Private A Relaxing Thought

[Salara Zambrano]

THE BLACK-IRON CONSORT
SITH QUEEN + ALCHEMIST
THE FIRST OF HER NAME

Darth Carnifex ​

Once more at her chosen refuge, far from the eyes of the galaxy, Salara Kesare-Zambrano awaited her husband. A timeless beauty, with high cheekbones, piercing brown eyes, and a regal posture. Her once raven-black hair, now mixed with silver, cascades in loose waves around her shoulders. The years of dark rituals preserving her youthful appearance. Salara's gown in shades of crimson and black, her shawl black as night covered her in the chill of the evening. Her faithful guard dogs, a pair of annwnsi remained at her side, and behind her the Queensguard. Black armored men and women who vowed to serve in life and in death. Salara awaited Kaine, to hear word of the latest movements within the Kainates and to give him word of what his children, their children and grandchildren were doing in his honor.

The undisclosed location had become Salara's sanctuary in the wake of Panatha's loss. A loss she still felt still. Yet her mind did not dwell on that, not at that precise moment, no, she watched as her husband's shuttle came into view and she moved from her perch on the balcony toward the landing pad. Her sons, Sarlow, Alvarex, Ansgar each doing what they could, to inform him that the re-education of Xathrael had been complete. His daughters Mavriana and Ephraazel's progress, their founding of a loyal order to Salara. Researching artifacts that could benefit their family, and how Cordelia remained ever loyal to their cause - watching her siblings from a distance. How Dak'ir of Serenno, and Varr of Ession, the boys that Alvarex adopted from worlds that the Sith had torn asunder, now grown - molded into proper Zambranos with Alvarex's ever dutiful tutelage had now been dispatched to opposite corners of the galaxy to seek Epicanthix loyal to their grandfather.

As she walked, closing the distance between herself and the landing pad as the shuttle descended. The castle's gothic features illuminated in the lights that splashed acrossed its facade. Salara paused and looked upward toward a tower on the right, Cordelia's silhouette evident, Salara only smiled and continued on her way. Moments later the silhouette was gone and Salara was for the moment alone with her faithful companions at her side. Her modest holdings now reflected the growth of those who had returned to their roots. Epicanthix houses loyal to the Zambranos gathered in villages around the castle. Their small lights likely seen by Kaine on his way in. "Kaine," she greeted warmly, "it has been some time since you've last visited, there is much we should discuss."

 

[Darth Carnifex]

The Crestfallen came to a gentle stop upon the landing pad, compressed air hissing out from the settling hydraulics. Servos whined as the boarding ramp lowered to the ground, subdued light spilling out from deep within the cabin as the shape began to take form within. Step by step, the Dark Lord of the Kainate emerged from the confines of His vessel, and strode down the boarding ramp with great, purposeful strides. Draped in black and red vestments, the Dark Lord appeared every bit the conquering tyrant; every inch inversely radiant like the umbral light of a dying star.

"Salara," boomed the Dark Lord's voice, velvety and laced with power, "My beloved rdolruemi." A smile curled the edges of the Dark Lord's lips, one of genuine affection so rarely professed by the Butcher King. Much had changed since the fateful battle within the Wellspring of Life, and the Dark Lord had been fundamentally changed. The two halves had been reunited, and His power multiplied beyond all conception. He was more like the man that she had first fallen in love with, the one for who she had forsaken her betrothed and ultimately her family that had rejected Him.

He was altogether familiar, like His old self but different. He looked the same, although the exuberance of youth had again crept back into His features and mannerisms. But He walked with an unnatural pallor about Him, an otherworldly sensation that could not be properly defined. He moved as though simultaneously tethered to this world but also removed from it, separated. His gaze was more piercing than she had ever known, for within that haunting look was the enormity of boundless infinity; an eternity that He alone had witnessed.

"Indeed there is, my love, indeed there is. I have much to tell you, much to show you." He took her hands, cradling them gently as He had once done so long ago. "And many years to make up for."

Salara Zambrano ​

 

[Salara Zambrano]

A smile continued to grace her features, as the Black Iron Consort placed a kiss on her husband's lips. The smile he bore, the genuine affection that now shown on his features, oh, how Salara had yearned to see her husband smile, again and to see it brought her much happiness. Joy that could not be measured, there had been a great many changes since last they met. Changes that her husband alone had created, the architect of his own revival. The Wellspring of Life, had changed the Dark Lord, but his first wife, Salara embraced them all. "It is good to see you so well, exuberant even," her calm voice radiated with both wisdom and joy as they fell into step, side by side.

