Private Conversations in the Dark

[Darth Argentum]

Amani Serys

Lannik was certainly not within NIO territory. Credits didn't care about lines on maps. Nor did the Muun banker Maro Dansk. He only saw opportunity on a world still mainly untouched through all these centuries.

It was hard to believe such a place could exist outside the most stagnant of backwaters. Here it was. Perhaps the Vong occupation in times past had preserved it for all the Vong-forming that had occurred. Beings seemed to avoid such places almost out of a sense of taboo.

Though there were some intrepid enough anyway. He'd met with them here out near the edges of the wilds. To see for himself the potential. Also to evaluate the mining interest's owners in person.

He saw possibilities here, a chance to profit tremendously. Exploratory surveys had provided promising reports of rich mineral deposits. A variety of both precious metals and ones used for ordinary industry. Both markets were always hungry for resources.

Maro considered all this in the fading light of the day. Long-fingered hands were folded behind his back as he studied the distant landscape. Not simply to admire it's picturesque beauty. Instead his cold mind calculated profits that might yet come against expenses.

In all this, he'd dropped the spell hiding his true Dark Side nature. It'd been a long day for him and those he'd wished to hide his true form from were gone. So radioactive yellow eyes peered out of sockets unnaturally deep. Already naturally pale skin was now cadaverous and reflected the setting sun while seeming to retain none of it's warmth.

It was a moment alone for him and he savoured it, Who knew how long it would be before experienced one again.

 

[Amani Serys]

Darth Argentum

Traveling to planets on the edge of the Silver Jedi's influence was becoming a habit for Amani. Testing the waters, of sorts, to see just how far she was comfortable going on her own. She had already broken away before to Jedha, but there she had a more specific purpose. This felt more aimless. There was no end beyond seeing what was out there, what she had been ignoring her whole life.

Lannik as a planet was... fine. After all this time, they had kept many of their natural resources untouched, which she found commendable in and of itself. But beyond checking it off her list, there was little else the planet seemed to offer her. She approached the edge of the city, giving a final look to the wide expanse of untapped nature before she made her exit. It was beautiful, there was no denying that. Amani leaned into the commlink on her arm, "EmTee, can you get the ship prepped? I'm heading back now."

"Of course, Miss Amani!"

The channel switched off again, and she sighed before turning around, only to freeze in her tracks immediately. A sensation crept up her spine and formed a pit in her stomach. That couldn't be the case, she was in SJO space. Surely she was imagining it, ever since the battle on Yurb, she could still feel it lingering from time to time. But it wasn't that this time. No, the Dark Side lingered, not from her but from somewhere nearby. The padawan followed the energy to its source, a lone individual standing near the city's edge. Tall, gaunt, and reeking of the Dark Side. Amani had no idea who he was, but she couldn't take the risk. Her instincts commanded her to draw her weapon first, and ask questions later. Rather un-Jedi-like, but in the moment she gave little thought otherwise. Amani unsheathed her lightsaber pike, igniting its bright blue blade and pointing it in his direction. "...You're a long way from home." An attempt to build a false bravado, betrayed by the quivering in her voice.

 

[Darth Argentum]

Maro cursed himself silently. From behind him came the unmistakable Light Side aura of a Jedi. He'd first become complacent, assuming no Jedi would bother coming here. Then he'd dropped his defenses further by letting his mind wander.

The unmistakable hiss of a lightsaber caused his scowl to deepen. He turned slowly to find a young Mirialan pointing a pike at him. Yellow eyes took her in as he heard her words. An unmistakable trembling changed his scowl into a small grin.

"So are you, Padawan," he put particular emphasis on her title.

His own weapon was hidden among the folds of his paleo-fiduciary cloak. Maro seldom went without it. But he was in no position to reach for it without being skewered. Not at the moment.

He decided that perhaps it would amuse him to speak a while with her. The Muun let his eyes drift back to her weapon.

"Hmm, a lightsaber pike," he said appraisingly "Most unusual. You won't be needing it, though."

His grin widened as he sent out the faintest of Force suggestion. Just a whisper in her mind. Enough to possibly tip her into deactivating her weapon. Or perhaps she might fight it off and attack him.

This young Mirialan might have terrifically strong psychic defenses. He knew the Jedi gave training in those ways. But he heard her voice quake. There was a certain hesitation as if she didn't want this. He was only making a reasonable suggestion, after all.

"Let's talk a while, instead," he continued in a light, conversational tone.

Amani Serys

 

[Amani Serys]

Darth Argentum

Amani flinched as he turned and talked back to her. His yellow eyes and sly grin only made her further uneasy. The padawan had never even met a Sith before, and now all of a sudden here she was, staring one in the face, and all on her own no less. The emphasis he put on her rank shrunk her confidence further, though still she stood her ground and readied a defensive position.

The Muun eyed her carefully, and then spoke again, perplexing Amani with his words. "Give me one reason why I shouldn't... kill your right now." The Mirialan hesitated at her own threat, she didn't even know if she could bring herself to strike some one down. The moment was all too much for her to focus on maintaining a mental defense, and the way he spoke was strangely making sense. Amani was a Jedi after all, a keeper of the peace. Violence wasn't the answer. It was... reasonable.

