the flash.

 

Of course, the next thing that came to the cultist’s mind was a gauntleted fist. The skull shattered like glass, the brain squished like a sponge, and the spinal cord snapped like a cheap rubber band. And there, standing with his hand not slightly stuck in what remained of a cultist’s face, stood a very alive, and very angry Darth Quietus. But he was not as he was moments before; he now stood as if he had merely appeared from the midst of battle. All six items had disappeared from their locations in the air, and were now all found on Quietus himself. He was fully garbed in his armor and cloaks, his lightsabers hanging at his side, his charric on the back of his belt, the Warhammer on his back, and the chained blade wrapped around his wrist. Only the whip seemed out of place, clutched in his right hand, not as a weapon but as an object. An object that his fist grew increasingly tight around.

 

By the time anyone else recovered, the cultist was already dead, and a second late Quietus was practically roaring in anger and hatred, appearing almost feral and wild as his eyes darted around as he tossed the body aside with a thud. The leader had opted to stay down on his back, his hood having fallen along with him to reveal his aged, clean shaven face. A face that now was wearing a look that was a mix of sheer ecstasy, and sheer terror, staring up at the Sith looming over him, speechless. But he did not come under Quietus’ gaze.

 

The Sith had instead turned to Emily, the wild, frenzied look still plastered on his face.

 

“Where….is she…” He growled at her through clenched teeth. That would be the moment when she would realize that there was no recognition in his face. He did not know her. She was nothing to him. There was but a second of silence, hardly enough to even begin to answer, before he blasted forward, his bloody, brain splattered glove out stretched to her neck, and pinned her to the wall.

 

“WHERE IS SHE!” he screamed at her from inches away like a feral hound, holding up the object in his other hand; the whip that he now had a death grip upon.

[Emily]

Suddenly, he was there. It was as if Emily had been in a trance as the ritual took hold of her, but as soon as the blood star formed, she was released. And moments later, there he stood, as if he had never been gone. Her heart skipped a beat at the sight of him, in the moment that stretched as he splattered the cultist’s skull with his bare fist, and in that one second, she was eternally glad that he was back.

 

Another second later, however, and he had grabbed her and thrown her against the wall, knocking the wind out of her. But this was no lover’s embrace; his hand clutched at her throat, constricting her windpipe as he raged at her, demanding an answer to a question she didn’t even understand. Eris met his gaze, and saw a beast. There was no recognition in his eyes. This being would kill her as soon as look at her. “I…don’t know…what the KRIFF…you’re talking about!” she choked out fiercely.

 

In the space between gasps for breath, a dragon of dread clutched at her heart. This was not Quietus. It was a monster who had his face, his voice, his power…but it wasn’t him. The ritual had gone wrong somehow. And this...creature...was a travesty. It couldn't be allowed. She had known it was too good to be true. The galaxy didn’t work that way. Not for her. Never for her.

 

It was in that moment that Roe’gall struck. As confused as he was by Quietus, his old master, attacking Emily, he was well trained. The moment he saw her attacked, he sprang into action, leaping and tackling Quietus to the ground. But his restraint was clear to anyone who knew him. He merely knocked Quietus away from Emily, allowing her to breathe, and then backed off immediately, confused whining mixed with growling. Vex’aedr’s confusion was also clear, and he let out his own rippling growl, his hackles raised at Roe’gall.

 

With an unrestricted airflow came a jolt of common sense. It wasn’t as if Eris hadn’t partially expected him to come out raging. After all, she had seen it before, if only in a vision. She remembered a scene much like this, with him raging out of his tomb in what she semi-affectionately referred to as his “full Sith mode”. The dread vanished, withering into indignation. As she touched back down to the ground, she marched up to him and gave him a hearty slap in the face. “Get ahold of yourself!”

 

There was a squelching noise and the smell of feces drifted up from where the leader of the cultists lay. She didn’t even look at him. “Roe’gall, if he moves, kill him.” The monstrous tuk’ata bounded forward and laid a heavy claw on the man’s chest.

 

Meanwhile, her eyes never left Quietus’. She would give him one chance, but if it wasn’t really him, she would strike him down. It would hurt her—oh yes, it would hurt her more than she could say—but a galaxy without Quietus was better than one with merely a shell of him running around. The man she still loved deserved so much more. She demanded all of him—or nothing.

[Alora]

Half way to the tomb’s entrance Alora stopped again as something clicked inside of her skull. She gave her head a shake and blinked her eyes as her cybernetic implants came back online. That was another thing her captors had done - jammed her cybernetics. Sparks flicked out from her fingertips as her anger increased towards those that had incarcerated her. The Sith Mistress half turned back towards the ship that had brought her here, her actions torn between wanting revenge on those that had held her, and wanting to go to her former Master’s side. ‘They can wait,’ she figured as she turned back towards the tomb.

 

The urgency had lessened somewhat and Alora found her thoughts again turning to Draken Shadowlord, wondering where he was now. As she stepped off towards the entrance again she activated her comm.link to send a quick message to the palace on Serenno for him, letting him know that she was free and where she was currently located. She could have just sent a recall to her ship but wasn’t certain if it was still in one piece or not. Besides which, she longed to see her handsome mate. Her steps slowed, something telling her that she wasn’t to go inside…

[Raynuk Montar]

From drowning in darkness, to a storm of fire, the mindset of Quietus had been run through the gambit within half a minute. His thoughts were clouded, filled to the brim with memories, thoughts, smells, ideas, all revolving around a single person from his past. For Quietus, it was as if he had awoken years in the past. But the more seconds ticked by, the clearer his mind became, the more focused on the present he became, and the more he realized what was going on.

 

So clouded was his mind, and so focused on the question that was burning through his skull, that Quietus was beyond distracted and completely blindsided by his former pet tackling him to the ground and retreating. It was enough to stun Quietus and help clear his head, which was promptly followed by an even more dramatic THWAP as Emily’s hand struck true across his face.

 

As Quietus reached the pinnacle of recovery, enough to begin pondering how he now found himself laying on his back on the floor staring up at the ceiling of his burial chamber, he found himself again pinned to the floor by Roe’gall. Quietus merely lifted his head to look at the beast, which elicited a curious growl, before letting his head fall back down for a moment in contemplation.

 

Finally, he stirred, albeit slowly. Again, his head rose off the floor, looking directly into the piercing eyes that sat atop the massive muzzle of Roe’gall, while he slowly rose his left hand. The tuk’ata of course noticed, but between the eye contact and slow movements, Quietus aimed to regain the trust of the beast. Eventually, after a few growls from Roe’gall and subsequent halting of movement, his hand found its mark upon the side of the head of the tuk’ata. There it stayed for a few moments, as Quietus wordlessly reconnected with his first pet after so long separated. Of course, knowing the perfect spot to scratch him behind his massive ears helped as well.

 

Soon enough the tuk’ata blinked and lowered its head slightly, pressing into Quietus' hand, but kept its word to Emily and remained with a massive paw on Quietus’ chest. Only then did Quietus break his gaze, turning it to Emily and locking eyes with her. He remained expressionless for a few moments, as if studying her. But he did not speak to her, not just yet, and instead turned to look at Vex’aedr. He locked eyes with his guardian, the one creature that had been trusted with protection Quietus, both in life and in death. With Roe’gall at least seeming no longer to intend ripping his throat out if he moved, Quietus extended his hand, palm upwards, towards the massive white tuk’ata, almost beckoning towards it. Vex’aedr hesitated however, before approaching and resting its snout in Quietus palm.

 

It was clear that the tuk’ata, while a massive, ferocious, at times bloodthirsty murdering machine, was in the midst of a bit of emotional distress. Between having been tranquilized and failing to keep the tomb secure, to seeing its master alive again, to seeing him attack Emily, to having Roe’gall tackle Quietus, the poor thing was not quite sure what to make of it all. Vex’aedr was the younger of the two, and always seemed to trust in the judgement of Roe’gall when things were in question, but now was unsure of many things. But in the end, Quietus was master; Quietus was his charge. So, the beast padded forward like a sad pup seeking reassurances.

 

Just as he had done with Roe’gall, Quietus connected silently with Vex’aedr for a handful of moments, until the snow white tuk’ata turned, lifting his head from Quietus’ hand. It then proceeded to nudge Roe’gall, before putting his nose under the leg of Roe’gall and lifting with a small snort, attempting to remove the other’s paw from Quietus’ chest gently. When even that failed, Vex’aedr turned to look at Emily.

 

“It seems…” at last Quietus spoke, his eyes drifting to the ceiling as if studying it, “It seems our pets are waiting for your guidance. It also seems I’m on the floor. Of my tomb. Again. Only this time it is a tuk’ata pinning me down. Wasn’t that always your preferred job?”

 

Clearly he was speaking to Emily now, but did not look at her. Instead he let the smallest of sadistic and coy grin play across his face. A face that although it seemed to not age, in the moment with the grin, appeared youthful again.

 

This Quietus, the one of clear mind and senses, knew what had transpired in the split seconds after he awoke. In hindsight, he remembered everything individually. Destroying the cultist, the feeling of raw anger, pinning Emily to the wall, the rage filtering upon a single goal, a single idea, a single question. The full force of Roe’gall smashing into him, and the slap. The question still bounced through his head, as did the unending need to solve it, but it no longer controlled him as it had in those seconds. Even thinking about it in hindsight, Quietus found his fist tightening over the whip that remained in his hand, even now.

[Emily]

As soon as she slapped him, she could sense the change come over him. As Roe’gall laid a heavy paw on his chest, he calmed down and seemed to assess the situation. She could sense his confusion clearing up. There was a long silence as he interacted with the two tuk’ata. It might have been her imagination, but it seemed like he was avoiding addressing her, putting off the moment until—what? He could think of what to say? That didn’t seem like him. He was rarely lost for words. Perhaps he understood that her next action was based on what he would say when he finally acknowledged her.

 

Of course, the tuk’atas’ actions showed that they, at least, were convinced. That was a good sign. But in the end, it was the little smirk that came to his face—that mixture of coyness and sadism that he always wore so often when he looked at her—and the innuendo in his comment that finally convinced her. She sighed. “Let him up, Roe’gall.” The tuk’ata lifted his paw with what she could have sworn was an expression of relief.

 

Emily herself wasn’t so sure what she felt. She was happy he was back, but at the same time, it was a little exasperating. She supposed, for him, they hadn’t been parted long. But she remembered the day she had buried him in this tomb, and she remembered every day since then while she had struggled to reconcile herself to the gaping hole he had left behind. For a while, she hadn’t thought she would make it, or even if she wanted to. But slowly, she had found a reason to go on. And slowly, she had healed. And during her master trials, she had finally come to a place where she had put the past behind her.

 

And yet, now, not even a week later, here he stood again. It was irony of the finest kind. She had no idea what game the Force was playing now. Two months ago, she would have run to his arms, as she had done the last time he had come back to life—and that had been before their relationship had even really begun. But now she wasn’t sure she wanted to put herself though all of that again.