She knew, they knew he would be different after the battle. How different neither could quite say, and yet there was a familiarity to him. Her fingers intertwined with his. "And the years shall be made up for." That much she was sure, Salara had taken the measures necessary, so her own youthful vigor matched his. Her sworn duty as his beloved to ensure that he was well cared for, and to say that her heart swelled at the sound of rdolruemi, would be an understatement.

He was the same, and yet different, Salara had long resigned that Kaine however much he tried would never truly be able to capture his old self. There was always a price to pay with the dark arts that were often practiced on what some might view as vanity projects. Seeking perptual fountains of youth, while those never existed - there were ways to recover what had been lost. Having Him beside her, as youthful and as vigourous as he stood now. Salara was happy with it, happy to continue to serve her beloved, the very man that she had killed for and would do so again without question.

The moons above graced them that evening, and so silence for the moment befell the pair as they walked along the castle grounds. She squeezed his hand, more for reassurance, and to feel his hand with hers was enough for the moment. "Xathrael's reeducation has been complete, and his brothers assure me that he'll be watched closely. For the moment he sits in his chambers, here, awaiting assignment." A softness to her words as she continued on, "Varr, Alvarex's son informs me of Epicanthix populations in the old grounds. Where the Eternal Empire and First Order once stood, he's gone forth with his brother Dak'ir to gather them to our cause."

"Ansgar has led several of the wayward here, and our daughters Mavrianna and Ephraezel have created a religious order to help ensure their loyalty to us," religion had always been and would continue to be among Salara's favorite tools to keep the Panathan masses at their side. "Tell me though, tell me what you have done, I hear rumors Kaine, the rumors of the machniations of the Sith, the Jedi and all that lurk in between our perptual battle with the Light."

Darth Carnifex ​

 

[Darth Carnifex]

"Good, this is good to hear."

Of all the child sired by His hand, His by Salara's were always the most dependable. They were dutiful and resolute, qualities that few among His brood could match. Alvarex had risen to a renewed place of prominence following the untimely death of Joycelyn, who had oft been considered the most alike in mind and body to her father. Though the void she left was immense, the Patriarch of the Zambranos had come to rely more and more upon His eldest son. In all but name, Alvarex had come to be His father's chosen heir.

"Our children are marvelous, Salara. Though they are not perfect, I hold them dearest. They have come so far, and I would wish to visit them all in turn so that I may behold their greatness." Rare had it been for the Dark Lord to levy such admiration upon His own children, but now that He was again whole He was exposed to the full spectrum of emotions. Not just anger and hate, though they were His most powerful tools, but all that was expected of a proud father and doting husband.

But as His thoughts turned away from His children and towards the Sith, His expression grew more dour. "It is as it always has been, my love. The Sith cloy for power and plot in the shadows, not else has changed save for names. Darth Empyrean sits as Emperor, a throne that I have long since cast aside. Ophidia is dead, killed by her own students. I alone oversee the Holy Worlds, though I have passed off many of the worlds into the hands of other Sith. My mind is ever distant, beloved, always looking towards other things; greater things. The pettiness of empire has grown weary for me."

He beheld her eyes, looking into them with an intensity and passion she had only known from the time before His sundering. "When you have born witness to infinity, all other ambition seems diminished."

Salara Zambrano ​

 

[Salara Zambrano]

As it had been as it always will be, the endless cycle of Light vs Dark, of Jedi vs Sith. Such was the way of galaxy, such as it had to be, for without them there was nothing. When Kaine mentioned wanting to meet with their children to hold their greatness, her heart swelled. "Then they shall be gathered for you to look upon, my love." Praise them, bless them, their children who did all they could to serve their father. They themselves were an extension of him and with Kaine being whole again, to experience the spectrum of emotions that accompanied all sentient life. It was a lovely sentiment indeed and one that Salara endeavored to hear again and again.

She acknowledged the endless cycle as such that it was, as Kaine spoke. "As it will always be."

