Carida

[darth shadowlord]

A short cyber comm arrived for the Dark Lord from the Count Shadowlord.

 

My Lord, it is done. He is dead. He was killed in the Royal Palace in Serenno.

Edited September 15, 2006 by Guest

[Vladimir Faust]

A couple comms buzz by Faust, silently received and answered. Sensing the opportune moment to speak up, Faust,stepped forward, facing not the Dark Lord, but Talon.

 

"Turning yourself in to face a comrade was not the agreement, Master Talon," Faust states with a low, chuckling laugh. "You traded yourself in for the Wookie Kirlocca, a Jedi Master... Or should I say, fallen Jedi."

 

Faust takes out a small hologram, unedited and uncut, of the Wookie in his durance on Ryloth. He plays it for his guest.

 

"I can hand over jedi masters to you by myself. And I could no it a lot quicker then you."

 

*Kirlocca pushed himself once again as close as he could to the imperial officers.*

 

"I can promise you that you have my allegence, along with the wealth of the wookiee high council."

 

The holo-image is immediately shut off, and Faust gives another short laugh, showing none of the polish or civility he displayed earlier while wheeling in the bait.

 

"The one who orchestrated your capture and suggested I honor the trade was your Wookie brother himself. He broke under the torture and went mad, giving himself to us body. mind, and soul. I could have had you easily enough, but it was much more worth my while to send a damaged, yet believable mole back into the order. Your secrets, your highest councils, any hope you had is now ours. You gave yourself up for one of our best spies." Once more, the Hunter laughs. "I have no qualms about telling you this simply because you'll never leave this planet alive. Your stay in this prison will be rather permanent. Kirlocca, of course, sends his love."

 

"Milord," he states to the Dark Lord, "he's all yours." With another bow, Faust stands up and exits, leaving the Jedi to the Dark Lord's devices.

[Kakuto Ryu]

Kakuto smirked as Vladimir left the room. In true Faust form, he dropped his bombs and disappeared, leaving the mess to clean itself up.

 

"So let's take score. You've given us a spy, and yourself. Two points in our favor... And what have you gained?"

 

His steel fingers rolled across the arm rest of his throne, producing a loud pinging sound. All around them the Cyborg crew worked tirelessly. The black circles around their eyes seemed to complement the dark steel plug at the base of their skulls, to which the various consoles linked.

 

"Face it, Talon. Your ideals are pointless when you can't count on anyone else to honor them. The order is corrupted. Your allies care nothing for the galaxy. We take from their pockets and they just close their eyes. They pray we leave them be, that if they pretend it's not happening then they will be spared."

 

Kakuto ran his fingers over his head, noticeably amused.

 

"The fact of the matter is, you were the only one left, and you sold yourself out. That must sting."

[Talon]

Talon's first reaction was one of revulsion. However, it was only a momentary lapse in judgment. Talon did not believe it. He knew Kirlocca too well. True, Faust had shown the holo-recording, and it only showed what its objective little lens saw. But Talon was not disturbed. Faust had a notorious reputation for things like this; he twisted events to fit his perspective- taking things out of context to make things seem like something they weren't. Talon was not so easily fooled, and he would not play this game.

 

Kakuto, however, tried to bear down on his already attacked mind. It was a powerful technique, attacking something so delicate. In the end, there were few who had the ability to withstand it. Most of ”˜em were looney. Talon, on the other hand, was strong willed. While perhaps unorthodox among the Jedi views, he was very headstrong.

 

”œNo, Kakuto. There is still hope.”

[Vladimir Faust]

While some men are built for war, and after periods of prolonged peace, driven to fits of madness and a burning desire to initiate war under to sate their hunger, others still calmly accept war as an unfortunately duty and are able to recover, having fought the good fight and all, et cetera, et cetera.

 

Others still fall outside either of their boundaries. Faust, though he could appreciate times of quiet and peace, indulging in sensory pleasures or his love of opera, never acknowledged "peace". There was always some bloodshed, some battle waiting, some bounty head to collect. War was just a formal grouping for such conflicts. Unfortunately, with so many wide options, even for one such as Faust, moments of indecision can set in as each option is weighed in. During times like this, a game of darts was found to be most relaxing.