 

But as she looked at him, she couldn’t deny how much she still wanted him. How much she still loved him. And how much the moment where his first thought was not of her, but another woman, had hurt her, although she would rather die than let him know that. If you push him away now, you’ll never have him again. That was too much, and for a moment, it surprised her. I guess I wasn’t actually ever really over him. But at least this time, I know the score. I can see the end before it begins. And so I’ll just have to go into this knowing that one day, I’ll lose him again.

 

The silence after Quietus’ comment had stretched as she stood there, her arms crossed, considering him, even after the tuk’ata had let him stand. “You’re alive,” she finally said, the matter settled in her mind. “I can’t say when I saw your tomb broken into that there would be a ring of dark Force cultists trying to resurrect you.” She coughed lightly. “Had to have help wrenching yourself from the jaws of death this time? Being dead make you lose your touch?” Her face and voice were innocent, but Quietus knew her well enough to read the challenging, teasing look in her eyes.

[Raynuk Montar]

“Let him up, Roe’gall.”

 

The heavy paw removed itself from his chest, and Quietus merely gave the beast a small nod. But he did not stand; not right away. After spending so long laying in that sarcophagus, apparently his body was used to the position; it was strangely comfortable. But no matter how comfortable he may have been or even looked, his mind was still struggling with the circumstances of the past minutes. He had returned from death before, but this time... this time was different. Emily's words reached him, and it was then that he stood rather quickly. Firmly addressing her for the first time.

 

"This... this was not my doing. I dont know who or even what dragged me back, or for what purpose but--" He caught himself then, recalling that there was still the leader of the cultists alive. "...but I intend to find out just who dares to meddle in our affairs."

 

So focused on the tuk'atas and even Emily, he had failed to notice the cultist leader attempting to crawl his way out of the room. It took a simple flick of the wrist to fling the man backwards, causing him to catch his lower back on the lip of Quietus' sarcophagus with a yelp. Quietus' turned and began to walk to the man, a path that took him past Emily. For a moment, he almost strode directly by her, intent on getting answers from the cultist; but he did not. He paused, just long enough to lightly graze her cheek as he looked into her mis-matched eyes, a feat he could easily do over and over again. But there was determination boiling within Quietus, and so he continued on to the cultist.

 

"You... you are a worm of life. You are hardly worth your existence. And yet you saw fit, nay... you dared to meddle in powers so beyond your limits, and for what? What PURPOSE did you seek?!"

 

Despite the fact that this man had soiled himself and then attempted to crawl out of the room un-noticed, Quietus found himself surprised at the level of zealous devotion and utter confidence in his beliefs when he responded.

 

"I serve my Masters with nothing short of my entire being. We are the chosen few, gifted with true vision in a world cursed with blindness. We who can see through the fog that hangs over this world like a shroud, and grasp where true power lies. My existence belongs to the Masters, until we find the Darkned One that will lead us forward. Those who oppose him will be destroyed utterly, and those who serve -- who serve wholly, unquestioningly, with utter devotion of mind and soul -- we are elevated to heights beyond our kin! The Darkened One will do what the one known as Faust could not; the Darkened One will reshape the galaxy in darkness, and we who serve shall bask in their glory! WE are the Cult of Morthos!"

 

The cultist leader displayed a level of blind zealotry that Quietus had rarely seen before outside of the Sith acolytes. And competition was bad for business. Quietus considered the cultist leader for a moment, before drawing his orange lightsaber, one of the conduits to his resurrection, and thumbed it on.

 

"Interesting. Now comes the part where I ask you questions, and you answer. And every time I find your answer lacking, or unsatisfactory, you lose." He paused glancing between his blade and the cultist. "You lose a finger. Or a hand. or an arm. Or a foot. You lose, until I am satisfied, or I run out of things to remove."

 

Only then did Quietus catch the faintest crack in the resolve of the cultist, and through the crack, there was pure fear. It was exactly what he hoped to find within the man, and it brought a smile to Quietus' face.

 

"Let's begin shall we? How did you return me from death?"

[Emily]

Interesting. Emily had assumed that this cult was one of the kind that not uncommonly cropped up, venerating particular Sith. She had assumed that Quietus had encouraged this cult, in the idea that if he ever found himself needing to come back from death again, they would be the ones to do it. A fail-safe of sorts. It had been, for a moment, amusing to think he had had his own cult, the cult of Quietus or some such nonsense. But the fact that that was not the case was very interesting indeed.

 

Quietus was clearly disquieted by the situation, determined to find out what was going on. Emily was more pleased by the outcome and cared less about the reasons--after all, she knew that anyone who thought they could control a newly risen Quietus had another thing coming to them--but she was personally fascinated by the method. So when he strode forward to interrogate the cultist, she was very interested. On his way, though, there was a brief moment where he touched her cheek and their eyes met. It was a moment of affection and tenderness that Emily, having been alone for so long, treasured. She wished there was time to fully show him how much he had been missed, but that would have to wait. Business before pleasure.

 

As Quietus began demanding answers out of the cultist, Emily suddenly remembered Raia with some chagrin. She had been so caught up in vengeance, and then confused emotions, that she had forgotten her apprentice completely. For a moment, she pondered the situation. It was pretty messy in here, with the pools of blood and bone everywhere, and there was about to be more shrieking in pain from the torture this poor sod was about to experience. Raia was still a little...delicate. But at the same time, this was a good chance for her to be exposed to what it meant to be a Sith. The girl needed to develop a backbone. And while this might shock her, it would also be a good lesson. She reached out through the Force and spoke into Raia's mind. "I'm sorry about that. It turns out there was a Force-cult here trying to raise my old Sith Master from the dead. They succeeded. Come and join me, and I'll introduce you. Roe'gall will come and lead you." She glanced at the tuk'ata and gave him the mental order to escort Raia here. The black tuk'ata padded out of the room.

 

For a moment, she was irrepressibly reminded of one of her earliest days training under Quietus. She had witnessed another Sith brutally slaughtering an acolyte and been disturbed by it. She had asked Quietus about it, and he had told her that it was part of their freedom as Sith to be able to do what they wanted. Some Sith took that literally, slaughtering just because they felt like it. And then he had performed a similar murder and told her that one day she would be required to do the same. Looking back now, it was strange to see how much she had changed since that moment. Back then, she had been slightly disturbed and repulsed by the idea. Now, however, she had no moral qualms with killing, so long as it was for a specific reason. Violence could be a very useful tool, and that was the lesson she wanted Raia to learn.

 

It was likely to be a good example. The cultist's zeal and devotion was borderline madness, but once Quietus had threatened him, they both caught the pure fear radiating from him. Quietus smiled, and so did Emily. They would be able to get information from him. It was only a matter of time--and of course, how many appendages the man was willing to lose. She crossed her arms and gazed at the cultist, her expression icy, unsympathetic to his predicament, even though she did feel a little bit of gratitude to the man. Nevertheless, she wanted to know all about this ritual--and more than that, learn it herself. This was quite possibly the knowledge she desired most in the entire universe. It was something she had long thought was unattainable, but here Quietus stood as direct proof that the impossible was possible after all. The Hive Queen might not have been lying. And if it was true...she would learn it.

[darth shadowlord]

A ship screamed out of Hyperspace, the flash of light was the only sign that a ship was coming towards the planet. Its pilot ignoring all warnings as he entered the atmosphere at higher then normal speed with a fiery trail following after the ship. Moments later he spotted the ship he was hunted and powered up the heavy laser cannons. As the ship grew closer he could see ten figures around the ship and adjusted his aim so that he would deliberately miss them but heard them closer to the ship. Once he was satisfied with his fine tuning of the aim point of the laser Draken unleashed several bursts from the cannons. One of the figures below started running for a cannon set up on a bipod and returned fire for a brief but futile barrage at the ship.

 

Draken adjusted his aim a degree and fired a full barrage from the Heavy Cannons splattering the man on the laser cannon and obliterating the rocks around him. The remainder of the figures around the ship took off running into their ship as Draken landed his ship near their and leapt from his ship with lightsabre hilt in his left hand and his crystal staff hovering behind him. He strode over to the ship, flicking the switch of his lightsabre and hurling it at a low hanging cable. The sabre sliced through the cable and began to spray fuel across the landing pad. He smiled grimly and pulled a flash grenade from a pouch and tossed it into the fuel spill.

 

The ensuing spark off the grenade lit the fuel spraying through the line causing the fire to flow into the line and into the ship as a Wookiee opened the hatch of the ship. In his claws was a massive bowcaster that bore a large blade under the stock. "Bad idea, you and all of your compatriots are going to die painfully." The Wookiee roared and fired the bowcaster as Draken gestured with his right hand and deflected the bolt back into the ship. The staff came around piercing the Woookiee's chest, several of the spines breaking off in the process. Without another word, He strode into the ship, his eyes seeming to ignite with black flames as he reached deep into the force to summon the power necessary to transmute those within the ship into crystal.

[Raia Montar]

As the minutes ticked by, the unsettling feeling in the pit of her stomach gained a greater hold and the tingling sensation that she'd barely brushed while they were in transit rose fast and hard towards a crescendo. It was unlike anything she'd ever felt before and only continued to grow stronger.

 

YOU MUST FINISH WHAT YOU HAVE BEGUN.

 

A small gasp of shock broke the silence of the Shine and was followed quickly by a renewed burst of fear. Furion's crimson mark burned on her chest and seemed to grow and change slightly as the power surged onward once more around her. She tried to pull herself back but was held in thrall to whatever was happening inside the tomb. What is happening? she thought, fighting even harder against the pull as she sensed, no, saw a few flashes of Roe'gall, Emily, and blood.

 

Panic seized her then. Had she simply left the relative safety of the Spite Station, only to finally find her death at the hands of the Sith as Qaela had predicted for her two long years ago? No. NO! She refused to give in, refused to believe it. She'd fought her way through Furion's arena and she would figure some way through this now.

 

Use your emotions...Let them fuel you... She reminded herself, forcing air back into her lungs at a steady pace and rhythm. Her whole body trembled as she sought to bend and focus the emotions enough to focus once again on aiding Emily however she could.

 

Movement from the side caught her attention and she ducked down further into the shadows of the cockpit as another ship touched down. It was enough to call her mostly back from the edge of where ever the Force had swept her. Her grey eyes refocused on the ship that had landed, feeling another surge in the energy around her, almost as though someone had just shod a cloak to reveal a radiant presence.

 

Cautiously, she poked her head out just enough to see a woman with red-gold hair emerge from the ship, striding confidently towards the tomb as the energies whipped up into a frenzy again. The woman paused about halfway to the temple before turning back and heading for the ships again. Did she see me? the Dathomiri girl only had a few seconds to give to the thought as Emily's voice cut in through the Force.

