A Legacy No More...

[Orion Darkstar]

Artists​

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Region: Mid Rim​

Sector: Tyus Sector​

System: Zelos System​

Planet: Zelos II​

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Location: Unkempt Graveyard​

Day|Night: Dusk​

Weather|Temperature: Clear Skies|0°C - 32°F​

Season: Winter​

Music: Theme​

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Legacies mattered, at least that's what the Kovani line had been taught. Whether the last male or female it was your job as a Kovani to continue the everlasting success of the family name. The values instilled in them were like steel, forged by neglect and hate. It had turned an entire family into a reputable organization. The tedious focus on being better than the next had caused its collapse. What the Kovani line had built was close to dimishing and before long it had. Unlike many of the Kovani, one man stood above the rest, Epharam. His cold and cruel tactics at negotiating and getting his way brought hope back to the thirsty line of Kovani's. Epharam was a man of honor and integrity, but behind closed doors he was a ruthless criminal, capable of bending others to his will with a mere look. His power exceeded the force, he used the territory around him to build a self-sustaining economy for the Kovani line and just when Epharam Kovani had done it, he ruled like a king.

Kings, however, can only rule for so long. Epharam was not only all these things and more, but also a father. He had birthed a son, the last of his lineage, Kevros Kovani. Unlike many of the others that came before him, Kevros lacked the muster and mettle it took to handle what was left to him after his father's passing. It was a sad truth, but that truth had lead him back. The visions that had begun to plague him showed the brutality of his father. The visions were a gift from the force. Kevros didn't see it that way however, they were a crutch to his progress as a sith. Even though he knew this, he stood at the entrance to the unkempt graveyard. The tall rotted crypt in the center, eerily stared him down. His past had come back to haunt him and the legacy he was told to keep alive, he had abandoned, long ago.

The frigid chill of the winter wind stung his face as he pushed the old metal gate of the graveyard entrance open. The shrilling creak of its echo made him clench his teeth, his jawline popping out in irritation of the noise. Like those that laid beneath him, the trees were bare and dead. A beckoning caw pierced through the winter winds, crows latched to the dead branches hanging over the cemetery walls. The graveyard had been a secret and many that tried to reach the forgotten resting place, would be turned away by the animated. The mountains held life, worms capable of animating the dead. The Bare Forest had been known for such things. Hence the chosen location, Epharam even in death protected his legacy. Keeping a dead body preserved and untouched was his one and only request before passing. Kevros never understood such requests, but with sith lords and ladies rising from thier graves, anything could have constituted such wishes.

Built into the valley, the graveyard was almost impossible to keep maintained. While this would have appalled those that truly loved their parents, Kevros grinned. It was fitting for a man with such anger and hate. His heart was gold to outsiders, but to Kevros his father was a complicated subject. Regardless, he proceeded forward. The crunch of the dead grass perishing under each step caused his stride to slow. The glossy orange horizon shed little light on the graves around him. The small etching of stone made names forced him to kneel and observe. The names were hard to make out, but then shifting his eyes to another he spotted the name.

Butler Vandal P. Carthus

A quick flashback reminded him of what he had seen. a butler trying to snap Epharam out of his despair. This Vandal, must had been his servant throughout his younger years. He placed his hand on the stone marking and smiled, he hadn't felt connected to his family in years. Confused and curious he stood, the howling of the winter night close to arriving. Wrapping himself in the long black, Kovani cloak he continued onward. Reaching the steps of the old and abandoned crypt he lifted his foot and ascended. The door was tall and made of thick metal. The more endearing sight was the message written on the door, clearly painted in gold, Kevros began to read.

"Like the burning desire, rise from the ashes of those that failed you. Take what is yours, rightfully so. Kings do not kneel, and a prince does not ask. May the Kovani legacy live through me and those that come after me."

Kevros read the heartfelt message at a dull whisper, white fog escaped from the slits in his mask as it touched the cold air. Gripping at the door he tried to push it open, but nothing came of it.

Then like a thundering roar, Kevros was sent back into the force, a cloudy image of blurry motion began to play before his eyes. Another vision was coming to him. His head felt on fire as he winced, until the image became clear.

-----------Vision-----------
"I will not have my son raised by a coward!" Epharam yelled, pacing behind his desk. "Kevros will find out the truth eventually, I've sacrificed everything for the future of our name. Does that not mean anything to you?"