 

"Boredom is a terrible thing, don't you agree?" he asks, rhetorically of course, fingering the serrated tips on one of his arrows.

 

His guest of honor can do little but try to send some muffled scream beyond the gag. Tattooed crudely on the victim is a series of star systems with known Jedi bases. Right over the victims heart is the system where their main base is believe to be. Four darts already stick in various places, such as Ilum, Manaan, or even Coruscant.

 

"So many places to go... people to see... Where to next?" he intones. There's a short scream as one of the victim's eyes goes out following an errant toss. "Another for Manaan," he notes, fingering a new dart and remembering how he learned of the base's location a while back but had yet to capitalize on it. "One more toss?" he asks, almost beningly, giving his dart a throw. There's a sickening thunk as it buries itself in the man's chest. "Manaan it is. You've really been a sport about this you know." Prudently, Faust walks over to remove the darts from his bound victim, barbs and all, leaving the victim to slowly bleed to death.

 

Picking off an excess of torn flesh, he tosses the darts aside, and makes orders to start summoning troops for a special mission that came to mind. Clarity, after much consideration and troubled decision making, was really a beautiful thing to have.

[Leinemaster]

Det quickly responded to his Master's order and proceeded to the docking bay. He first checked for anything from his ship that he needed. Seeing nothing, he raised the ramp and sealed it. Knowing he'll return for it. He checked it in with the dock keeper and assured that he'll return barring any unforeseen circumstances. He then proceeded over to the Prometheus. Nokrt's ship possesses the same basic features that the Nighthawk has and much more. He took a few seconds to scan the Prometheus and see that it is very familiar. He boarded and proceeded to the cockpit, then entered coordinates for departure and awaited his master and Jen's arrival.

[Vladimir Faust]

Faust spends his time gathering troops and supplies. The overall intent was a quick, surgical strike, leaving a few messy examples. There is a small briefing auditorium, holding about 200 hundred and its mostly filled to capacity. While Faust was an Imperial general, it was mostly through his battle prowess and the reputation he carried. He could decimate single or groups of enemies. Strategically though, he knew his limitations and knew also there were others far better than he in the Imperial heirarchy.

 

Tactically though, he could only smile.

 

"Alright. You're armed with the intent of killing force users. This will not be a standard operation. We're looking at anywhere between two to eight Jedi, ranking from mere padawans to masters. There may be others- troops, civilians. They can be neutralized and will be our shields since Jedi have a thing about harming 'innocents'." He gives a short laugh. "Use this to your advantage."

 

He looks at each set of troopers, equiped with various weapons. "You will be moving in groups of five. You will have a flame unit out front with a high grade flame thrower. Next you will have two long distance units- a stokhli spray stick to subdue, with flechette launchers for an easy kill. The next will be two units armed with disruptor rifles. They cannot be deflected by lightsabers and will make short work of anything." His face turns grave.

 

"Keep in contact with each other. The disruptor trooper will have a ysalmari on his back. It has a radius of 10 meters. Stay with in it at all times. They will have more mundane means of tracking you, but a sensor jammer should stop that. It will prevent them from sensing you in the Force and from using their powers on you. There are 25 units each, and we'll be moving as the terrain allows. I've already dispatched probes to the surface to give us the intel we need. After you've made some initial sweeps of the area, I will be joining you in person to deal with any masters, though if careful they should fall before then."

 

Faust gives his troops a surveying look. "Success will mean a rapid promotion under my personal command." The consequences of a failure here did not need to be spoken. "Now, move out!"

 

Three Gamma-class assault shuttles, carrying a deployment of probe droids lift off, breaking into hyperspace. A short time later, Faust's Bhelliom joins them...

[Jen the Mudkip]

jen stared at nokrt dreamily and suddenly feeling very evily

 

yes i shall do anything you ask of me. said jen dreamily

 

jen leaves staring at his gorgeous eyes and leaves for the ship to find a room on board

[Sasori]

As his apprentices wisked away to his ship Nokrt soon followed plotting the coordinates of their destination through the use of the force as he made his way to the Prometheus. They would take a slower route to their training ground allowing time for him to find the weaknesses and strengths in each of them...and what makes them qualified to become what they wish to be.