 

Her teacher's words did little to alleviate the fear she continued to wrestle into some semblance of control. I'm sorry about that. It turns out there was a Force-cult here trying to raise my old Sith Master from the dead. They succeeded. Come and join me, and I'll introduce you. Roe'gall will come and lead you. Raia could sense an odd mixture of emotions coming from Emily and wasn't quite sure what to make of the situation, or even if it was something common. She'd never heard or seen of any such occurrence ever happening within her own clan.

 

The teenage girl let out the breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding. She would have to go outside to meet the tuk'ata. Outside. With the other lady. Quite likely a Sith and not a very happy one by the look of her.

 

Okay, you can do this. She's sending Roe'gall. You'll be fine. She hoped.

 

It took a few more moments to muster the courage to actually remember which switch lowered the ramp and a heartbeat more to actually decide to activate it.

 

Warm, hot air rushed in to meet her, stirring the richly embroidered panel of blood-red fabric that overlay her similarly colored leggings. The grit that engulfed her was nothing like she'd experienced before and she pulled the crimson hood over her brown hair and wished for a moment that the tunic she'd selected from Rose Furion's abandoned wardrobe had sleeves to protect from the bite of the dust and sand that blew through the valley of tombs.

 

Looking at her, no one would ever guess she'd left the dense, humid, jungles of Dathomir a bit over two years before. At least she was where she could see sky again and feel solid ground beneath her soft brown boots once more. Suddenly, for a brief moment, her fear was forgotten as she reveled in the alien feeling of the planet.

 

A soft whmph of what could only be annoyance caused her to look down slightly and take notice of the black tuk'ata, who met her eyes briefly before turning his massive head back towards the tomb.

 

"I know Roe'gall," she sighed, glancing back towards the other woman. "I'm coming..."

 

The teen wasn't quite sure where she found the will to get one foot in front of the other, but she managed it. Giving a cautions bow of deference to the woman as she passed she strode beside Roe'gall into the tombs darkness.

 

She stuck close to him, sensing his movement through the dimness as he led her past freshly broken and bleeding bodies, likely victims of whatever traps or monsters lurked in the shadows of a Sith's tomb. Finally she saw a bit more light ahead, flickering against the corridor wall, and could hear the sound of two male voices. She shuddered involuntarily still not comfortable around non-Dathomiri men. Mainly because they escaped her limited frame of reference for "normal" and "predicable".

 

Stepping into the room, she paused, noting the snow white tuk'ata who was pacing back and forth as though ready to spring on the two men any time the command was given. Remembering what Emily had told her of Roe'gall, she supposed that the white one must have belonged to the man standing with an ignited orange lightsaber who was standing over another whose robes matched the bodies she'd seen in the corridors and strewn about the chamber. There was a smell to him that made her wrinkle her nose in disgust. This was the man that had brought so many to die for the chance of raising the one standing over him?

 

Almost unconsciously, her hand reached out for Roe'gall's back, the feeling of the soft fur helped steady her slightly as she gingerly navigated around a few of the still-warm bodies that lay broken on the floor like the empty vessels they were. In the back of her mind, she spared a hope that the beast wouldn't mind the intrusion of his space before stopping next to Emily.

 

Raia was the first to admit she was struggling to understand what had happened here, but people didn't just rise from the dead. Emily's instructions to her had been to observe, so she did. Instead of hiding her fear of the situation, she embraced it, making it her ally as she turned it to drawing her focus outwards to learn what she could with all her senses. She only hoped it wouldn't be something she'd regret.

 

Small tremors vibrated the tomb's stone floor and caused bits of dust to jar loose from the ceiling. Yup. She was going to regret this alright. Leaving her clan out of rebellion of their caste system and a pre-determined life hadn't been the wisest choice of her young life. All she'd wanted was a little adventure, some excitement.

 

Be careful what you wish for...

[Raynuk Montar]

“I’m not afraid!” the cultist said defiantly, with such conviction that it was possible the poor fool believed it. Quietus’ face however, grew dreadfully dire and serious, his voice dropping ever so slightly.

 

“You, will be. You… will be.”

 

He let his words sink in, watching confidence drain from the leader before he gave the man a reason to be afraid. A flick of his wrist; that’s all it was. But the subtle movements of a Sith’s hand were never that simple when he held a lightsaber. That little flick of his wrist severed the pinky off the cultists hand, instantly cauterizing the wound along with it. The cultist yelled out in pain and attempted to curl up defensively almost instantly. But there would be no hiding or defending against Quietus. Not against someone so skilled with, and in tune with the Force. As fast as the cultist cowered, Quietus snapped him back with the Force, pinning his arms and legs outward as if he was on a torture rack. Even the man’s fingers were splayed out; well, apart from the pinky which had bounced away behind the sarcophagus.

 

“Oh I’m sorry. Did I not make myself clear the first time? You are no longer in control. Not of this situation, not of your body, and not of your life. Now, I will repeat this once more; how, did you return me to life?”

 

There was a great deal more emphasis on the last few words than had been there when he previously asked. The cultist merely bit back his pain, defiance still within his eyes as he managed to point towards the pile of book and datapads that the other cultists had brought into the tomb. The cultist did not offer any more words or explanation, apparently still trying to keep up his brave act of defiance. Quietus merely smiled, not bothering to look in the direction that the cultist was pointing. Instead he removed the man’s ring finger, eliciting another cry of pain. This time there was no reprieve as he was still held in place.

“Unsatisfactory. Two down… How many more do you think he could stand to lose Darth Eris?” He spoke sideways towards her, his eyes never leaving the cultist, before he leaned in close and directed his words at the man again.

 

“I did not ask for your research little worm. I asked you for the procedure. Step. By. Step. What you did, how you prepared. I have all the time in the world little worm. You are quickly running out of appendages for me to remove. At some point the pile of parts I removed will be more than what is left intact. Unless you wish – “

 

“OKAY!” the cultist yelled through pain, cutting Quietus off. “Okay… Okay. It… it was a combination of several different rituals. From all over the damn place. I don’t know where exactly, they never told me everything…”

 

With the cultist finally speaking and giving Quietus the answers, the Sith turned and began regarding the stack of books and datapads. There were of course ancient tomes from the Sith, but also from the Jedi it seemed. He also found a few that bore the marks of the Dathomir Night sisters, the Massassi, and other marking that he did not recognize. Among them he even found a journal, hand written, in a language he likewise did not recognize, yet felt inherently malicious.

 

“But…but what I do know!” the cultist continued, suddenly feeling like he needed to prove he was not stalling, “is the basics of the ritual! It had to be tweaked specifically for you; your essence. My masters gave me the location of your, uhm… wonderfully decorated tomb and told me what had to be done. We were told to find items that were strongly tied to you; things that defined you in life and that carried your mark upon them! So, we of course researched your weapons! Your lightsabers, your blades, even your armor itself given your propensity for hand to hand combat! So we came, and we found them, right where the Masters said they would be!”

 

The cultist then closed his eyes for a moment before continuing, as if reciting.

 

“His left hand, filled with a blade of sunset fire; that which extends his reach of death beyond his hands of flesh; the unholy bond of ornate metal and alchemy which crushes all before it; the bloody and smoky slinger of blue fire and fist; that which serves as a symbol of power and protection, and hides the truth of his being; A relic of other-worldly dangers past, bound by memories of those he lost…”

 

The cultist opened his eyes to find that Quietus had returned to his place in front of the man, his gaze locked onto the man’s face, daring him to continue. The cultist met the gaze of the Sith briefly, before turning elsewhere as he swallowed hard and continued.

 

“These… were of course, your favored lightsaber, your chained blade, the Warhammer, your charric carbine, your armor, and –“

 

Quietus’ hand shot to the cultists neck, cutting off the next words with a gurgle and a gasp.

 

“You miserable failure…. You got it wrong.” Quietus said in a way that was so quiet and calm, it was hard to imagine he had actually said the words. Quietus’ grip relented, and he turned from the cultist, his eyes meeting Emily’s briefly as he put his lightsaber away before reaching up to his own neck, pulling the armor he wore aside if only briefly, and pulled the necklace out from underneath and held it in his hand, looking at it carefully. But then Quietus brought his other hand up as well, the hand that still clutched the whip in a death grip. For a good long while Quietus stood there, motionless, and silent, glancing back and forth at the two objects. When he did speak again, the tone was much the same; quiet and calm, but just loud enough for both Emily and the cultist to hear.

 

“A relic of other-worldly dangers past, bound by memories of those he lost...” Quietus repeated. “I know those words. That… exact phrase. It’s not about the whip. It’s about this necklace. This necklace that was crafted from the remains of the Tiamat bug soldiers, specifically their hive mind… the hive mind that I myself killed after it took my Master from me. This was supposed to be your sixth item, little worm. Instead of bringing me back under your sway, under your Master’s direction, you tied me to a moment of my previous life… And I believe your ritual may have other unintended and… greater… consequences…”

 

Quietus moved to replace the necklace under his armor and turned, his lightsaber now in his hand once more as he ignited it with a snap-hiss. He glanced at the new-comer that now stood next to Emily, feeling the teenagers raw, untrained emotions; whoever she was, Emily apparently knew her, which was almost enough for Quietus. He noticed that she had almost absent-mindedly placed a hand on Roe’gall’s back as the massive tuk’ata returned to its place at Emily’s side. Quietus’ eyes darted to Vex’aedr in silence, before the Sith then turned to look at Emily.

 

When his gaze shifted to Emily, Vex’aedr stirred, turning and padding up to Raia, his muzzle a few scant inches from her face as the pair of eyes looked down at her. Vex’aedr made a sound akin to a snort and tilted its head to the side a bit, then sniffed Raia outright, and immediately growled slightly before not so gently placing its snout to the side of her face and pushing hard against her. To Quietus or Emily, it was akin to a nuzzle, but against the teenager it carried more force behind it, enough to potentially rock Raia off balance. In the end, there was no malicious intent, just Vex'aedr conducting its own investigation about this new creature that had arrived and was present for it's Master's renewal.

 

Meanwhile, Quietus’ eyes met Emily, holding her gaze and telling her wordlessly through the force, Prepare yourself, before continuing, still looking directly at her as he held the coiled whip up in his other hand.

 

“This whip that you so stupidly used in the ritual… it is not mine. I have never used it in combat, nor am I capable of wielding it to its potential. It belonged to… someone very dear to me once; a former apprentice, one that I cared for. Deeply. But she… she had a penchant for jumping ship and leaving. I was the third Sith to attempt to train her, and she likely had an equal number of Jedi Masters who likewise failed to keep her attention. But that is a story for another time… There… is much to explain. Suffice to say, the whip belonged to a woman who has been dead for most of your life Darth Eris…”

 

He then tossed the whip to her quickly, and once she had a grip on it, he finished his thought.