His force persuasion had gotten through to her, the padawan deactivated the lightsaber, retracting the hilt and slinging it back over her shoulder. All the while remaining cautious, as if she hadn't even realized that she agreed to putting it away. She stood up straighter, "What could we possibly talk about? You're..." Amani felt a strange apprehension to finishing her own thought. Like she could still pretend she wasn't actually stand next to a Sith if she didn't say so.

 

[Darth Argentum]

Amani Serys

"A Sith."

He finished the statement with nonchalance. Before answering her questions he gestured to her weapon.

"Thank you for putting that away," his voice was full of courtesy now.

Maro could tell his appearance made her uneasy. It seemed likely that she'd only heard about his order. He remembered back to his own apprenticeship. There his Master had told him Jedi Padawans were coddled with his voice full of scorn.

It seemed to be true. The Muun's time as a learner had been anything but nurturing. There were many scars on his body which could attest to his trials. Some had even come from the hands of his teacher.

He'd been spared no horrors either, seeing monsters and death alike from the beginning. Almost dying, in fact, in what had been his first lesson. Having to claw his way up from the abyss of death. Living through sheer force of will all to prove himself worthy of training.

And his Master had laughed once the test was complete. Laughed at his suffering. He told his Muun pupil that this was the intensity in which he must pursue power. Like a dying man drawing in air. It was his first lesson too: there would be no room for anymore weakness.

"And, as far as what we might talk about," he said coming to the point "Why your very first question seems a good start."

"I can only imagine you thought of killing me for what I represent. But I have committed no crimes and am transacting legitimate business. To kill me would be murder and hardly in line with the keepers of peace and justice."

His voice was calm and his gestures seemed to underline the points like a University lecturer. Maro affected an aura of a benevolent philosopher to offset his ghoulish appearance. His smile was no longer malevolent but gentle.

"It seems to me that you've never met one of my Order before. Perhaps your only familiarity is with rumors and hearsay among travelers. I can assure you that few among them truly understand. Or, it might be what your Masters have taught you. I'm curious to know, what do they teach you about us?"

"And, more importantly, what do you believe?"

 

[Amani Serys]

Darth Argentum

Amani bit her tongue as he finished the sentence for her. She nodded to herself, and when he thanked her for sheathing the lightsaber, she became more perplexed and opened her mouth to rebut, but unable to find the words. The entire experience felt bizarre, he made no move against her, as she had done. No, in fact he seemed quite content to do little more than chat.

The padawan tried to interject again as he chastised her threat, "But-" Once again she had no real defense of the matter. Truly she didn't even need him to tell her that. It was wholly against her code, yet she had considered it nonetheless. The calm and easy demeanor he exuded made for an uncanny combination with his physical attributes. Just looking at him was enough to know what he was, but it was his words that got through to the Mirialan first. "N-no, I haven't... but I know enough!" She crossed her arms defiantly. "You're Sith. You practice the dark side. The dark side corrupts. And you only care about yourself." They had always been a ghost story to the young woman. Tales of Sith hurting or killing people for their own benefit, or simply for pleasure. Enslaving the wills of others. Betraying friend and allies as quickly as they would a foe. A total lack of empathy. An endless desire for power.

Amani stood tall, prideful even, "I believe in the Jedi. And what they have taught me." Was that true? To an extent, yes. But indeed the padawan's faith in the order, and more specifically, herself, had been shaken following the traumatic experiences at Yurb. She had used the dark side herself, and yet she was a practitioner of the light. Perhaps that faint imperfection in her aura could be sensed, if the Muun pried enough.

 

[Darth Argentum]

The Muun listened patiently knowing that pride comes before the fall. She spoke the words of any Jedi practitioner. There lacked, however, the conviction of a true believer. It seemed that she was having her doubts about the way.

"Yes, I do wield the Dark Side," he nodded "You say it corrupts. Physically, it has done what you see before you. I'm not vain."

"But, my young Padawan, the Light Side also corrupts you. It makes you it's slave. Think about all of your training. Didn't they tell you to submit to it's will?"

"What free, sentient being would choose such a life? Not I. We are our own masters. Why should some non-sentient thing control us? The Force is a tool for us to use. We are not tools to be used."

He tapped an elongated finger beside his head.

"Think also of your Order and what it tells you of morality. All of which is based on the so-called 'will of the Force'. Indeed, an entire Order of beings whose lives are in servitude."

The Muun shook his head sadly at that.

"Many powerful beings reduced to this life. But those who choose against this are called 'evil' and cast down. Is that not evil, taking away the choice of a sentient being?"

Maro let that last question hang in the air for emphasis.

"I will tell you something that might surprise you: I don't hate the Jedi. I've never actively chose to persecute them. Yet they, in their righteousness, choose to vilify and attack me. They force my hand into defending my life."

He pointed towards her, his voice a little firmer now.