 

He stepped aboard his ship and made the order for it to take off into space, its destination known only by him.

 

((Post in the Space Thread))

[Vladimir Faust]

Faust's troops make their return, landing in two shuttles. Out of the original 150, only 38 made it back. In one sense it turned into a slaughter for the Imperials, though given their limited numbers and tactics, it bore no loss of ships or other really vital equipment for the Empire.

 

A comm reaches an Imperial captain waiting for them on arrival. Surveying the battered troops up and down he gives a brief speech related by the general.

 

"Job well done, soldiers. The 38 of you survived a greuling test of your abilities and unlike your compatriots, emerged alive. You will be trained into an elite squad designed for hunting down rogue Force users designated enemies of the Empire. Given time and training you will be leaders of your own troops. Congratulations."

 

During this time a gift is made of the stolen holocrons recovered by Faust, presented personally to the Dark Lord himself by a skulking major loosely under the dreaded general's command.

 

"A gift from Faust," the major purrs, showing the cubes and reciting Faust's message. "Holocrons of the Jedi, stolen from Manaan. A gift of knowledge, taking theirs, adding to ours, breaking them at their basest level." There is a pause. "His Lordship will be absent for a while, stating he has personal business to attend to."

[Zon]

(I've been gone for a while, that's the reason for not responding.)

 

Zon landed his Infiltrator on Cardia and joined the recruitsjust reporting to Norkt.

[Talon]

So far, the Jedi Talon's little ”˜trip' had been pretty unexciting. Instead of the whole torturing bit that was usually awarded to such prisoners of war, Talon was simply left pretty much alone in his cell. That was not to say, on the other hand, that he was treated with more or less value than any other prisoner of war. He was less than adequately fed, having meals of only bread, some strange meal-like pudding, and water. He was provided a wool blanket that was about a foot too short and nothing more to sleep with. And every once in a while, a couple of Imperials would come in and give him a little 'electro-shock therapy'. Furthermore, he was kept constant watch over, with security cameras, guards, and other assorted measures. But there was really no dire action against him. He somehow doubted he was in some position of amnesty, the Empire would not doubt see him as little more than a particularly pesky rebel. This could mean a variety of things”¦ Either he was being reserved for something more extreme than simple torture, or his enemies were just unsure of how to best handle him. Or perhaps they were just trying to psych him out.

 

Talon was not sure which one he preferred. But there was little he could do about it, so he simply pushed all thought of it to the back of his mind. To keep himself occupied, Talon would do push-ups, or sit-ups, or other physical activities- to keep physically fit if for no other reason. He would also sit and meditate, or do other mental exercises. Just because he was sitting in a cell was no excuse for him to lose his edge. Once or twice he attempted to reach out to his padawan and convey some sense of reassurance that he was still alive, and also guilt for having to leave him after so short a time. However, the various masking fields and force nullifiers about the complex probably annulled his attempts anyway, so Talon did not press the matter. Instead, he kept a wary eye and a sharp ear- watching, listening, and waiting.

[Sasori]

Nokrt landed his ship at the Imperial Academy of Carida he had the urge to head here to check up on Imperial Recruits. When he touched down on the planet Nokrt realized he was the ranking officer and thus produly displayed his Commander rank upon his robes. He walked into the Academy and was rushed over with a wave of salutes and honoring. Nokrt gave the gentlemanly approach of saluting back to each one and even shaking their hands when necessary. He had a stately manner about him and protruded no type of aggression toward his peers.

 

He made his way through central command, passed by a few squads of Troopers and made his way to the Arsenal of Carida. He entered the room and everyone in the room rose to salute him. Nokrt, doing the right thing, waved them on by and continued on with his tasks. He went to the storage room and had his necessities taken to a nearby training room which had set off limits for the time being.

 

Nokrt then beckoned Squad 4, the Stormtroopers he had seen earlier to accompany him on a routine inspection of the Caridian surface. All of them accepted his order and stowed themselves in a few Troop Transports. Nokrt was in a larger Heavy Transport for he had an AT-AT aboard should a show of force be required to take down any insurrection. He had the extra weapons transferred into his ship as well, a heavy payload of turrets, bombs, and the like to reinforce posts across the planet, this was their secondary task in this patrol. There were a total of 35 posts they would be going to this day.