 

“It belonged to Jaina Jade Skywalker Colos. She is the reason I became friends with your parents. And now, I believe that because of this little, pathetic worm… I believe she is alive again, brought back as an extension of myself… No, scratch that. I know it. She…” Quietus paused, and then spoke again, re-emphasizing the word, “SHE is alive again. Somewhere.”

 

He allowed seconds to pass as this information sunk in for both of them. But he then resolved himself to press on, and turned back to the cultist, who seemed to be trying to process the fact that he failed the ritual, and yet managed to bring two people back to life. As Quietus approached though, the man refocused on the present.

 

“What else?” Quietus asked, “What next?”

 

The cultist swallowed again and blinked a few times, likely still feeling the pain of missing digits.

 

“The… the items; we called them anchors; required blood to connect them to each other. That… that’s what the rest of them were here for, although they did not know it until they had proven their dedication to the cause. They… each sacrificed their lives over your body and attached their life energy to the anchors. Six lives given freely to bestow life on you – oh great one”

 

The cultist smiled slightly, hoping to illicit some sense of favor for bringing Quietus back. Instead he lost his hand entirely as Quietus spun his blade with unnatural speed as he snarled back at the cultist, who in turn screamed out in pain once more.

 

“I am not your ‘savior’ or a puppet for your Masters, filth. I trust you will not forget that from now on.”

 

The cultist continued to moan in pain, but slowly the moan transitioned into laughter, which then grew louder as the cultist dared to glare back at Quietus.

 

“Fooool,” he hissed in Quietus face though laughter and pain, “Everyone will serve the Masters in time, if you will not rise to the glorious position they offer you, perhaps this… JAINA will take your place as the harbinger of this galaxy’s destruction!”

 

The cultist began to lose himself in delusional laughter then, practically cackling as if he had just heard the funniest joke in the galaxy. Quietus however, was not amused. The cultist had just managed to anger the Sith beyond words; beyond all measure of control. What occurred next in that chamber was beyond torture, and beyond murder. Quietus for all intents and purpose disassembled the cultist in those moments. His lightsaber flourished, cutting through the man’s arm at the elbow, then the shoulder, then the other hand, elbow, and shoulder. By then the laughter had transitioned back into screams. But still Quietus did not relent. The man’s feet were next removed with a single swing, then he was cut off at the knees before each leg was likewise cut from the torso.

 

By now the cultist has passed out from the sheer shock of what had just occurred, but Quietus did not relent. He did not pause for a micro second, instantly adjusting his blade swings to sever the man’s ears from the side of his head before removing the head itself from the torso, sending it popping up into the air. The torso was targeted with a vertical and horizontal slash, slicing it into four large chunks that vivisected his heart as well. It was just in time to catch the cultist’s head as gravity began to prevail. Quietus actually dropped his lightsaber to catch the man’s head in his hand, and then proceeded to roar with anger as he gouged out the man’s eyes with his bare fingers before spiking the head like some sort of sports ball played on a planet far away.

 

Quietus stood there afterwards, his back towards everyone else and breathing heavily, in silence. Emily had once referred to Quietus outbursts like this as going “Full Sith mode”, but those outbursts paled in comparison to what she had just witnessed; what he had just done. But with the task complete, Quietus became as still as the eye of the rage storm he had just been.

 

“No… not while I still draw breath” he muttered to absolutely no one before snapping his fingers, “maltītes laikā”.

 

With the spoken command, both tuk’atas sprang forward and began digging into and through the pile of meat and bone that Quietus had just created, treating it like an all you can eat buffet. Quietus only stirred to kneel down, patting each tuk’ata on the back as they fed before picking up what remained of the cultist’s skull, staring into the gory mask of a being that had just bent the will of death; though Quietus surmised that the true power and answers would not be found from this cultist.

 

Not that there was much of the man left to question further.

[Emily]

Watching Quietus work was a master class in torture and interrogation. Eris had expected nothing less.

 

She let him have the enjoyment of taking the man's first two fingers. She appraised the worm, considering. Part of her thought the man's zealotry would make him put up with losing quite a few appendages, but his fear was strong. "I suppose we'll just have to find out," she said in reply to Quietus' query. "We've got all day."

 

Just then, Roe'gall padded into the room with Raia at his side. The girl looked terrified, but determined, and seemed to gain courage from Roe'gall's presence. Emily was privately amused. The girl came to stand next to her, and then Emily saw she had put a hand on Roe'gall's side. She raised her eyebrows at the tuk'ata, and he gave her a sheepish whuff. Looks like Roe'gall made a friend, she thought. She wasn't offended, and Roe'gall didn't seem to mind.

 

Quietus threatened the cultist again, and the man yelped, finally speaking, directing their gaze to a pile of books and datapads. Quietus and Eris immediately moved among them, browsing. Several of the tomes, she recognized. Yet another, she had recently come across in Furion's library. But there were a few that practically called out to her. She touched their spines and screens with anticipation. If what this babbler was saying was true...all the secrets she desired were contained within this small pile of paper and computer code. The cultist was continuing, almost chanting a litany of items that had connected Quietus to life. She wasn't paying that much attention until suddenly she felt a change come over Quietus. The temperature of the room seemed to drop a few degrees as she glanced up to see him grab the cultist's neck and cut him off.

 

"You miserable failure...You got it wrong." With those words, Quietus then glanced at her and pulled out a necklace. She had seen it before, and remembered him telling her about it. It symbolized one of the most defining moments in then-Raynuk's life, and it clearly fit the description of the relic. As Quietus explained, Emily saw Vex'aedr investigating Raia out of the corner of her eye. Then, Quietus turned to her again, and she met his steady gaze. Prepare yourself. The message was clear, but suddenly, Emily was apprehensive. The fact that he had wanted to warn her clued her in that he was about to drop a bomb shell.

 

As he began to explain about the whip, she was forcibly reminded that although they knew each other intimately, there was still much about Quietus that she did not know. He had never before mentioned this former apprentice. She found that odd, especially as he mentioned that he had cared for her. A worm of jealousy rose up within her, but she pushed it down. The woman had betrayed him, it sounded like, and more than that, had been dead for years. He tossed her the whip, and she looked down at it. It was intricately crafted, beautiful and deadly, and it gave off a strange aura in the Force which caught her interest.

 

She was so caught by that strange quality that she almost missed what Quietus said next. Almost. "It belonged to Jaina Jade Skywalker Colos." Overwhelming shock and surprise crashed over Emily, and she almost dropped the whip. Aunt Jaina?!? That was the last name she had expected to hear today. And...she was alive? She was the woman he had first thought of when he awoke from his grave? Quietus' explanation was helpful, but it barely registered in her stunned mind. Not only had this ritual brought back Quietus...but it had brought back someone in her family. This was not something that happened. There had to be an explanation, a reason the Force had done this. She wasn't under any delusions that she was the center of the universe, but sometimes the way the Force worked almost made her believe it.

 

With great effort, she forced herself to focus. Now was not the time to obsess over this. There was no doubt--she would do everything in her power to find Jaina, and she was certain that she and Quietus would do it together, if for differing reasons. Even if his enraged outburst when he first came out of his tomb wasn't a clue, she could sense his curiosity to find her again himself. Actually, she reflected, this could be awkward. After all, he had said he had cared for Jaina...just how far that caring went might not be something Emily wanted to know.

 

She realized she wasn't paying attention again. The cultist was ranting about his master now, this Morthos, and then made the fatal mistake of calling Quietus a fool to his face. She grimaced. Shouldn't have done that... A second before he acted, she felt Quietus snap. And in that moment, he vented his fury on the cultist.

 

The scene was violent and gruesome and horrible, although there was no blood, since Quietus' lightsaber was instantly cauterizing the wounds it inflicted. That was, Eris reflected as the man's screams echoed through the chamber, one of the nice things about lightsabers. They didn't leave a mess behind. She didn't think she had ever seen Quietus go quite this blood-mad, and she had seen him do some crazy things. It was telling. Clearly, everything that had happened here had impacted him deeply.

 

Finally, she turned her back on the scene and focused on Raia. The girl was not likely to handle this very well. The trust between them was still fragile--after all, they had met only days prior. She hoped that seeing Quietus' blood rage on the loose was not going to scar the girl permanently and make her no longer desire to learn what Emily had to teach her. But they would have to have a conversation about it later. For now, Emily needed to talk with Quietus.

 

The tuk'atas leapt forward eagerly at Quietus' permission and began to feed with an almost obscene enthusiasm. Vex'aedr, she could understand, but Roe'gall was acting like she never fed him anything. But he was like a kid in a candy shop who had just been given permission to eat everything he wanted. Once unchecked, the two tuk'atas ate up not only the cultist leader, but quickly moved on to the remains of the rest of the cult scattered around the room.

 

Quietus himself stood to the side, holding the cultist leader's skull, looking like the forlorn and petulant prince from that old play she had read. Alas, poor Yorick, she thought, amused by the picture. She moved over to him, her hands still cradling the exotic whip, which still called out to her in strange ways. "We should find her." She met Quietus' gaze. "I want to find her."

 

Of course she had mixed emotions, but that was the truth. Whatever had gone on in the past, the future was still an open book. What that story would tell, she mused, was yet to be seen.

[Alora]

The Sith Mistress paused once more, her senses tingling as she recognized another familiar presence along with that of her former Master. Emily. Sirvani and John’s daughter. Alora had been going to ask Emily if she would come to the wedding, had actually sent a message to Sirvani’s old com. frequency though before she could find out if the message had gotten to Emily she had been betrayed, been captured by the cultists. She felt such a fool for falling for the rouse – these cultists had not been Slaanesh’s regular disciples… no, they had belonged to another cult altogether. With her mind on her upcoming plans, she had missed the warning signs and then it was too late.

 

At the sound of the ships ramp lowering her head whipped around to see a slight figure exit it. As she moved closer, Alora saw that it was a young girl. A black tuk’ata emerged from the tomb’s entrance and went straight up to the girl, it seemed to know her as it’s demeanor wasn’t threatening… just annoyed when the girl didn’t immediately follow him. When the girl bowed to her on her way past, the Sith Mistress inclined her head. She was going to follow along only for the fact she felt another familiar presence approach.

 

It was a presence she had longed for over the years of her interment. When the ship broke through the atmosphere, leaving a trail of fire behind as it soared past, she knew exactly where it was going. Alora spun back towards the ship that had brought her and strode back towards it. Cannon fire sounded over the roar of the ship and then the sound she had waited so long to hear… a voice she had wished to hear over the many lonely nights she had spent in her captivity. Her movements quickened until she was running. As she raced around her beloved’s ship she saw him enter the cultists. Her right hand closed around her saber hilt as she followed him in.