The question posed curiosity in Kevros as he watched intently.

"You don't think I know this? I built what you have Epharam, don't you ever forget that. Your Money, Your House, even your precious wife." The threat came from a ragged looking man, almost homeless from the looks of it. "I will not sit idly by and allow you to go back on our deal, your to abide by our contract. If you don't the Kovani line will be no more."
----------Vision End----------

Just like that Kevros was whisked back into reality. The small churned and clicks swung the giant metal door ajar. A warm breeze slipping out of the crypt. A flickering light bounced off the stone walls as he entered. Kevros stood silent, before sighing and shaking his head.

"Hello Father."

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[member="Darth Ferox"]​

 

[Darth Ferus]

"Why, we just met. How could you be sure that we're related?" A voice from above spoke to [member="Kevros Kovani"] , clear and crisp in the darkness of the tomb. Directly ahead a pair of glowing red orbs formed in the shadow, and nothing but cold could be felt within this grave sight. The Dark Side was strong here. "Then again, I've always been a terrible father myself." Down from the darkness a figure fell, revealing a red skinned man dressed in simple merchants clothing.

"You look rather distressed. Come to rob the tomb? Well, too bad. This ones mine, so you can move on to the next, aye?" There was an almost dismissive tone as the man turned his back to Kevros, as if to look around for any valuables. Yet even the Force screamed this was not true, to those who would lend it their ear. Ferox had come to this planet for only one reason. To pick up the pieces of his fellow Sith and keep what was left strong.

 

[Orion Darkstar]

The flickering of the candles that were lit hit his golden mask and as he stepped forward, he froze. The force welled up inside of him till he sensed it. Another had already arrived, the voice of the stranger held sarcasm. It wasn't until Kevros tilted his head upward that the dark figure fell from the shadows above. The voice was of a male and as the rude intruder fell, it continued to speak.

"Then again, I've always been a terrible father myself."

Kevros grew frustrated with the now red skinned peasant. His attire showed robes of a merchant, but his eyes showed the heart of a warrior. Whoever he was, Kevros could feel the darkside protruding from him, like an open jar of cookies. The tendrils of the force tugged at him, unsure whether to make a move on the poor sap that had entered his father's tomb. Then another remark caught him even more by surprise.

"You look rather distressed. Come to rob the tomb? Well, too bad. This one mine, so you can move on to the next, aye?"

The thought hadn't crossed his mind, until he remembered the preservation of his father's body. Perhaps there were those that preyed on the dead to find answers in life. It was a weak choice to squander items of those already passed, cowardly even. Kevros smirked, the man before him clearly didn't understand the building he was in. Kevros was quick to judge him, but why? He had left the legacy of his father in the dark. What reason would the young sith have to be angry. If a pillager of his unsuitable father's tomb was this man's duty, then so be it.

"You clearly are mistaken, this here, is a Kovani crypt and while you are trespassing on sacred ground, I find your self-indulgence to be rather...wasted. They only thing you'll find here are the bones of my father." Kevros said, the tone in his voice staying calm and deep. "Everything you could have potentially taken is already on me." A light chuckle escape from the inside of his golden mask, the daunting image tilting to the left as he observed the new specimen before him.

The force was clearly present in the intruder, something he hadn't considered to walk into at his old father's tomb. Then it struck him, why would he allow a selfish man like the one before him take what wasn't rightfully his. Kevros was the Dark Prince, a title given to him by his own. Along with those that dealt with him in his younger years as the family's King. Of course, leaving the criminal life behind for a darker one, he found the sith. he couldn't have both, he knew this, but if he really knew than why was he willing to fight for his father. After everything was said and done, Kevros had thought he left the past, in the past. Clearly, he was wrong.

He stepped forward, defiant in his demeanor as the red skinned male turned his back.

"I'll have to ask you to leave, now." With a venomous tongue, he struck at the unwanted peasant before him.

What he didn't know...

was he was already poking the devil.

[member='Darth Ferox"]

 

[Darth Ferus]

"Oh hoho. Someone sounds important. Already stolen from your father to make yourself seem important?" Teasing. Insulting. Baiting. A smile formed on the lips of the red man as he crossed his arms over his chest, staring down [member="Kevros Kovani"] with his blue eyes. This man already seemed rather defiant and disrespectful, but then again Ferox was posing the roll as a grave robber. Maybe it was to be expected.

