Minutes after the Death of Alina Tremiru ...
Exarch Salneva Limont, followed closely by four Legionnaires, stepped past the broken doors of the cathedral with an anxious and fearful expression adorning her face. The sounds of battle and chaos had finally stopped and the cultists were quick to check on their High Priest to see the cause of the disturbance. Their gaze swept over the cathedral, with splinters being the last remnants of the pews and gashes lining many of the pillars and walls. It was a sight of carnage and battle, and yet in the center of the room their masked leader sat seemingly unharmed. He didn't look up as they entered, far too busy clutching the body of Alina Tremiru. His sword still buried deep in her side, his masked gaze fixed upon it.
The Exarch slowly approached the Sith, the Legionnaires waiting by the door and glancing at one another with confused gazes. "High Priest? Are you-" "I'm fine." The clipped response made Salneva pause, her approach halted a fair distance away from Alisteri as well. That was when she noticed the runes and inscriptions lining the cathedral were the only light source left and yet their normal dull glow was instead a brilliant crimson that allowed for plenty of light. The air itself was different as well, as if it were humming with some unseen power or energy that she herself couldn't decipher. It almost reminded her of when he was conducting rituals or displaying his blessing of the Force, but it was far more potent and dangerous here. Like a thick fog that threatened to rob her of her breath if she wasn't careful.
"Is...is there anything that I-" "I wish to be left alone Exarch." She stepped back in response to the venomous tone, the air seeming all the more oppressive and dangerous than before as she gave a deep bow. "A-As you wish High Priest..." Salneva slunk away from the kneeling man, dejected and wringing her hands in some attempt to get rid of her nerves. She spared him one last glance before nodding to the Legionnaires and allowing them to escort her outside the cathedral once more.
Alisteri stared at the wound, the killing blow as it were, for another moment longer before reaching up to finally close the lifeless eyes of his friend. "...you can do far more than destroy Alina..." He finally rose from the ground, the body still in his arms as he began walking towards the staircases near the front of the cathedral.
"I can prove it to you."
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"Well.. I'm Alina Tremiru. So, it's nice to meet you officially I guess."
Alisteri laid the body of his friend across the oubliette that occupied the center of his laboratory in the Undercroft of the cathedral, finally pulling the blade from her side and dropping it to the floor without much fanfare. Only then did he notice that his hands were trembling, as his entire body was in fact, and he briefly stared down at his quivering fingers before clenching them and taking a breath to steady himself.
"You didn't deserve this Alina...you deserved a glorious end. The death that all true Sith deserve, to die in battle whilst striking down innumerable foes before they can bring you down." He placed her hands across her body, allowing her to resemble the usual position that bodies were given for their funerals. "I'm sorry that you couldn't get that death Alina...I'm sorry that you couldn't see the revival of the Sith, to see us freed from tyranny and corruption at last..."
His sword was slowly pulled into his empty hand as he raised it up over her limp form, his other hand quickly joining it to stop the shaking as he closed his eyes and took a breath. "And I'm sorry for this most of all." With all his might he brought the blade down like the arm of an executioner bringing down their axe upon their doomed charge.
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"What've you been thinkin about? Got me in your dreams yet?"
The displays all showed that the concoction was stable and the mixtures were holding together nicely, much to his surprise given his relative inexperience with Highblood Sangnir material. He clicked his tongue and tapped on one of the tanks that sat in the room, the thick red liquid swirling within causing dual emotions of hunger and dread to swirl in his mind in a similar manner. "You always did enjoy my little experiments..." He muttered with a light yet hollow chuckle before he stepped away.
The only other Highblood that he'd had to take notes from was Adeline, and even then the data was fairly sparse for anything but simple details given his purposes, but that information had been crucial thus far. The Highblood material was different from the usual Lowblood Sangnir material that he was used to working with. Whether that was due to the Warform transformation alone or to other more intricate details was up for debate.
Either way it made little difference and had stopped his progress for only a few minutes, working without rest was one of his specialties by now regardless. He had little doubt that this little project in particular would take up the rest of his night but that mattered little. It would be well worth the effort that it would take for this to come to fruition, and preferably to do so without any nasty side effects or unexpected drawbacks.
----------------------------------------
"You hide behind that stupid mask so you can keep pretending to be Sith!"