[darth shadowlord]

Draken strode into the ship with the crystal staff in his hand while behind him the Wookiee was writhing on the deck, trying to cover the tri-pointed hole punched in his sternum. Suddenly his howls grew in pitch and fear as his eyes, nose, and mouth began to fill with blood as the poison that the spines were coated with began to eat through his veins, turning them to liquid as the poison was carried swift to the heart. He smiled grimly and proceeded further into the ship, his sensitive hearing picking up the sound of people fighting to get a hatch open in the forward end of the ship, while people in the aft end of the ship were struggling to put out the fire that was getting out of control.

 

"Your time has come, your end is nigh."

 

His low voice carried easily through the ship, the menace and certainty in his tone clearly audible. He let his mind sink deeper into the Force as the first woman ran around the corner. Her shotgun attempting to find an aiming point on his torso as he grabbed her and lifted her into the air by the throat. He began to draw more and more of the Force toward him as the air grew cold around them. The air began to shimmer to look at and had a tinkling sound to it. It seemed as air itself was crystalizing as the Sith Master began to work a technique that he had not been used in some time. A tinkling sound was heard throughout the entire building as slowly crystal began transform her organs from

 

A scream rang out for a moment and then was cut off as her lungs slowly turned to crystal. Opening his hand, he let her drop to the deck with a thud that belied her thin appearance. The crystallization process moved to her heart then to her veins, the tiny particles of fast growing crystals propelled through her body by her blood and seconds later erupted from her skin to the horror of the two men who had just exited the ship's armory and were attempting to bring their bulky shock net launchers to bear on him. Draken slipped a dagger from his sleeve and threw it into the throat of the first man then triggered the man's launcher with the Force as he spun towards his comrade.

 

 

He reached out with the Force and snapped off seven pieces of crystal that were protruding from the woman's body and launched them at the man trapped by the shock net one at a time. The first crystal piercing his left knee, pinning him to the wall as the second crystal shard pierced his right knee followed by a crystal driving through each of his elbows and then two through his shoulders. Draken left the last shard hovering in front of the man's eyes as he reached out and pulled the door of the armory shut trapping two cultists inside the armory, holding it shut despite their efforts to open it. He turned back to the man pinned against the bulkhead of the ship by the crystal and called the crystal back to his hand as he stepped closer to the man. He examined the crystal for a mom then struck it several times with the Force so that the crystal had been shaven down to a three sided spike much like the spike on the bottom of the crystal staff he carried.

 

With a gesture, the crystal spike shot up from his hand and pressed against the trapped man's forehead. With a pulse of the Force, Draken set the shard spinning so that it slowly bored its way through his skull and into his brain. The man screamed for several moments as the crystal entered his brain before slumping over. Silently Draken turned towards the door and with a concentrated pulse of the force struck at the hinges of the Armory hatch blowing it back into the armory with such force that one of the men inside the armory was crushed against the bulkhead. The armory hatch had hit him in such a way that his head had exploded from the concussive force and the weight of the hatch. Striding into the armory, Draken looked at the last man inside who had fallen to his knees in front of the seething Krath in front of him.

 

"Please Milord, don't kill me. We were only following orders. We thought she was alone."

 

The response to the begging was as vicious as it was drawn out. Draken reached out with the Force and grasped the man's heart from within his chest and began to crush it. Millimeter by millimeter, the quickly pulsating organ began to constrict as Draken slowly closed his fist. A little of blood dripped from the man's nose and tear ducts as his heels began to drum against the bulkhead. A whimper of pain escaped the now panicking man's lips followed by a gush of blood as his pulmonic valve was crushed filling his lungs with blood that had no where else to escape to. With a look of contempt, Draken closed his fist crushing the heart within the man's chest and letting him drop to the floor as his lungs filled with blood and his brain began to starve from lack of oxygen.

[Raia Montar]

Grey eyes watched the scene unfold before her and her mind worked as quickly as it could to decipher the rapid-fire exchange between the two men. All she could really get is some sort of mistake had been made, and one with greater consequences that sounded rather ominous to her young ears.

 

Pretty sure the mistake the man made was meddling in the affairs of the dead, she thought. A chill ran up her spine as the Sith turned back to Emily, his eyes lingering on her for the briefest of moments, before he turned towards the white tuk’ata and then back to his captive.

 

She took an involuntary step backward as the beast trundled up to her, it’s hot breath warm and malodorous on her face as he regarded her, before nudging her forcefully with his snout as though testing her. “I am part of Roe’gall’s pack,” she whispered to the beast as she regained her footing and the lost steps. “Your pack,” the former witch added, remembering what Emily had told her of how she’d come by Roe’gall. The fact the two beasts seemed familiar with one another instead of at odds, made the intuitive leap fairly easy.

 

“This whip that you so stupidly used in the ritual…” the Sith began again, causing Raia to look up, remembering she was supposed to be learning from this encounter, “it is not mine. I have never used it in combat, nor am I capable of wielding it to its potential. It belonged to… someone very dear to me once; a former apprentice, one that I cared for. Deeply. But she… she had a penchant for jumping ship and leaving. I was the third Sith to attempt to train her, and she likely had an equal number of Jedi Masters who likewise failed to keep her attention. But that is a story for another time… There… is much to explain. Suffice to say, the whip belonged to a woman who has been dead for most of your life Darth Eris…”

 

Eris? She looked towards Emily, still not quite comprehending. It became clear that the man meant Raia’s teacher when he tossed the whip their way as he continued.

 

“It belonged to Jaina Jade Skywalker Colos. She is the reason I became friends with your parents. And now, I believe that because of this little, pathetic worm… I believe she is alive again, brought back as an extension of myself… No, scratch that. I know it. She…” the man paused, and then spoke again, re-emphasizing the word, “SHE is alive again. Somewhere.”

 

Confused, Raia looked at Emily, sensing her stunned shock through the energies that were still running rampant and then back to the Sith and his hapless captive as the former continued the interrogation.

 

“What else?” The interrogator asked, “What next?”

 

His captive, who was very pale by now, swallowed again and blinked a few times before shakily responding “The… the items; we called them anchors; required blood to connect them to each other. That… that’s what the rest of them were here for, although they did not know it until they had proven their dedication to the cause. They… each sacrificed their lives over your body and attached their life energy to the anchors. Six lives given freely to bestow life on you – oh great one”

 

The captive man’s mouth curved up slightly, as he tried to placate a man Raia could sense growing steadily more angry. In a swift blurr of motion, so quick that the girl almost missed it, the man’s hand was removed from his body and he was howling in pain.

 

“I am not your ‘savior’ or a puppet for your Masters, filth. I trust you will not forget that from now on.” Raia sensed it was an uncommon warning from the imposing figure. She studied the cultist as his expression changed from a grimace of pain to one contorted in a zealous fit of laughter that caused another chill to surge through her body.

 

“Fooool,” the defiant man hissed in his interrogator’s face though laughter and pain, “Everyone will serve the Masters in time, if you will not rise to the glorious position they offer you, perhaps this… JAINA will take your place as the harbinger of this galaxy’s destruction!”

 

Qaela’s warnings of the dangers of insulting Sith, particularly Sith Masters came flooding back to Raia as she watched the offender cut literally to a pile of pieces, part by part in front of her. Even when the man’s screams stopped, his assailant did not relent or show the slightest mercy.

 

She couldn’t breathe and could feel hot tears of shock and echoes of the newly dead man’s pain echoed back along the Force and to her. A choked back cry of anguish escaped past the lump in her throat as she backed away from the furious display of carnage. Even in Furion’s testing arena there had not been that level of pure fury, of utter violence. For one who’d been raised in the healing arts of her clan and had never killed until forced to in self-defense, it was more than her already strained and stressed mind could handle for the moment.

 

Her stomach roiling, she ducked behind the sarcophagus retching as he gave a command and the two tuk’atas leapt at the remains. Suddenly she wasn’t so eager to meet Emily’s master.

[Raynuk Montar]

For a very long while after Quietus gave the tuk'atas command and leave to devour the remains of the cultist leader, the Sith remained still and quiet. It was as if he was shell-shocked after such a display of anger and savagery. In truth, Quietus was deep in thought and contemplation about the conversation he had just had with the leader of the cultists. It had been a very long time since someone had gotten under his skin and provoked such a knee-jerk reaction from Quietus. Even more rare was that reaction coming at the expense of someone who was not a Sith or Jedi, or someone equally powerful in the Force. But now here he stood, coming down from the rush of combat and murder, deeply troubled. Between the things he had learned from the conversation, the existence of this 'end the galaxy' type cult, and the fact that Jaina was alive somewhere in the galaxy, it was enough to cause him pause. But the most troubling aspect of the whole situation was the surprise Quietus felt at how voraciously he had reacted to what had become the cultist's final words.

 

Not while I still draw breath...

 

Even now, after all the years of life and death, he still reacted harshly to things when it involved Jaina. However, before he could truly delve into the implications of it all, Emily was at his side, still clutching the whip that had belonged to her aunt. Initially he did not meet her gaze, but then turned.

 

"We should find her." She met Quietus' gaze. "I want to find her."

 

Quietus turned back to survey the destruction that his return has wrought before answering her in low tones.

 

"I'm sure you already know, but I intend to do just that." He paused again, finally taking proper note of the young woman who was currently wretching behind his sarcophagus. it was oddly a point of amusement for Quietus, causing a quick smirk to rise to the surface before he turned back to Emily.

 

"I realize this... all of this... is a never-ending series of shocks to you. I imagine you have questions, and there are many things that I never told you. But know this; I too have questions that need answers. And I intend to get them, with you. Together. Whatever the cost, how ever long it takes, we will find the answers to our questions, and we will find Jaina."

 

He again reached out for her, placing his hand gently on her cheek as a smile crept across his face. He looked her in the eyes and for the first time since he awoke, finally noticed just how much she had seemed to mature. The young, scared, and inexperienced girl he had found so long ago was nearly gone, replaced with a confident and strong young woman.

 

"Hi by the way" He said, sounding amused as he cast aside a stray lock of hair. The moment was further broken however as Quietus was unceremoniously nudged in the shoulder by Vex'aedr, who upon being acknowledged by Quietus, let loose a low whuff and then turned to look at the sarcophagus; or rather, the young woman who was still retching behind it judging by the sounds.

 

"And who's the twerp that's desecrating my tomb right now anyway? New apprentice?"

[Alora]

As she made her way into the ship the Sith Mistress came across the evidence of Draken’s path. First on the blood trail was a Wookiee. The howls had preceded her sight of him, the poisons injected through the spines causing an awful din. She stepped around the dying creature and followed the path of bodies.

 

Alora felt the change in the air and stretched out her senses, reinforcing her mate as they had done countless times before. She had missed the connection with him, cut off from everything that had mattered to her. It was time to make them pay! The dark Mistress relished in the pain the cultists were being dealt as their lives were painfully snuffed out.

 

Finally she closed the distance between them, only pausing momentarily to drink in the sight she had longed for. As she approached she remained out of the cultists sight, the large form of her sweetheart blocking her from his view.