"You going to kick me out of here now? I'd be interested to see it."

 

[Orion Darkstar]

"Oh hoho. Someone sounds important. Already stolen from your father to make yourself seem important?"

Kevros snapped back, his calm tone turning to a cold menace.

"Assumptions. It's funny how you think I've stolen the belongings of my own, when they are rightfully willed to me. I'm not a fool, provoking my sensibilities will get you nowhere. I can already tell by the look of you, you're no grave robber."

Kevros lifted his hand to the air, his black gloves covering the pale hands beneath.

"You going to kick me out of here now? I'd be interested to see it."

The man baited him once more and before the last of Kevros' fingers spread outward the force flowed through him. A surge of retribution slipped into his mind. One thought preventing him from letting the force push loose from his palm.

Why....now of all times do I care! I hated my father!

Did he care or not for his father's legacy? Everything he knew seemed to break apart. How could he be so weak after finding solace in the darkside of the force?

Kevros shook the thought and backed away slowly, his arm stiffening as he held it out. He strained to contain the force building up in his hand and before he considered the consequences he released the powerful wave of energy into the large crypt. He hadn't expected the words of a coward to cause such action. Unfortunately, his fear of being weak had emerged and in the last moment of silence the candles were stripped of their flame. The shuddering blast ripped through the air, its target ready to be swept up into the air and into the thick stone wall behind him.

If the red skinned intruder had any tricks up his sleeve now would have been the time to use them. This wasn't the most troubling of circumstances, Kevros was lackluster in his effort. He couldn't focus, the life he had left behind and the one he had chosen began to merge. Everything seemed grey and just when he felt the darkside wrap its claws around him, he felt it reject him, the weak had no right to bend such forces to their will.

Kevros was broken.

[member="Darth Ferox"]

 

[Darth Ferus]

There was no resistance from the Sith as the wave struck him. [member="Kevros Kovani"] would see the red man taken through the air, slamming against the nearby stonewall with a thud. It was there he would fall, collapsing to his knees in silence. So the boy did have his own power. Hunched over, the Dark Prince wouldn't be able to see the grin that slowly grew across the red mans face.

Kovani would do nicely.

The Force swelled, screaming danger if Kevros could hear it, and with only that as a warning Ferox lunged forward. With the Force in his body he closed the gap in mere moments, his left hand raised in a fist. With as much strength as he could the red man swung his arm outward, aiming to connect with the boys face. Kevros, son to a dead man, holding on to a legacy that he had not earned. Ferox would beat it out of him.

And when he was finished, he would show Kevros how to truly be Sith.

 

[Orion Darkstar]

The surge of power that sprung forward from his palm tore through the dark chamber, a once respected grave, no more. The red man was lifted from his post, slamming into the wall behind him. The spider-like crack that formed from the blow began to drip of dust, the crevices that were newly formed coughing up the remnants of time as stone after stone dropped from the foundation. It was a powerful blast, but nothing a sith lord of [member="Darth Ferox"] magnitude couldn't handle. Of course, Kevros knew little of the man before him, ignorant to what the force had tried to tell him.

Refusing to heed the darksides warning he smiled, the golden mask covering up his smug look. He had bested the red man in mere seconds, until he blinked. Like a shifting shadow from the dark, the red bare knuckles of the imposing merchant had struck. Kevros' head tilted backward trying to dodge the blow, but instead felt the punishing crunch of the assailants’ fist under his chin. The loud pop echoed throughout the stone crypt. Kevros had lost his footing and before he knew what took place, he was thrown from his father's resting place and into the entrance way. His back bounced off the thick metal door he had entered from. A small groan escaped him, his sight hazy from the blow.

Just as I suspected...who the...

His thought was interrupted by a sudden eruption of blood from his mouth. Spitting into the slits of his Kovani mask he winced, his bottom jaw clicking as he gyrated hismouth left and right to gauge the damage.

Still intact, good.

Rising to his feet he glared through the menacing mask, clenching his teeth.

"Impressive."