 

As the ships touched down at each Post Nokrt left a cache of supplies for each of the posts. He had some of the higher payload items placed inside the secure parts of each of these impromptu posts should they need to set off any in the face of the enemy.

 

After a long day Nokrt had his men return home. They had gone all across the planet refueling and resupplying troops and making sure the order was kept. Nonetheless, his men were tired and Nokrt treated them to a banquet in the Mess Hall later in the day witht he finest Corellian Wines for them to savor.

 

Nokrt himself indulged for a bit and then after checking to make sure everything wa sin working order he left the planet Carida, bound to be back by the next month to go through this routine once more. Now he must return to Serenno to get to this Senate meeting. The Prometheus started off the planet in a roar and Nokrt was soon out of sight of the planet as he jumped to lightspeed.

 

((I will be back Zon in a moment I have some pressing matters that must be handled.))

 

Nokrt returned to Carida in a short while. He had a sudden urge to return, he could not explain why but he had to be there. Upon landing his Lieutenant greeted him and accompanyed him down to the Central Headquarters. Nokrt sat in his Commanding Chair and awaited instructions from his Commanding Officer's. there was something amid the midst here. He knew it. But what it was he would not understand. He just had to be on Carida this day.

 

***

 

Xavier waved off Nokrt and continued down to meet with new recruits which had assembled in the main hall. Xavier looked at a list of names and called out one of them.

 

"Zon you are to accompany me to the training room the rest of you go to the armory, there should be enough Trooper Armor to suit all of you."

 

He marched off Zon in tail and arrived at the Training Room. Xavier went off and grabbed a small Uniform which he gave to Zon.

 

"You are going to be my personal Kath Hound for the remainder of the Zon, this is a Cadet Unifrom for First Sergeant. You are in charge of this Squad."

 

Zon went to the dressing room and came out looking as an established Military man. Xavier was happy with this outcome and thus had Zon stand beside him as the rest of the troops, adorned in Stormtrooper armor, their helmets in hand filed in.

 

"Welcome to Carida. I am Imperial Lieutenant Xavier Dranon. I will be your Commanding Officer for the remainder of your days here on Carida. Now file up and we shall begin the training. First Sergeant Zon, grab your men and come to the training Simulator room."

 

Xavier set off and prepared a sim for a land invasion of a Republic world.

[Sasori]

Nokrt switched off his comm after receiving his message. How he was going to accomplish his task within the set time frame he did not know but it had to be done. The Commander bellowed across the room issuing orders left and right. A blaring alarm swept across the base and soon each and every person on the planet was scrambling to shuttles, transports, and star fighters.

 

"This is Commander Nokrt, all Personel make way to your evacuation vectors and head off to the rendezvous point. THIS IS NOT A DRILL!"

 

The Chiss Commander's voice echoed throughout the halls and as he spoke millions upon millions of soldiers, pilots, and officers rushed to guide their squads and themselves to safety. Nokrt awaited all of his troops to be set off into hyperspace to the given destination and he took Xavier and First Sergeant Zon into his own ship and departed from the planet himself.

 

Carida was now a deserted rock.

 

((Zon we have left the planet now, you are aboard my ship. We will be in the Space Thread.))

[Talon]

((Since you neglected any information specifically regarding me...))

 

Talon was sitting alone in his cell, meditating after an extended work-out session. He had an uneasy feeling in the pit of his stomach. Without the full potential of the Force to aid him, he really had no idea what it meant. He simply knew something was amiss, and it had to do with the Jedi back home. They were”¦ anxious.

 

Then the alarm klaxons started blaring in his cell. Talon's eyes opened with a start, and he rushed to the bars of his energy cage. People outside were rushing to and fro, in a general state of chaos. One of the higher ranking Imperial officers that was running past, however, took note of the Jedi in his cell. Apparently trying to gain brownie points with his superiors, he ran off his initial course towards Talon, whereupon he shut down the energy field containing him, and instructed the Jedi Master to stand against the wall, olding both his hands visibly on the wall above him. He approached the Jedi Master from behind, brandishing a pair of electrobinders, and he reached up to slot one around the Jedi's left wrist.