 

"Please Milord, don't kill me. We were only following orders. We thought she was alone."

 

At his words she strode forward, violet eyes flashing, her hand raised so that before he died he would see the glinting clear coursca gem set in a platinum ring that her love had given her. “You knew! You took my pendant but you didn’t take my engagement ring! You knew I was not alone!” Alora’s harsh tone snapped the words out with barely controlled anger. As Draken dealt out punishment she looked on with nothing but contempt. These cultists didn’t know what level of hellish torture was to come their way now that she was free.

 

She stared down for a long moment at the now deceased cultist, feeling the dark energies swelling around her, echoes of the pain the cultists had suffered pulsing through the very air they breathed in. Her extended hand came to rest upon her fiancé’s arm and in a gesture that was completely opposite of the previous actions, she leaned towards him, slipping her arms around the Sith Master to let their lips meet for the first time in years. When their lips parted she murmured softly, “I missed you.” The simple statement said more than was voiced. Alora paused but a moment more before releasing the love of her life, turning to peruse the armory. Reaching over, she grabbed a couple of frag grenades and winked at her love. “I’ve got things I need to do.” With those words she headed off towards the room that she had been held in, slipping the grenades into the folds of her robes.

 

Mentally she prepared herself for the dulling sensation to return, the suppression of the Force that the ysalamiri bubble caused. She looked forward to ending that creatures life in spectacular fashion. As she approached the aft end of the ship she could hear another of the cultists ahead of her. A tall human man stopped in the middle of the corridor. He looked confident in his abilities as he stood still, a vibroblade held almost casually in his hand. “Your Force can’t work on me here Sith. Don’t think I’ll go as easily as my comrades.”

 

Taking her lightsaber hilt in hand she couldn’t help the smirk that appeared across her features. “You think I’m helpless without the Force as my ally? I am a Sith Master, trained by the best of the Order and you…” The look that crossed her face was pure contempt. “…You and your comrades have brought about your doom!” With a slight tilt of her wrist she sent a dart flying which embedded itself in the man’s neck. It contained a rapid acting hallucinogen agent. Also subtly at first she also began to release her pheromones. Both of her actions would make it difficult for him to concentrate on fighting her. With a *snap-hiss* her fluctuating deep crimson and silver blade emerged, the Sith Mistress letting it solidify to crimson for the time being. She swung the blade, loving how it hummed and how it felt to use once more, even without the Force it became an extension of her being. With every move she made it was ‘getting the kinks out’ from having remained still for so long.

 

Her eyes never left those of her opponent as he began to move, swinging his blade to a offensive position. Alora didn’t hesitate any longer, knowing the drugs would interfere with his concentration very soon. She could see his nostrils twitch as he caught the increasingly stronger scent she was releasing. He shifted uncomfortably and let out a yell as he charged her, his blade intending to run her through. She brought her saber up to clash against his blade, intuitively knowing that his weapon would be resistant to her saber. She danced out of his way and sent another dart to embed itself into his body. The second dose would ensure that he would begin to see things that weren’t there. He came at her again, trying to use his brute strength against her. The blades met again though this time she pressed him back with a flurry of her lightsaber. Again she danced backwards, subtly moving so that she could get out of the ysalamiri’s influence without him realizing it.

 

She pressed him backwards with an attack meant to distract him further and when she had him thinking she was going to push forward some more, she again danced back out of the way. This time she felt the return of the dark energies so began to create an illusion that would only be enhanced by his hallucinations. He was already bringing his blade up as if to engage a second attacker. As soon as he crossed the ysalamiri bubbles influence she probed his mind to see just what he was seeing. Glee coursed through her at what she saw. ‘This could be fun…’ the Sith Mistress grinned to herself …

 

In his mind he wasn’t facing her, he was facing a Trandoshan. Within a blink of his eye there were three of them, all scarred differently and differing shades of green. He began to swing his vibroblade wildly as they closed on him, his fear irrational. Alora amplified that fear and pressed her attack, slicing through his defenses both physically and mentally. His arms both hit the floor, the smell of burning flesh tainting the air. He screamed, his eyes widening in his panic. In his bid to get away from the Trandoshan’s, he impaled himself upon her saber blade.

[Emily]

Quietus' long silence while the tuk'atas were munching away caused a shard of pain to pierce Eris' heart. After all this time, she still was sad when he was troubled. But when he spoke, he turned his disquiet to a solemn determination. She nodded at his words. Yes, they would find Jaina. And she was heartened by the idea of doing it together. They were always better together. Their skill sets balanced each other, and she knew that together, there was nothing they couldn't accomplish. Her heart warmed at his caress and lighthearted greeting. "Hi yourself," she replied with a small smile. "Welcome back." There was more to be said--much more. She had vowed to be completely honest with him if she ever got the chance to see him again, and she was determined to keep that promise. But this was not the time or place. And regardless of the outcome of that conversation, a conversation that had become more necessary since his words about Jaina, she was glad he was back.

 

For now, though, she had a duty to do. Raia was here, and Emily had neglected her far too long. She gave Quietus a mock-scolding look as she walked over to the girl. Don't freak her out more than you already have, please. She's very new to this, she told him lightly though the Force. She placed a hand on Raia's back. "Better now?" she asked as the girl finished retching. "I know this was a shock to you, but the dark side is powerful and deadly, and you'll receive no finer demonstration of that than what you just witnessed. The same goes for Roe'gall. His nature is a ferocious man-eating monster, and it's important to remember that. There is power in taking life, if you know how to harness it." She kept her hand on Raia's shoulder as she turned the girl around to face Quietus. "Raia, this is Darth Quietus." She hesitated, not knowing what else to add to the introduction. Raia knew he had trained Emily. She gave a mental shrug. Raia would figure out the rest soon enough on her own. She let it stand as such, and continued. "And yes, Quietus, this is my new apprentice, Raia." A much better candidate than that first apprentice you tried to hoist on me, she added privately to him. "Raia was originally chosen by Furion to learn the dark side, but when Furion vanished from the galaxy, Raia was left alone for several years on Spite Station. She's a former Dathomiri witch with enormous potential." She added the last praise to help put Raia a little more at ease.

 

Suddenly she felt more death through the Force, fairly close by. There were more Sith here. Both of the presences were vaguely familiar. She knew she had met both of them before, but couldn't place who precisely they were. Regardless, it seemed sure that they would meet them once they left the tomb. At that thought, she glanced around. "Any reason for us to linger here?" she asked. "Let's take this stuff and leave." Most of the books and such she already had, and what was left was small enough to carry on their persons. She tucked some of the items under her left arm, and with her right, she reached out to Raia and put her arm around the girl's shoulders. "C'mon Raia, let's get back to the ship."

[Raia Montar]

When she felt a hand on her back the girl jumped, pushing outward through the Force out of pure instinct and self-preservation, but she was so spent that it had little effect. She immediately regretted the impulse when Emily’s voice met her ears.

 

“Better now?”

 

Raia looked up at her, grey eyes still rimmed with wetness, and gave a half-nod. Better? she thought, Better now that the carnage has stopped? Better knowing that I can’t unsee what I just witnessed? Better for now knowing what a Sith at full fury looks like? Better in my choice to stay?

 

"I know this was a shock to you, but the dark side is powerful and deadly, and you'll receive no finer demonstration of that than what you just witnessed. The same goes for Roe'gall. His nature is a ferocious man-eating monster, and it's important to remember that. There is power in taking life, if you know how to harness it."

 

The brown haired girl looked first to Emily, then to Roe’gal and the other tuk’ata as the two of them continued to clean up after the cultists before being bodily turned to face the man her teacher had brought her to meet in the first place.

 

“Raia, this is Darth Quietus.”

 

For several moments, Raia couldn’t look at the man directly, choosing instead to focus on looking at the armor he wore. Eventually, her eyes met his as Emily continued her introduction. “And yes, Quietus, this is my new apprentice, Raia. Raia was originally chosen by Furion to learn the dark side, but when Furion vanished from the galaxy, Raia was left alone for several years on Spite Station. She's a former Dathomiri witch with enormous potential.”

 

Still trembling slightly under Emily’s steadying hand, Raia took a deep breath and finally started to relax a little bit as her teacher suggested they all leave. The tricky part was not to bound past everyone and everything on a mad dash to get back to the ship. Discipline forced her to remain at Emily’s side as they made their way from Quietus’s tomb.

[Raynuk Montar]

Don't freak her out more than you already have, please. She's very new to this...

 

Emily's voice sounded through his mind as she walked away towards the teenager, causing Quietus to furrow his brow back at her. Not my fault she was here for that... he thought to himself. As she tended to her apprentice, Quietus turned his attention back to the skull in his hand, and in that moment decided that he would keep it, if for nothing else then a reminder of what he had promised in the cultists final seconds of life. Of course, for the moment Quietus had no where to stash the skull, as his armor didnt exactly have pockets. Note to self; get new robes. With pockets. So for the moment he simply continued carrying it as he walked across the room, to the large storage chest that rested under an outcropping of stone built into the tomb. Once there he crouched down, running his hand over the lid almost haphazardly. In truth, he was activating the unlocking mechanism that had been set to his fingerprints and in a very specific pattern. It took but a moment for the almost inaudible click to signify the container was unlocked. Quietus opened it once more, leaving it open, and reached inside and pulled out the contents; the rest of his gear. His long, black sleeveless robes that were more akin to a duster, was immediately put on over his black armor, while the black lightsaber that had belonged to Barohm Zar was clipped to the other side of his hip from his orange lightsaber.

 

Placing the skull down for a moment, he the reached in and removed two more items, each wrapped in cloth of different types. One was wrapped in soft emerald green cloth that was slightly tattered and stained, the other was wrapped in black cloth similar to Quietus' robes. The container had other items in it, relics of Quietus' past, but for now they would remain untouched. Picking up the skull in one hand and cradling the two bundles of cloth in the other, he stood and returned to Emily and Raia as the teenager was once again finding the courage to stand. Emily introduced the girl to Quietus, who bowed courteously and stood as if a different person than the one she had just witnessed; his demeanor was calm and almost inviting as he listened to the brief summary of the girl's story.

 

"Furion..." he half snorted, "such a waste. Well, know that you stand in good company Raia; Furion has left me equally stranded in the galaxy before. I do not know what Emily has told you of herself, but you have found yourself a Master who understands the complications that stem from being abandoned on a place like Spite Station. But alas, I must apologize for what you were just witness to... my anger and fury are deeply seeded when it comes to the topic of that conversation. I trust you have not lost the stomach to learn. At any rate, before we leave this place, I feel I must make amends for what, clearly, you were not expecting to witness when you came here."

 

He turned from the pair, stealing a quick glance at Emily, before placing both bundles of cloth on the top of his sarcophagus, and gently opened them. From the emerald green cloth emerged a heavily worn and tarnished silver and gold handled lightsaber, a design that might be recognizable in a Jedi's hands, and had clearly been used many times. From the black cloth emerged a longer, smooth black cylinder; a double bladed lightsaber. This one was clearly not as worn, and in fact seemed to have almost never been used.