Alisteri's mask hissed as the clasps and locks were undone, soon sliding free from his face as he pulled it off and set it aside. Finally everything was prepared, all the tanks had their appropriate mixtures, the oubliette was connected securely, and most importantly his resolve was steeled. He briefly glanced at his reflected visage in the mask's visor, his yellow eyes narrowing as he sighed and turned to approach the oubliette. There was no turning back now.
"Can't let go, can ya?"
The oubliette closed with the tap of a button as he settled into it. With his modifications it was slightly more comfortable but it still reminded him far too much of a coffin for it to be relaxing in any sense of the word. Another tap of a button on the control panel and the channels leading to the oubliette were soon filled with the potent concoctions now flowing from the tanks. "Just once I wish you weren't right Alina." Alisteri closed his eyes and took a deep breath as the first of the liquid mixtures reached the oubliette and began to pool inside.
For the first time he wished that the little funeral he had given her on Dromund Kaas before he fled the planet had been her real one. Even as the remains of his friend flowed over him he wished that it hadn't come to this. Was it regret perhaps? Still a state of denial maybe? The unhealthiest coping mechanism in the galaxy? Perhaps all of the above. But that didn't matter now, not as he sank into unconsciousness and let the oubliette be flooded.
And yet, despite it all, for once the eternal thirst almost seemed sated.
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".. You dumbass.. You're supposed to be the one to rebuild.."
The lid to the oubliette finally slid open once more, Alisteri's hand grasping the edge after a moment as he started to haul himself out. He grunted as he flopped onto the ground and began crawling away from the oubliette, his vision still adjusting as his eyes blinked open for what felt like the first time. He felt more alive than ever before, with power coursing beneath his skin in a far more physical manner than that of the Force that he was accustomed to.
A laugh escaped him, a dark sound that quickly morphed into a cackle as his body trembled and grew. He got to his feet as the transformation continued, stretching his growing limbs as his laughter echoed in the laboratory. Bones snapped and reformed, musculature and structure shifting as his warform took shape for the first time. The beast flexed his newly grown wings as he leaned his head back and let out a roar that seemed to shake the canyon that housed the little settlement.
"It's the only path I have."
Exarch Salneva Limont, followed closely by four Legionnaires, stepped past the broken doors of the cathedral with an anxious and fearful expression adorning her face. The sounds of battle and chaos had finally stopped and the cultists were quick to check on their High Priest to see the cause of the disturbance. Their gaze swept over the cathedral, with splinters being the last remnants of the pews and gashes lining many of the pillars and walls. It was a sight of carnage and battle, and yet in the center of the room their masked leader sat seemingly unharmed. He didn't look up as they entered, far too busy clutching the body of Alina Tremiru. His sword still buried deep in her side, his masked gaze fixed upon it.
The Exarch slowly approached the Sith, the Legionnaires waiting by the door and glancing at one another with confused gazes. "High Priest? Are you-" "I'm fine." The clipped response made Salneva pause, her approach halted a fair distance away from Alisteri as well. That was when she noticed the runes and inscriptions lining the cathedral were the only light source left and yet their normal dull glow was instead a brilliant crimson that allowed for plenty of light. The air itself was different as well, as if it were humming with some unseen power or energy that she herself couldn't decipher. It almost reminded her of when he was conducting rituals or displaying his blessing of the Force, but it was far more potent and dangerous here. Like a thick fog that threatened to rob her of her breath if she wasn't careful.
"Is...is there anything that I-" "I wish to be left alone Exarch." She stepped back in response to the venomous tone, the air seeming all the more oppressive and dangerous than before as she gave a deep bow. "A-As you wish High Priest..." Salneva slunk away from the kneeling man, dejected and wringing her hands in some attempt to get rid of her nerves. She spared him one last glance before nodding to the Legionnaires and allowing them to escort her outside the cathedral once more.
Alisteri stared at the wound, the killing blow as it were, for another moment longer before reaching up to finally close the lifeless eyes of his friend. "...you can do far more than destroy Alina..." He finally rose from the ground, the body still in his arms as he began walking towards the staircases near the front of the cathedral.
"I can prove it to you."
"Well.. I'm Alina Tremiru. So, it's nice to meet you officially I guess."