 

Talon, on the other hand, would have none of it. Just as the binders were about to slip onto his wrist, he dropped his elbow in a crunching blow to the officer's chest. The man took two steps backwards, gasping for air. Talon spun, grabbed the man's wrist holding the binders, and broke it. There was a scream of pain as the binders slipped from his hand, and the officer dropped to his knees, begging for mercy. But Talon could not stop now. His life depended on this man. With his free hand, Talon reached into the man's vest and retrieved his security clearance card and his personal blaster pistol. For the moment, he tossed them both to the side. He grabbed the officer's arm with both hands, and spun, using his momentum to fling the man through the air. There was a sickening thud as the wall kindly stopped his short-lived flight, and the man instantly fell unconscious. Talon proceeded to slot both the security card and the blaster pistol into his utility belt. Before he could leave, however, he bent down over the unconscious officer to check his vitals. Taking pity on him, he reset the man's wrist, and using the electrobinders and a flat piece of plastisteel, he made a crude splint. As he did this he spoke aloud, as if the unconscious officer would hear him.

 

”œI have decided that I have served ample enough time as outlined by my agreement with Faust. Therefore, all conditions of my stay here are now null and void.”

[Sasori]

((I was under the impression that you were placed inside a Force cage with a ysalimir up top of it. I left you there to starve to death.))

Edited October 24, 2006 by Guest

[King Kheldar vos Correlli]

Given how Talon was stuck in limbo for a month and a half when KR became really ill, the release/escape was allowed in advance of the attack.

[Ary the Grey]

Aryian's vessel pulled out of hyperspace well beyond the normal range, out of distance to long-range sensors. A Hyperspace fluctuation was one that was easy to detect, and he didn't want to give himself away.

 

Instead, he chose to spend about thirty or so minutes cruising in at top speed, masking his approach in-system by placing the system's sun between his ship and the planet. Still, nothing was perfect, but Aryian wasn't going for perfection. He was going for war.

 

He fingered the hilts of his lightsabers, pondering this strange turn of events. There were many things to think about in this span of time, the Order in its failing miseries and Aryian's loyalty to it, Armiena, who he had just professed his love to, and Orsi, his padawan who he needed to train in the ways of the Force.

 

Life, in general, seemed to be crashing around Aryian, and he tired of the relentless uphill struggle that the Jedi had put him through. This time, he would be fighting for those he loved, the people in the Order, Orsi, and most importantly, Armiena. That would be the power behind his blades if it came to using them, not an order from the Grand Master.

 

 

It was time he put his old life behind him...and began living life anew.

 

EDIT:

 

((Sorry Oblivion, but I've got more pressing issues back at home. Maybe next time.))

 

Aryian finally rounded the sun, getting a good first look at the system, expecting at any moment for alarms to go off and beginning to be swarmed by defense fighters.

 

But none of that happened.

 

In fact, as Aryian got closer, he took a second look at his scanners, which revealed the entire planet was devoid of sentient life. Buildings, machinery...most of it was left standing, but the entire planet had been evacuated.

 

But then...why were the Jedi going to attack Cardia? With...Black Sun? Something didn't seem right here, and if his old instincts were correct, the Jedi were about to be led into an unsprung trap. It really didn't seem as if there were another possible explanation.

 

Hastily, Aryian set the coordinates on the navicomputer, blasting into hyperspace back to Haruun Kal.

[Oblivion]

OOC: Not a problem. Completly understandable. Another time, perhaps.

 

IC:

 

No obstacles obstructed his path from his destination. Few, if any, rarely did, so it seemed. In the powers of wisdom, matched with the sophosicated tools of both the supernatural and of science, little contest was achieved to be noticable. Though it be, the life of the Krath was in turn so doomed to such things, as it always had. Forfieting the rights the man held as a Lord, now had he adapted to life in the pursuasive foreground, where the darkest depths had lurked, where the light of noble eyes could not reach.