 

"I offer to you a choice. I would like to think you know what these are; I will part with whichever of the two you choose, until such time that you see fit to return it to me, or pass it to another. Please, examine them at your leisure..."

 

Quietus then stepped back, leaving plenty of space for the skittish teenager to approach and examine the weapons, while his gaze turned to Emily again and he simply shrugged.

 

=================================================================================

 

Once Raia had made her choice, Quietus nodded in satisfaction and stepped forward and took the remaining lightsaber before moving to stash them back in the container. Sealing it once more, he turned back and made a straight line for the exit to the tomb without further words, knowing that Vex'aedr would follow, as would Emily, Raia and Roe'gall in their own time. back through the darkened passages and over the corpses of the cultists. Quietus himself found a small measure of joy seeing that many of his traps had claimed lives as intended, and those traps that had reset themselves were easily avoided; after all, this was his tomb. Minutes passed before he emerged back onto the planet's surface, back out into the pelting sand and blazing sun. Quietus closed his eyes and reveled in the warmth of the sun again, and attempted to take a deep breath of fresh air...

 

...and promptly fell into a coughing spell as his lungs filled with sand and dirt filled air. Right. Thats why I dont do that here anymore... he grumbled to himself. Once the others had emerged, a sudden realization hit Quietus, and he spoke his concerns out loud.

 

"Wait... Where the hell did I leave my ship?!"

[Raia Montar]

Raia thought that Quietus was about to lead them from the chamber, but instead, he knelt to retrieve some items from a chest at the base of his sarcophagus. In the moments following his outburst towards the cultist, she was finally calm enough to both notice and sense the change in the man before her now. As he donned his regalia, she found herself being reminded of her mother’s own champion who’d been among the strongest in the clan.

 

He sat the cultist’s skull down on the lid of the duracrete casket that had been his resting place for who knew how long and continued to rummage amongst the items in the container, ultimately emerging with two bundles of fabric, one an emerald cloth that looked to have seen better days, the other a black fabric that had appeared to have been from the same bolt as the robes that Quintus now wore.

 

As he bowed to her, she noticed his eyes were a dark brown and he seemed much less frightening now.

 

"Furion..." he snorted with a small amount of derision and contempt, "such a waste. Well, know that you stand in good company Raia; Furion has left me equally stranded in the galaxy before. I do not know what Emily has told you of herself, but you have found yourself a Master who understands the complications that stem from being abandoned on a place like Spite Station. But alas, I must apologize for what you were just witness to... my anger and fury are deeply seeded when it comes to the topic of that conversation. I trust you have not lost the stomach to learn. At any rate, before we leave this place, I feel I must make amends for what, clearly, you were not expecting to witness when you came here."

 

 

Curiosity gradually overtook the fear as he spoke. “I have only been with Emily for…” she paused, looking back at her teacher to make sure she was gauging standard galactic time correctly, “...three days? I do not know much beyond she is unlike the others I have met.”

 

He turned away from the two of them to open the two bundles, each bearing its own unique cylinder. Raia looked at them curiously as Darth Quietus spoke, "I offer to you a choice. I would like to think you know what these are; I will part with whichever of the two you choose, until such time that you see fit to return it to me, or pass it to another. Please, examine them at your leisure..."

 

As he stepped back, she tentatively stepped forward, her grey eyes roving each of the weapons as an unidentifiable emotion crossed her face. “I-I’ve never been allowed to handle any weapon like this before…”

 

She selected the tarnished silver and gold handled hilt, taking a moment to appreciate the artistry and design of the surprisingly lighter-than-expected object. Holding it gingerly away from both her and the others, she found the switch and ignited the saber with a snap-hiss. A pure silver blade emerged from the housing and she took a few slow and measured swings, respectful of its destructive power having just borne witness to what one of these weapons could do in the hands of a true Master of the Force. On instinct, she opened herself to feel more of how the lightsaber felt in her hand, the silver light reflecting eerily in her own grey eyes. Finally, she deactivated the blade and turned to the other option.

 

The second lightsaber’s hilt was much longer than the first, but not so much that it felt unnatural in her hands. The simplicity and smoothness was completely opposite of its silver and gold counterpart and she found it beautiful in its own way. Activating the switch, twin crimson blades emitted out either end, very reminiscent of the staff weapon that she’d persuaded her mother’s champion into training her with. Ultimately she made her decision and turned back to regard the two Masters.

 

“I will learn, if for no other reason than to be able to defend myself against others like you.” The teen glanced from Quietus to Emily, then turned to wrap up the remaining lightsaber back in its emerald cloth.

 

Somehow she found the courage to walk up and hand the bundle back to Quietus directly, though her attention was drawn to the head of the cultist leader cradled in the man’s hands, its death mask one of combined shock and fervor. She abruptly looked away and swallowed.

 

“H-He did kind of deserve it, though,” Raia added, absently looking over the casing of her new double-bladed lightsaber in an effort to focus enough to still her renewed trembling. “Messing with things that go against nature, like raising the dead, don't happen without a balancing consequence.” It didn't make the memory of witnessing such a thing any easier, but it helped her make peace with it, for the moment at least.

 

She watched him stow the remaining lightsaber in the chest as the white tuk’ata, blood staining his snout in such a way that the beast appeared to be smiling with satisfaction as he followed his master from the tomb.

[Alora]

The Sith Mistress disengaged her lightsaber and watched the body of the cultist fall to the floor with unseeing eyes. Reaching out, she touched Draken’s mind, loving how it felt to connect with him once more ‘Can you check the Nav Comp. and find out where this ship’s been? I’d like to know where they were with me, even if they never took me out of this ship! See if you can find out any other information we can use to hunt these cultists down with.’ She ended the contact with a phantom kiss.

 

Psyching herself up for the loss of the Force once more, Alora took a deep breath before stepping confidently through the invisible barrier. She hated the dulling of her senses, had lived for years inside the room she was headed for now, with only a holo-screen opposite the stasis field tube they had kept her in. There had been nothing else in the room. Most of her incarceration was a very lonely affair. Occasionally they would put the holo-screen on as some kind of “companionship” for her, something to break up the constant boredom. Mostly it was music clips or holo-drama’s, no news regarding the state of the galaxy if they could help it, though occasionally they would show holo’s that were secretly taken of the people she knew or associated with or of the man she missed so much it hurt. Whatever they were up to, it proved one thing for her… they had been spying on her friends. They had stopped coming into the room with her early on as she had talked a few of the cultists into releasing her from the stasis field, though with the constant monitoring of the room she hadn’t gotten out of it before their emergency protocols were enacted and the room was flooded with a knockout gas. She would wake hours later alone and back in that horrid stasis tube. So it had definitely surprised her when she had discovered her weaponry still in place.

 

As she approached the door to the room she’d been in, Alora fiddled with her dart launcher, seeing how many darts she had left as well as which ones. Two were pure pheromones, two were a lethal mix of a fast acting poison and the last was another hallucinogen. She could make out three different voices within, a female and two males. ‘Decisions, decisions… now how will I dispose of this lot…’ A wicked grin crossed her features as an argument seemed to be raging between them.

 

“Why the hell did you want us to come in here for? There’s nothing in here! Nothing to hide behind, nothing to use even!”

 

“I told you there was nothing in here but you had to follow Ado.”

 

“Sith and Jedi don’t like not feeling the Force so why would they come this far?”

 

“Ado you stupid nerf herder! She’ll want revenge! We’ve had her in here for years so why wouldn’t she put up with not having the Force for a little while longer if she can kill us?”

 

“Yeah and if that other Sith isn’t her lover I’d eat my blaster.”

 

“What about the Stasis Field?”

 

“What about it you slimy piece of worm-ridden filth!”

 

“If we redirected it we could…”

 

Hearing enough she opened the control panel next to the door. Rerouting the wires to open the door was easy for her, after all, it used to be her bread and butter on Leria Kerlsi growing up at the Shipyards which she still owned. Well… it was her occupation until she’d turned 18 and her parents had been killed while at a conference on Coruscant. Thinking of her former home she made a mental note to contact her manager at Darkknell Shipyard Industries and see what had been happening in the last few years. She had organized for the manager to take care of things in her absence and that there may be long stretches of time in which she wouldn’t be in contact with them… she just didn’t think it would be as long as it had been. They also knew to contact Draken if they couldn’t get in touch with her… but the writer has digressed… back to the door…

 

Taking out a frag grenade from her robes, she readied it and touched the wires together overriding the lock command so that the door slid open. She threw the grenade in towards the stasis field tube, took hold of her saber hilt in case they tried to come out of the door and waited for it to explode. Three…. Two… *snap hiss* Her saber hummed to life across the doorway, shortly followed by a cut off, gurgling scream as one of the men decapitated himself on her blade. With a quick motion of her feet she leapt over the body, across to the other side of the doorway, getting a glimpse of where the other two were within the room and ducking down. …One… *boom*

 

Cries rang out, indicating the two had gotten an unhealthy dose of shrapnel, as debris blasted out of the open door. As the dust cleared, the Sith Mistress peeked around the doorjamb her wrist tilted as she aimed towards the two who were writhing around on the floor. Deciding that she should at least put them out of their misery, she fired a dart into each of them… ‘Oops…’ Realizing she had used the pheromones instead of the poison Alora shrugged her shoulders and pulled out the remaining frag grenade. She debated for a moment on which to do … hit them with the poison to end them quickly, or just use the second grenade which she was going to use regardless so that she could kill that ysalamiri … Wanting to make them suffer horribly, she primed and tossed the frag grenade in towards where she knew the creature lived within the wall. Again she counted down… Three… two… one… *boom* The screams increased in intensity and moments later, the Force washed over her once more. Alora let out a breath that she didn’t realize she was holding… “It is done…”

[Emily]

Quietus never ceased to surprise her. That was, she reflected with warmth, one of the things she loved about him. He had addressed her apprentice very regally, and then showing a depth of generosity, offered Raia the gift of a lightsaber. As the girl moved forward to examine the two options, Emily met Quietus' gaze. He shrugged, and she gave him a warm smile. She knew he was only being nice to Raia because of her, and she was touched.

 

Raia examined both blades, and ended up choosing a plain double-bladed saber. "I will learn," she said, "if for no other reason than to be able to defend myself against others like you."

 

Emily chuckled, but not unkindly. "Fair point. There are many who will try to pit themselves against you, whether in the name of testing their strength, or testing yours, or out of a sense of duty, or simply because they are bored and looking for a challenge. A lightsaber is a tool of defense, yes, but it also gives you the ability to act offensively. Whether that is to take what you want from someone, to advance your own agenda, or to protect others, it will serve you well." She was impressed with how Raia was already actively using the Force as much as possible. She was trusting her instincts, and that was an excellent first step.