Alisteri laid the body of his friend across the oubliette that occupied the center of his laboratory in the Undercroft of the cathedral, finally pulling the blade from her side and dropping it to the floor without much fanfare. Only then did he notice that his hands were trembling, as his entire body was in fact, and he briefly stared down at his quivering fingers before clenching them and taking a breath to steady himself.
"You didn't deserve this Alina...you deserved a glorious end. The death that all true Sith deserve, to die in battle whilst striking down innumerable foes before they can bring you down." He placed her hands across her body, allowing her to resemble the usual position that bodies were given for their funerals. "I'm sorry that you couldn't get that death Alina...I'm sorry that you couldn't see the revival of the Sith, to see us freed from tyranny and corruption at last..."
His sword was slowly pulled into his empty hand as he raised it up over her limp form, his other hand quickly joining it to stop the shaking as he closed his eyes and took a breath. "And I'm sorry for this most of all." With all his might he brought the blade down like the arm of an executioner bringing down their axe upon their doomed charge.
"What've you been thinkin about? Got me in your dreams yet?"
The displays all showed that the concoction was stable and the mixtures were holding together nicely, much to his surprise given his relative inexperience with Highblood Sangnir material. He clicked his tongue and tapped on one of the tanks that sat in the room, the thick red liquid swirling within causing dual emotions of hunger and dread to swirl in his mind in a similar manner. "You always did enjoy my little experiments..." He muttered with a light yet hollow chuckle before he stepped away.
The only other Highblood that he'd had to take notes from was Adeline, and even then the data was fairly sparse for anything but simple details given his purposes, but that information had been crucial thus far. The Highblood material was different from the usual Lowblood Sangnir material that he was used to working with. Whether that was due to the Warform transformation alone or to other more intricate details was up for debate.
Either way it made little difference and had stopped his progress for only a few minutes, working without rest was one of his specialties by now regardless. He had little doubt that this little project in particular would take up the rest of his night but that mattered little. It would be well worth the effort that it would take for this to come to fruition, and preferably to do so without any nasty side effects or unexpected drawbacks.
"You hide behind that stupid mask so you can keep pretending to be Sith!"
Alisteri's mask hissed as the clasps and locks were undone, soon sliding free from his face as he pulled it off and set it aside. Finally everything was prepared, all the tanks had their appropriate mixtures, the oubliette was connected securely, and most importantly his resolve was steeled. He briefly glanced at his reflected visage in the mask's visor, his yellow eyes narrowing as he sighed and turned to approach the oubliette. There was no turning back now.
"Can't let go, can ya?"
The oubliette closed with the tap of a button as he settled into it. With his modifications it was slightly more comfortable but it still reminded him far too much of a coffin for it to be relaxing in any sense of the word. Another tap of a button on the control panel and the channels leading to the oubliette were soon filled with the potent concoctions now flowing from the tanks. "Just once I wish you weren't right Alina." Alisteri closed his eyes and took a deep breath as the first of the liquid mixtures reached the oubliette and began to pool inside.
For the first time he wished that the little funeral he had given her on Dromund Kaas before he fled the planet had been her real one. Even as the remains of his friend flowed over him he wished that it hadn't come to this. Was it regret perhaps? Still a state of denial maybe? The unhealthiest coping mechanism in the galaxy? Perhaps all of the above. But that didn't matter now, not as he sank into unconsciousness and let the oubliette be flooded.
And yet, despite it all, for once the eternal thirst almost seemed sated.
".. You dumbass.. You're supposed to be the one to rebuild.."
The lid to the oubliette finally slid open once more, Alisteri's hand grasping the edge after a moment as he started to haul himself out. He grunted as he flopped onto the ground and began crawling away from the oubliette, his vision still adjusting as his eyes blinked open for what felt like the first time. He felt more alive than ever before, with power coursing beneath his skin in a far more physical manner than that of the Force that he was accustomed to.
A laugh escaped him, a dark sound that quickly morphed into a cackle as his body trembled and grew. He got to his feet as the transformation continued, stretching his growing limbs as his laughter echoed in the laboratory. Bones snapped and reformed, musculature and structure shifting as his warform took shape for the first time. The beast flexed his newly grown wings as he leaned his head back and let out a roar that seemed to shake the canyon that housed the little settlement.
"It's the only path I have."