 

Descending slowly to the surface, forgetting what devices he had used to even enter the vacinity of the temple, the Sith Master disregarded all beings not out of ego, but purely for the sake of time. Personally supervising numerous projects, both privately from the Dark Lord himself and for the Empire, the man was well aware how precious his time had been, where his presence was needed most. To call to this rash flow in the abundant Force had led him to this direct spot, to reside in one of the larger, more secluded chambers, and wait.

 

Falling into a false state of slumber, the silver streaks of his hair fell to one side as the curve of his neck bowed to one side, its long flowing locks becoming matted over the thick organic armor that protruded underneath his ornate onyx garments that clothed the protective pieces. The most basic of his designs, the first of the many that followed, lay flat against the table the Sith Master stood over: a single metallic saber, marked in its own particular style to an older time period, where virtues and comradery of the Sith were far stronger then ever before. A period in history he so loved.

 

Now, within this trance, depictions of events far away trailed within the deep recesses of his mind. They were soothing, away from the usual torment, and gave him some measure of sollace observing them. Yet, however sweet the remembrance was, or how virteuos the future seemed to be, the cold still lingered, its sting keeping him awake as it ever so did. The tips of his fingers ran against the chilled surface of the metal hilt of the fallen sword, admiring its detail even while in such a state of false sleep . . .

[Guest]

Bellus entered the atmosphere of the planet, a shield was up so the monk sent a comm in.

--COMM--

This is Brother Tiberias captian and pilot of the ship Bellus. I request landing in your dock.

--END COMM--

Tiberius waited a few moments, while doing this he contemplated his decision for joining the Empire. Was it a foolish decision or wise. His path was unclear at the moment, but the present was like looking into a crystal lake. A beep warned him of the incoming comm, the monk accepted it. A robotic sounding voice came from the other end.

--COMM--

Brother Tiberius your ship Bullus has been scanned and approved, enter.

--END COMM--

Tiberius waited a moment as the orange shields parted. Tiberius gripped the thrusters and paused for a moment. During the few second he paused a memory came back to Tiberius.

 

A high priest of the order loomed above the kneeling from of Tiberius. A broadsword clutched in the priests gauntleted fist. The priest raised the ancient weapon above Tiberius. The priest drove the blade point into Tiberius's exoskeleton armor. The blade caused sparks to fly when it hit. Once the blade made it past his armor it broke his skin and traveled down into his two hearts. The blade passed harmlessly between them. The whole time Tiberius was screaming in pain. Blood was spewing all over the sacred floor.....

Tiberius shook his head and slammed the thrusters forward. Bellus shot forward into the planet. Tiberius gracefully landed it in the docking bay and awaited further orders. His Comm light on.

[Intemptesta Nox]

Some time later, a small black craft emerged from hyperspace. Aboard the Cruento Umbra, two beings sat. One a human and owner of the ship and the other a Zabrak. Neither spoke as the human, Nox, guided his ship into orbit around Cardia and proceeded to COM the facilities below.

 

COM: This is the pilot of the Cruento Umbra, I wish to speak with a member of the Sith Order immediately. I will be landing this ship near the temple momentarily.

 

That being said, Nox looked to Kirloor and guided his ship into the atmosphere...

[Joreel Ordo]

((

Bellus entered the atmosphere of the planet, a shield was up so the monk sent a comm in.

--COMM--

This is Brother Tiberias captian and pilot of the ship Bellus. I request landing in your dock.

--END COMM--

Tiberius waited a few moments, while doing this he contemplated his decision for joining the Empire. Was it a foolish decision or wise. His path was unclear at the moment, but the present was like looking into a crystal lake. A beep warned him of the incoming comm, the monk accepted it. A robotic sounding voice came from the other end.

--COMM--

Brother Tiberius your ship Bullus has been scanned and approved, enter.

--END COMM--

Tiberius waited a moment as the orange shields parted. Tiberius gripped the thrusters and paused for a moment. During the few second he paused a memory came back to Tiberius.