 

Raia then gathered the courage to approach Quietus, then spoke again about how the cultist had deserved his death. She was trembling, but Emily was proud of how she was processing through things. "Remember that in the future, then, Raia. Sometimes, you may feel that killing someone is justified. Your opinion is the only one that matters. If you think someone deserves death, then they deserve it, and you should not hesitate to dispense it."

 

While she had been instructing the younger girl, Quietus had placed the other lightsaber back in the chest and locked it. Emily idly wondered what else he stored in there. Perhaps one day she would ask him. For now, though, it was time to leave. Together, the three humans and two tuk'ata made their way out of the tomb. When they finally stepped out onto the arid world, she saw Quietus straighten to his full height, close his eyes, and bask in the sun. In that moment, as the dusky sun filtered down on him, he cut an imposing and still very good-looking figure. Mmmm, she thought appreciatively, looking him up and down. Then he tried to take a deep breath and inhaled a lungful of sand and dust. He started coughing violently, and she smirked.

 

A sudden realization seemed to come over him then and he wondered aloud where he had left the Ogariv II. She raised her eyebrows. "I suppose it is wherever you were when you died," she replied. "Don't worry. I'm sure we can track it down. For now I guess you'll just have to share with me on the Shadow's Shine." She kept her face deadpan as she spoke, not knowing if Raia had overheard her or not. She supposed it didn't matter, all in all. Raia would know soon enough that Emily's relationship with Quietus was more than former master and apprentice.

 

They began to head towards Emily's ship, and soon approached the place where two others had landed. The Force was ripe with violence and the feeling of lives being lost, as well as the white hot presences of the two Sith she had sensed earlier. Her steps slowed and her eyes flicked towards Quietus' with an unspoken question. It might be polite for them to stop and greet their brethren, but she left the choice up to him. "Why don't you go on ahead, Raia? We'll be right behind you." With a mental command, Roe'gall nuzzled the apprentice, and padded off in the direction of the ship, continuing to act as her escort.

[Raynuk Montar]

Quietus grew visibly grumpy as Emily answered him, indicating that the Ogariv II was both not here, nor was its current location know to his former apprentice. Of course, what made it worse was that Quietus himself could not recall where he had died, which put his precious ship even farther from his reach. He knew that she was getting no small amount of amusement out of the fact that the tables would be turned; he would be a guest upon her ship for once. The pair of woman, one Master and one still rattled apprentice, began trekking off towards the Shadow's Shine, and Quietus followed, while Vex'aedr followed him in turn. The white tuk'ata stood out against the sullen brown backdrop of Korriban, but seemed to be just as reinvigorated by being outside as Quietus himself was. It was further proof of just how strong the bond between Quietus and his pet was.

 

As they crossed the expanse, Quietus for the first time noticed that there were at least two other ships in their immediate area. Only then did he even think to expand his senses further through the Force. As he stretched out with the Force, he felt it all. The two presences that he recognized almost immediately, and the echos of the violence that the pair had performed in the preceding minutes.

 

This is too much of a coincidence for my liking...

 

The revelation just served to deepen Quietus' concern as he noticed Emily had slowed, turning to Quietus in silence. He met her eyes and nodded before diverting his path towards them, with Vex'aedr following without question, as Emily instructed Raia and Roe'gall to continue towards her ship. Just as Quietus arrived at the ship he heard the echoes of an explosion from within, causing the SIth to pause for just a moment, long enough for Emily to catch up. He flashed her a smile, and then walked just inside the ship, finding a communications panel. It was a fairly standard panel, and with just a few taps Quietus had linked to the ships internal communications, broadcasting to the entire ship.

 

"It seems I am not the only one to revel in bloodshed here on Korriban... Alora Darkknell, Draken Shadowlord, it warms my evil heart to know that you two are still tearing holes in the galaxy, and together no less. I hope you both have had your fun, tearing these miserable creatures apart. I believe it is time for us all to reconvene, and discuss just what it was that brought us all here; for if I know one thing, it is that this is no coincidence. Come, meet me at the entrance to this newly crafted mass grave of a ship. I have much to discuss... especially with you Alora."

 

Whether the pair heard everything Quietus had said or not, he knew that they sensed his presence now. He also knew they would appear eventually, and then the Sith could exchange information and plans. Vex'aedr had, while Quietus was addressing the others, managed to find what was left of the wookiee lying on the decking. Approaching it cautiously, and sniffing it distrustfully, the massive tuk'ata let out some displeased sounding huffs before turning and padding back to Quietus. Vex'aedr circled around the Sith's back before stopping on the far side, its head even with Quietus, who then reached up and placed his hand on the neck of the beast, idly scratching and rubbing the white fur while they waited for the others. Vex'aedr again vocalized, whuffing and emitting low growls.

 

"No my friend... but there is a chance; I used to trust each of them... once upon a time. We shall see what time has done to them."

[Alora]

With Draken getting the information from the bridge and navigation side of things, the first part of their revenge against the cultists had been completed as she observed the last vestiges of life drain from the two cultists dying in the room. She stretched her senses out once more, relishing in the rush she got from feeling the Force after such a long absence. It really was like welcoming back a lover… and for that matter, old friends…

 

"It seems I am not the only one to revel in bloodshed here on Korriban... Alora Darkknell, Draken Shadowlord, it warms my evil heart to know that you two are still tearing holes in the galaxy, and together no less. I hope you both have had your fun, tearing these miserable creatures apart. I believe it is time for us all to reconvene, and discuss just what it was that brought us all here; for if I know one thing, it is that this is no coincidence. Come, meet me at the entrance to this newly crafted mass grave of a ship. I have much to discuss... especially with you Alora."

 

‘Speaking of old friends…’ She felt her former Master’s presence as a vibrant spark within the Force, as strong as ever. She smiled as she recalled the early days of her training, thinking fondly of the man that had discovered her wandering the streets of Coruscant so long ago. She could also feel the essence of the young girl she had seen earlier, along with another familiar presence. Alora gave a final dismissive look towards the carnage she had wrought before she turned and headed back along the corridors, heading towards the exit to meet up for this reunion.

[darth shadowlord]

It took a matter of moments for him to pull the previous hyperspace jumps that the ship had made in the recent past. Behind him, the pleasant sound of grenades exploding and the subsequent screams brought a small smile to his lips for a moment. Then he turned toward the data log and began to pull all of the recent information from the computer and storing it on a datapad for future examination. With the data retrieval complete, Draken stood up and called his staff back to his hand and headed aft through the ship. He stopped just shy of the door, recognizing a familiar presence approaching the ship and another presence that seemed sort of familiar to him.

 

"It seems I am not the only one to revel in bloodshed here on Korriban... Alora Darkknell, Draken Shadowlord, it warms my evil heart to know that you two are still tearing holes in the galaxy, and together no less. I hope you both have had your fun, tearing these miserable creatures apart. I believe it is time for us all to reconvene, and discuss just what it was that brought us all here; for if I know one thing, it is that this is no coincidence. Come, meet me at the entrance to this newly crafted mass grave of a ship. I have much to discuss... especially with you Alora."

 

Draken chuckled, it seemed that he was right as to who one of the Sith were that were approaching were. He glanced behind him to see the woman he had not seen in some years coming out of a passageway and smiled as he held out his arm to her.

 

"Shall we greet our former comrades?"

[Emily]

She wasn't surprised that Quietus could pick out the identity of the two Sith from their presences; he knew more people in the order than she did. But she was surprised by their identities. What were the chances that BOTH of her aunts would show up on the same day? No, there had to be more at work here. Especially as both of them hadn't been seen around the galaxy very much in the past years.

 

Nevertheless, Emily was pleased. As Draken and Alora came striding forward, arm in arm, Emily smiled warmly. "Count Shadowlord, Aunt Alora," she greeted them. "So nice to see both of you. It's been a long time." Last time she had seen Draken, he had told her Alora had died. It seemed that perhaps the ritual had brought back both of her aunts, and not just one... She wondered idly if they had gotten married yet. She remembered Alora inviting her to the wedding, several years ago. But things didn't always go as planned in a galaxy this big. The important part was that it looked like they were still together.

 

She glanced pointedly at the carnage around them. "What did they do to offend you?"

[Alora]

Linking her arm through his, Alora returned his smile warmly, “You look dashing as always Draken. Let’s do.” The two of them left the ship to join those waiting outside for them. Stepping out into the sunshine, the Sith Mistress let her eyes rest upon the visage of her former Master. “Welcome back to the land of the living.” Her gaze shifted to the woman standing beside him and her smile brightened further.

 

"Count Shadowlord, Aunt Alora," she greeted them. "So nice to see both of you. It's been a long time."

 

“Emily. It has been a long time.” It was evident that something major was in play here. It wasn’t mere coincidence that all of them happened to be here at the same time. The cultists had not given her a reason for bring her here so she felt quite in the dark about it all. When Emily looked around and asked "What did they do to offend you?" the Sith Mistress felt her smile falter. “They held me prisoner for years and then brought me here. They never bothered to enlighten me as to why.”

[Raia Montar]

"Why don't you go on ahead, Raia? We'll be right behind you."

 

Almost wearily, the girl nodded, even as the tuk'ata urged her forward. She could both see and sense some of what had befallen the occupants of the vessel. Likely at the hands of the other woman that I passed, she thought, grateful that Emily hadn't asked her to stay. Then, she felt the ground shake and the muffled sound of an explosion met her ears, causing her to jump into Roe'gall.

 

"Sorry!" She exclaimed as he pushed back to steady her on her feet. Truthfully, she wasn't sure how much more of all of this she could take.

 

She'd come upon the Nightsister battlefield days after it was over. Until Furion's fighting pit, that had been the most violence she'd witnessed. Even that paled to what she'd witnessed in this one day. During her apprentice trials, she'd been in the thick of things, concentrated more on her own battle than that of those around her. Here, she'd only had to be present to see the penalties in full-force for crossing a member of the Sith Order. She wondered if she'd ever be capable of that level of violence herself.

 

Roe'gall prodded the outer switch with his paw, lowering the ramp for her. "Thank you, Roe'gall," she smiled slightly. "It probably would have taken me a while to have figured that one out." She didn't feel the need to tell him she barely remembered which switch within the ship lowered the ramp. It was good to know he could have gotten to her if she'd completely forgotten. Then again, she hadn't spent much of her time raising and lowering ship ramps either.

 

Once inside, she sat heavily on the cushioned sofa and tried to gather her racing thoughts. Though she'd hardly exerted herself, physically, her whole body felt drained. Her mind as well, but it still continued to churn along, anyway. She sighed, leaning back further into the cushion's welcoming embrace as she attempted to clear her mind using some of the Dathomiri chants her mother had taught her. It wasn't long before she was asleep with her new lightsaber, still wrapped in the textured black fabric, in her hand.