It wasn't any surprise that Kevros could take such a hit, but his sight still seemed a bit off. The impact had saved his mask, but at the cost of his equilibrium. It was a precise punch, one that clearly was more than a message. This seemed different, almost as if the force had brought such a man into the solace of his own father's grave. What would his old man think of him know? Defending the ground, he laid upon, did it matter? Kevros didn't know, in fact, he was unsure what he was doing to begin with.

Kevros stepped forward, this time he wasn't going to waste his energy on the powers of the force, instead he would fight the red menace hand to hand, shifting his legs he formed a defensive stance. His fingers teasing the stranger to come at him.

"Try that again."

 

[Darth Ferus]

As [member="Kevros Kovani"] would tease, the red man was already there. He had walked out of the tomb as the boy regained his footing, but he didn't simply stand there staring. No, he wasn't here to chat, to hear the acolytes taunts and cocky attitude. Kevros viewed himself superior, or perhaps just on par. Both were wrong, and Ferox had every intention of showing him the error of his ways. So as he spoke his final taunt the Zabrak was there, his right metal hand coming around for a quick punch to his gut. Should that connect he would continue, once more bringing his left around to slam into the Dark Princes jaw.

No mercy. No relenting.

 

[Orion Darkstar]

it was at this point that the sith lord before him already motioned forward for another attack. this time it was faster than the last. The first strike penetrated his defenses in a single second. How could he have been so far beneath another man? After his training, all his devotion, nothing had come of it. He was embarrassed, worse than that, he was regretting his choices. Questioning the morals of his lifestyle, the darkside had saved him, but he had yet to be freed from the clutches of his past.

The metal hand that sabotaged his defense sent chills through his body as it connected with his muscular abdomen, the twist from the connecting causing a sharp pain. It wasn't the impact that caught him off guard, but the actual pain that sent his back arching upward, more blood cascading from the pit of his stomach and out through his throat. the shift in his rib as the red man stuck made his eyes widen with strain, the air he once breathed taken from him. The whites of his eyes began to turn red as he gasped for air, but before he gained his composure, another fist connected to his chin once more.

The left arm that connected with Kevros' chin was louder. This time a small crack split the back of his clenched molars, the taste of green chlorophyll was instant. The zelosian wouldn't last under such conditions. Trying to react his arm lifted to his chin, but fell limp as he was knocked to the ground. He couldn't move, the tingle feeling he felt had meant defeat or worse a broken rib. His eyes stared at the night sky as he realized he had been removed from the crypt. The cold air from the winter chill brought his breath back to his lungs. The small spasm had ended his body slowly returning to normal as he laid heavily on his back.

The damp grass smelled more alive than he had expected for such awful conditions. The vision that once was hazy split into two's. The blurred vision made it difficult to move as the world around him began to spin. The drkside cupped him in its hands and whispered.

Listen...

[member="Darth Ferox"]

 

[Darth Ferus]

"There, that's better." The voice of the Sith cut into the silence of the night sky. Footsteps could be heard as Ferox walked down to where [member="Kevros Kovani"] laid, his blue eyes fixated on the fallen Prince. "The boy who claims his Father's legacy as well as the right to call himself Sith, beaten by a simple merchant and grave robber." The soft ground crumbled and cracked with each step as the Lord neared. Once close, the Sith would simply crouch down beside Kevros. No more punching, at least, for now.

"You're trying to be a whole lot of things and ending up nothing instead. I had not expected you to make this hunt for you so easy. Going back to your fathers grave. Expecting his ghost to give you more you can try to pass off as your own? Tell me, how much of you is actually you, and not him?"

 

[Orion Darkstar]

He felt like he was in a deep pool of water, a red skinned shark circling him, waiting for the right moment to strike. Sharks liked to play with their food and the sith lord did just that. The tantalizing voice that poked and prodded at Kevros' mind made him squirm. His sight had slowly begun to return as he listened to the merchant. He teased the Kovani, if that's what Kevros truly was. After abandoning his own father and his values, was he a Kovani? The question tugged at him, like the force telling him to embrace the man before him.

"Tell me, how much of you is actually you, and not him?"

The words of the victor cut deeper than his punches. He leaned upward, shaking his head from the disorientation. The bruise near his rib began to spasm, the swelling would continue for a few days’ time. Unsatisfied with the outcome, Kevros shifted his emerald jewels to the snarky grave robber.