 

A high priest of the order loomed above the kneeling from of Tiberius. A broadsword clutched in the priests gauntleted fist. The priest raised the ancient weapon above Tiberius. The priest drove the blade point into Tiberius's exoskeleton armor. The blade caused sparks to fly when it hit. Once the blade made it past his armor it broke his skin and traveled down into his two hearts. The blade passed harmlessly between them. The whole time Tiberius was screaming in pain. Blood was spewing all over the sacred floor.....

Tiberius shook his head and slammed the thrusters forward. Bellus shot forward into the planet. Tiberius gracefully landed it in the docking bay and awaited further orders. His Comm light on.

 

The Imperials have evacuated Carida. We will return shortly but are currently located on Ryloth therefore your post of grnated access is bull. No Imperial is here.

 

EDIT: Sorry this is Nokrt))

[Leinemaster]

The clawcraft descended toward the remains of the Sith temple on Cardia. He looked around at the barren heap of rubble to find not very much left. He remembered thought that his ship was here as well. The keyword is ”œwas.”

[Kirloor Raeden]

"What, do you think you're special? Do you think that in that tiny little head of yours you rule this entire galaxy? Well, guess what? You're not! You're NOTHING! Do you hear me, you piece of space junk!?"

 

A man in black steps forward and backhands a small child. The child falls to the ground, blood trickling from his lip. Whimpering, he slowly sat back up.

 

"What is it with you? Just because your mom died you can run off and do your own thing?" the big man questioned. The child, still sitting, began crying and shaking his head.

 

"No daddy, please, I'm sorry."

 

"Guess what? I'm tired of this whole, 'I'm sorry... please pity me' deal," the man said mockingly. "Now I'm going to show you what happens when you talk too much.." The older man grabbed the child by the jaw and lifted him into the air.

 

"This is the pilot of the Cruento Umbra, I wish to speak with a member of the Sith Order immediately. I will be landing this ship near the temple momentarily."

 

Kirloor jerked awake, instantly blinking sleep out of his eyes. He didn't know how long he'd been out, but that dream was enough to shake any other thoughts from his head.

 

Thank the Force that the comm kicked in, he thought.

 

Rubbing his eyes, he stood up and headed for the cockpit, where Nox was standing.

 

Both figures waited for the character that was supposed to meet them.

[Intemptesta Nox]

A few moments later, the Cruento Umbra set down. Behind the controls, Intemptesta Nox let out a frustrated growl. In front of him, where the temple of the Sith Order was supposed to be, was a pile of rubble. Sithspawn! Nox cursed to himself. Looking back, he noticed Kirloor standing over him, his eyebrows arched in an expression that said only one thing.

 

This is it? This is what you brought me here for?

 

Within the recesses of his mind came the sound of mocking laughter.

 

Oh good job, Nox! Angelus spat. Bring us all this way on your precious quest for power and this is where you end up? Wow Nox! You found us a pile of rubble! Good job!

 

As he tried to clamp down on his emotions desperate to drive Angelus from his mind, Nox was met with images of himself lying prone, crying and begging for mercy as he was made subject to his former Master's sick perversions.

 

In the realm of his mind's eye, Nox roared in rage. All his life he had been shunned, beaten, bruised, mercilessly destroyed piece by piece. Striding toward the well-dressed avatar that represented Angelus, Nox backed handed his personality, sending it reeling.

 

You will remain silent! He growled, his voice dripping with venom.

 

Blinking, Nox returned to reality, having to face yet another humiliation. Kirloor was still staring at him, waiting.

 

"Don't just stand there!" Nox snapped. "Get out and help me look around, maybe we can find where the Sith have gone!"

 

Getting up, Nox walked past the Zabrak, shouldering him into the bulkhead. Opening up the hatch, Nox exited the ship. Drawing his hood over his head, he began to rummage through the rubble, looking for any sign of where the Sith had gone...

[Oblivion]

Deep within the estranged abyss, the depths which his mind began to roam, voices carried easily. Foreign, closeby, progressively getting louder. Carried without form or regard to their surrondings, it gave an unsettling disturbance to the man's false slumber. He merely breathed a deep sigh, the cold surrondings which he kept himself in brought a frosty long whisp to trail across his lips, circulating with the shadows and slowly disappearing.