"I suppose it was only a matter of time," in reference to Darth Ophidia's death at the hands of her students, "students? So it took more than one?" She mused aloud. "Tell me of the Sith that look after the Holy Worlds," she inquired so that she might send her own agents to monitor these worlds to see what is becoming of them. While she trusted her husbands' instincts she always wanted to see for herself what was happening. "The throne is empty without works, it is but a seat, and one that often flees when complacency and contempt settle in."

The pair continued their walk.

"Your ambitions are beyond the comprehension of empires. Beyond the what must seem like petty squabbles between children over a galaxy that has long yearned for order." Salara conversed plainly, "I will admit Kaine, to see you like this, so filled with life as you once had been."

Blushed? Salara blushed, something she hadn't done since they first met, first walked through the gardens of her home on Panatha. "It feels good, it really, truly does. Reminds me of our youth, spending as much time as we could together. Plotting the murders of my bethrothed and his family, such wonderful times."

Darth Carnifex ​

 

[Darth Carnifex]

"I have seized another chance, Salara. Admittedly, I was consumed with fear that I would waste away to nothing, a prisoner unable to exert my will upon the galaxy. But that fear has since fled, replaced by a strange sensation. I believe they call it hope." A strange statement for the Dark Lord of the Kainate to make, unthinkable only a few years ago. But He was a new man, reborn in the Wellspring, and bolstered by power unfathomable. New thoughts had entered His mind, new ideas, new beliefs, and a new understanding of not just the galaxy, but the Force as well. He still considered Himself a Sith, swore by the Code, and clung deeply to it's trappings and ideals.

But He was more than just a Sith now. He was ascended, elevated. Truly, He could live up to the expectations of His people. A God-King.

"Our line shall unseat the stars in number, Salara. You and I shall persist throughout eternity, lives unfettered by time. All who partake of my blood and my flesh shall know this. I intend to call for a summit with the others, Invicta, Emma, and all those who share in our nuptial bond. Whatever power we bring to life within the galaxy, be it cult or government, will hold no bearing upon the order we rear within our family. Family above all else, my beloved." He again held her close and His lips found hers, passionately hungry for her taste, her touch, and her smell.

Then, He looked deep into her eyes, mere inches from her face. "All the galaxy could rot so long as you stay by my side."

Salara Zambrano ​

 

[Salara Zambrano]

The pair had walked toward a gazebo, where the moons light graced them it was there that Kaine spoke. Salara in turn gazed into her husband's eyes and focused there on his expressions as he talked of hope. Yes, it would have been strange, for anyone beyond their persons, their own personal circle of wedded ones to hear of the Dark Lord speak of hope. Yet hope had been the catalyst for so much in the galaxy, would it have really come as surprise to anyone to find that it had served the Dark just as well as the Light. "Then let us not allow this chance to waste away," she placed a hand along his face, her delicate fingers brushed against his cheeks and moved to up his jaw. "Hope can be quite the catalyst, my love."

"There is so much more to do within this galaxy, so much to teach, the galaxy reeks of those who have yet to truly comprehend what you do. A message that should be heard for the masses, that even the Dark Lord can have hope, surely if they were to swear their fealty to you, they would behold this as well." Her hand moved away from his jaw whilst the other was placed on his chest, this sort of message, a controlling the masses religion had worked for them in the past, quite well on Panatha. "You truly are a God-King, more so now than ever before."

She grinned at his words, unseat the stars, my, what an ambition then again... Salara had long vowed herself to Kaine's ambition tied herself to his vision for the galaxy. "Above all else, my love, above all else." She echoed his sentiments, the nuptial bond they shared with the others served only to bring the best to the galaxy. "When the Summit is called, I shall ensure our children are there to hear your message so that they might go to the ends of the galaxy and preach it to those who are in need to hear it."

Kaine held her, held her in a way that he hadn't done in years. Salara became enraptured with his display of affection, and when they parted. She could see him, truly see him, the man she hadn't seen in decades. Surely it was mentioned before but it begged to be mentioned again, Salara wrapped her arms around him. This was Kaine Zambrano, her Kaine Zambrano. and as she focused on her attention on him. He looked deep into her eyes and spoke, she closed the distance between them and kissed him.

When they parted once more, Salara remarked, "together we can cleanse the galaxy, let it burn bright, renewed by its devotion to you, to the Sith."

To the Darkside.

Darth Carnifex ​