"I'm the last of the Kovani line...I refuse to become my father, it's why I left years ago,. The sith took me in, taught me what I needed to know. Or at least I thought I had learned. A sith needs no past, only the future. Even so, my father lives through me, I can't escape him even in death, pathetic." Kevros' voice sank low, discouraged about where he was heading in life. He needed change, a real change.

He scanned the graveyard, the winter breeze slicing at his chest. The moon slowly began to become the only ray of light in the darkness. It was beautiful.

[member="Darth Ferox"]

 

[Darth Ferus]

"You can't escape a man who's stuff you wear. Who you go and visit. Man, it's like you want to be chained down." With a groan fit for a man well in his fifties the Zabrak stood, and offered his hand to [member="Kevros Kovani"] . His blue eyes focused down on the beaten man, and he smiled. "They call me Darth Ferox now. A Sith Lord, as you've probably guessed. You wish to cast of these chains? Follow me, serve me, and I will give you the power to do so. Now take my hand, and stand on your own two feet. On this day the Kovani dies, and your legacy begins. Understand?"

He remained unmoving as he spoke, keeping his hand offered to the fallen warrior. If he was to take the offer, all he would have to do is reach up and grasp the hand of War. His path would be set, and there was a shiver of anticipation going down Ferox's back as he awaited Kevros's choice. There was so much to be done, and he was eager to begin.

 

[Orion Darkstar]

"You can't escape a man who's stuff you wear. Who you go and visit. Man, it's like you want to be chained down."

The red skinned man simplified it to the very core. It was so obvious that holding on to the possessions of someone you were trying to rid from your mind, would be counterproductive. If it were that simple, then why was it so hard to let go. Was the connection to his father and the darkside keeping him from progressing into a different monster entirely? Was the force trying to deny him of a future?

Nothing was ever that simple and making excuses for it was even worse. The man before him him had declared his name and title. It was no surprise to Kevros that he was indeed a Sith Lord. Then the strangest offer arose from the sly throat of [member="Darth Ferox"].

"Now take my hand, and stand on your own two feet. On this day, the Kovani dies, and your legacy begins. Understand?"

Tilting his head to the side he watched the extension of Darth Ferox's arm and grinned beneath his mask. This was his way out, but what consequences did it come with...if any. The way Ferox commanded him to receive his offer seemed off. Kevros hadn't accepted his hand yet and even now he was being told what to do. Perhaps that's exactly what he needed, a master, a teacher of the darkside. He was chained down by a legacy long forgotten and dead. If he kept living in his father's shadow, what would come of him?

Nothing.

The answer rang in his head like an alram. He couldn't believe he had carried possessions of his past life and considered himself free. He was enslaved to a false love, a love of a negligent father. There was much to be questioned and answers to be sought, but before all those things...

Kevros needed to be changed, needed to become a true sith. Without a thought, he reacted to the offer. his heart telling him to lift his right arm to the sith lords. Grabbing onto Ferox's hand he sighed, this was it, the first steps to greatness.

 

[Darth Ferus]

A darker grin took over the features of the Sith as he grasped [member="Kevros Kovani"] 's hand and pulled him up. Once on his feet the Zabrak would let him go and simply point to the tomb of the last Kovani. "Good. Then you know what it is you must do." There was an encouraging nod as the Sith crossed his arms over his chest. This was no longer something he could influence, the most he could do now was watch.

Kevros would destroy this tomb, and in the process he would finally break the chains that had bound him for so long. To any follower of a Sith, this was a glorious day.

 

[Orion Darkstar]

"Good. Then you know what it is you must do."

Kevros knew everything that he had felt made him weak. His fear of becoming nothing in the long run, made him stop by his dead father's tomb. a place that shouldn't have been standing. The structure of the resting place was soon to crumble and with a little help from Kevros it would. The idea of letting go of something that defined him was scary. What path would this lead to? Would he make his father proud in the process or did the legacy truly not matter?

Either way he made his decision, he couldn't be in a galaxy so strong and stay a weakling. There was much to do, much to learn, and much to grow from. His mistakes were the very thing that made him who he was. It was time to let go of all those little things that made him, well, him. The superiority complex, his indifference, all of it was simply bred from his childhood and his father. Change was a must.