 

No later then having done this, a figure approached the young lad who had been purposely probing the temple in search of the Sith Order (Nox.) The dark man, defined only by the scarce light that shined down from the cracks within the high ceilings, stood only a few steps away, leaning across the very wall he was scavenging to cross.

 

A calm and solemn voice emitted from the space he occupied, distorting across the long walls . . .

 

". . . What is your purpose here?"

[Kirloor Raeden]

The harsh 'bump' sent the Zabrak into the wall.

 

He's just angry. Keep your calm. I will find out what this is soon enough.

 

After collecting himself, Kirloor grabbed his sword from the ground and followed suit off the ship. By the time he was out, Nox was already tumbling about wildly, searching for clues to the Sith.

 

Kirloor joined him, scattering rocks and debris. No sooner had he started than he heard a voice:

 

". . . What is your purpose here?"

 

Raeden quickly looked up at Nox, but the human hadn't said a word. Kirloor slid his sword out of the sheath, not waiting for Nox to slow him down.

 

Acquaintances, yes, but not someone to risk my life over.

[Intemptesta Nox]

Nox moved about quickly, his anger driving him in his search. In the distant portion of his preception, he saw Kirloor exit the ship and begin to look around. Nox wasn't really angry with him, but more at the circumstances. The last thing he had expected was to find Cardia, the stronghold of the Sith and Empire, deserted.

 

As me moved from place to place, Nox dug through debris, desperately searching for a clue to the whereabouts of the Sith. It was not often that Nox found himself distracted and even less often that he became so that anyone could approach him without his knowledge. So when a voice rang out, Nox immediately assumed it was Kirloor.

 

"...What is your purpose here?"

 

Nox turned back toward his Zabrak partner with a sneer on his face. What do you kriffing think our purpose is here? He thought to himself. However, when his eyes met that of his companion, Nox realized he had made a mistake. Kirloor hadn't spoken. In fact, Kirloor hadn't even been looking at him. Instead, the Zabrak's gaze narrowed on something beyond Nox and the alien had begun to draw his sword.

 

Whirling around, Nox pulled his blade from his robes, ready to defend against an attack. There stood a man who seemed to be enshrouded in darkness. It was then that Nox realized who had truly spoken.

 

...What is your purpose here? The question ran in his mind.

 

Answer him, Nox! Or have you lost your tongue as well as your spine? Growled Angelus.

 

"I am here to learn the ways of power." Nox replied coldy. He didn't bother to introduce his partner nor speak as to his wants. If Kirloor has something to say, he can damned well say it himself.

[Kirloor Raeden]

Kirloor remained silent, only slightly dropping his sword when he remembered that trust wasn't his friend here.

 

Yet it is not my enemy, either, he thought, stealing a quick glance at Nox.

 

The human had out his blade as well, in a guard that suggested the stranger keep his distance.

 

"I am here to learn the ways of power." Nox replied coldly to the man. Kirloor was still looking around for the verbal assailant, attempting to follow Nox's gaze. It took him seconds, but in those seconds, the situation could have turned.

 

Still unaware of what or who the Sith are, and of what power Nox spoke of, Kirloor decided to let Nox speak.

 

If I'm not speaking to my friends, this stranger will definitely not receive any of my words. But Nox keeps speaking of power. I do not mind power.

 

I do not mind it at all.

[Oblivion]

An audible sigh came from the shrouded man, yet no air was exhausted in exchange. He merely continued to lean heavily against the frame of the walls, shifting his back heel to press lightly against the cold surface for leverage. Folding his arms, the shadow turned its head in reply, a slightly more stern voice calling forth.

 

"Power? . . . Many fiery tongues have uttered words similiar to yours, yet all but few have perished in its path . . ."

 

Quite suddenly, the pair felt compelled to release their hold upon their weaponry as a foreign power swiftly entered and withdrew from their bodies. Both crafted blades fell aimlessly across the surface, taking a small bounce or two before being drawn to the surronding darkness where it was quickly enveloped.

 

". . . What makes you any different from them?"

 

The white outlines around his eyes now appeared while the man withdrew himself from the wall, now pacing step by step as he began to encroach upon their positions . . .