He spotted the stone brick at the left corner of the tomb's foundation and with a flick of his wrist and extension of his left arm a pulse of heavy energy sliced through the grey cobblestone, tearing it to pieces. The tomb shifted as it buckled under the displacement. The once great Kovani, was dead. His own son putting him under. It felt great, the sudden surge of Independence washed over him like a wave of power. A smile reach his face, still hidden from the Kovani mask on his face. Soon he would have to craft an entirely different one, along with his robes. Everything his father left had to burn.

It was after all...

The only way.

[member="Darth Ferox"]

 

[Darth Ferus]

Ferox looked on with the pride of a father watching his child take it's first steps. In a way, [member="Kevros Kovani"] was a child doing just that, taking his first steps into not only being his own person, but a proper Sith. This was a moment that would take years for most to accomplish, decades in fact for Ferox himself, but Kevros had done so in mere moments. He was always there, always right at the edge of breaking away and finding true freedom.

He just needed a helpful nudge.

"Now, tell me. What is your name. Not the name given to you, but the name you choose for yourself."

 

[Orion Darkstar]

He watched as the tomb crumbled. The display caused dust to spit out from underneath the tumbling weight of cascading stones. It was magnificent, the feeling of relinquishing his father's legacy before him.

"Now, tell me. What is your name. Not the name given to you, but the name you choose for yourself."

He hadn't thought about such a prospect, his name had been Kevros, since he could remember, but names were unnecessary, at least, ones that were given to you. Sith had named themselves for decades upon decades. it was a sign of strength and a will to commit to the darkside. It gave others around them a sound influence of respect for younger acolytes capable of becoming a new person.

For Kevros, it was more. he had been taught in the ways of the darkside, he knew the fundamentals. The only thing he thought he could do was hold onto his needless morals from his childhood. It made him weak and he began to fall farther from the true sith ways. Falling was just the step he had to take to rise.

Turning to [member="Darth Ferox"] with his tantalizing, golden mask, Kevros spoke. He had thought of the prefect name. A name that was symbolic to his rise to power. Strong and unwavering in his climb into the darkest arts of the force.

"Orion." His voice held a serious tone, a conviction about it. Perhaps it was a form of pride that made his response seem that much heavier. His hands fell to the side and with a light nod, he smiled.

I'll reach for the stars....

And never stop.

 

[Darth Ferus]

"Orion? Sounds of a name fit for a being who walks among the stars." There was a faint chuckle from the Zabrak as he turned his gaze from [member="Orion Darkstar"] to the tomb he had just destroyed. So willing to submit, and to break the chains that bound him. He would make a powerful Sith one day. But that was still a ways off. "You now serve me, Orion. Until the day I no longer have any knowledge you could want, you will do as I say. You will chain yourself to me, learning everything that I have, and in doing so you will become stronger. Then, on the day I no longer hold anything you want, your chains to me will be broken. You will become a true Sith."

Slowly the blue eyes traveled back to the Dark Prince, their shade changing into a deep red as he did so. "But you are no true Sith yet. Now come along, I have a task that needs to be complete. And there, you will meet your.. Allies." Allies, or enemies in a temporary truce. Ferox wasn't sure yet, but soon Orion would know what it was he was talking about. A simple motion of his head indicated which direction he was traveling and without delay he made his way to the ship.

Oh, how interesting this would be.

 

[Orion Darkstar]

[member="Darth Ferox"] assured him that the choice he made was the right one. Only now, he was a slave to a new man. He would have to use the Zabrak's guidance in order to succeed as a sith. He had strayed from the path for too long. In a way, the stranger that arrived in the tomb of his disgraceful father was a beacon of hope. Hope of a better chance to reach the tendrils of the darkside. he wanted to embrace it, use it, manipulate it into his own art.

His thirst for knowledge would grant him such things, but only if he continued along the right path. His emerald eyes scanned the area before following behind his new teacher. Stepping onto the ships entrance ramp, he looked back at the crumbled tomb. He felt liberated.

A tiny flame of passion began to grow within him and his desire to become something, created a fire in his eyes. Turning away for the last time he smirked, the irony of it all was frustrating. The sound of a light hiss proved the ramp closing as the two sith vanished into the winter's night.

Thus, a legacy was no more...