"I will not die just to satisfy some religious zealots. Ones whose dogma speaks of 'justice' and 'truth'."

"The 'truth' is this. You say I care only for myself. All beings care for their own selves first. This is the way of existence and pure altruism is a lie."

"Think of a mother Tauntaun choosing to sacrifice her own life to protect her offspring. Perhaps she fights off a predator and sustains mortal wounds in doing so. Surely this must be a selfless act out of love."

He smiled and shook his head.

"It isn't. You see, her actions benefit her even in her death. For she knows her life span is not indefinite and the biological imperative tells us all to survive. One way for her to live on is passing her DNA onto her progeny. So, by defending them, she defends herself."

Amani Serys

 

[Amani Serys]

Darth Argentum

Amani could hardly believe what she was hearing. The idea that she was a prisoner, that she had no will of her own. “We live in harmony with the Light. I’m no slave.”

“The Force flows through all things. It is a part of the very essence of life. And it is not ours to bend to our will. You have no right.”

She grew defensive, a hint of stress hitting her words.

“I chose to devote myself to the Force, because I have something greater to offer to the galaxy than greed and malice.”

His question gave her pause, leading to an awkward silence as she tried to find an answer. “I... but it’s about more than that! It’s not just that you chose to forgo the Order, you made the decision to serve something much crueler instead. To not help others is one thing, but to commit crimes and acts of evil are not an inherent freedom of ours to exploit.“

The Muun expressed his lack of hate for the Jedi, and pointed at her accusingly.

“Associating yourself with torturers and killers makes you an accomplice. Can you speak for the rest of your Order? That they do not hate the Jedi? That they do not wantonly destroy for the sake of power? If you truly are only in it to live a life of freedom, it can be achieved without resorting to such darkness.”

She took particular offense at the claim of altruism‘s inexistence. And it was there that a part of her weakness lied. Amani pointed back at the Muun.

“I’ve done nothing but help others in my time as a Jedi. I heal the sick, protect the weak, I devote myself to a cause that I know is righteous. All the while asking for nothing in return!”

Her words wavered on her final sentence, and his example hinted at where that weakness lied. All her life she never asked for anything in return, knowing full well that she desired something more, even if she could not understand what it was. Joining the Jedi benefited her just as much, like he implied. Though it brought her pain and heartache all the same.

“I would die for those I could gain nothing from, and many Jedi have before. How could I benefit from such a trade off?” Of course, she could not technically prove that she would do so, even if she believed it with all her heart.

 

[Darth Argentum]

This was fun for the Muun. All too easy to twist one so naive around. He played her emotions like a Bith musician playing his water organ. Though he was becoming more intrigued as they continued to speak.

Something was amiss in this alleged true believer's mind. He felt as if she had begun to question the ways of a Jedi. Why else would his words seem to cut so deeply. The possibilities excited Maro.

"Live in harmony," he repeated with a wry chuckle "No, my young friend. You don't see the chains wrapped around you by your Order. They may be of gossamer but they hold you fast all the same."

He shook his head as she spoke further. So much wrong in what she said. Maro decided that he would help her see. If only to please his current fancy.

"Ahh yes," he replied "Guilty by association. But no, I am not responsible for any other being's actions. It's true some Sith engage in wantons acts of cruelty. I disapprove of such sadism. Killing without reason is a waste."

"Another fact of existence your teachers seem to have left out," he said resuming the guise of a benevolent professor "Is that the universe itself is cruel. Life is cruel. There is no fairness, there is only those who are weak and those who are strong."

The Muun gestured towards her in a more gentle way now.

"My friend, I must tell you the truth. You are weak just as I was once. Your mind is full of lies repeated to you time and again. But I sense some deeper yearning for strength in you."

He smiled encouragingly.

"You say you protect the weak and aid them, but no," he shook his head once again "You merely prolong their existence by weakening yourself. They will die all the same no matter what you do. Only, in propping them up, you give them your strength."

"This doesn't save one being. Rather, it kills two a little further in time. Why do this? Why die for them when they would never do the same for you. They're ungrateful for your benevolence. How many times have they cursed the very Jedi who would give them succor?"

He held up his finger, making another point.

"It's my contention that, if they cannot offer me something in exchange, I won't help them. We mutually benefit in such a dealing. Not just credits, but many things could benefit us. That's not greed, it's practicality."

"That you say you'd give your life for anyone who needed it is not to your benefit. It's merely repeating your indoctrination in falsehoods. A condition of your continuing servitude."

He decided to add more. The Sith Code would help to illustrate each thing he'd said.

"Peace is a lie. There is only passion. Through passion I gain strength. Through strength I gain power. Through power I gain victory. Through victory my chains are broken. The Force shall set me free."

Maro spoke the words in a slow and measured way. His eyes locked onto hers and seemed to hammer each syllable home.

Amani Serys

 

[Amani Serys]

Darth Argentum

“They- No, you're wrong!” It was her choice to make. It had always been her choice, right? “The Order doesn’t hold me back, it gives me strength.”

Amani ground her teeth in frustration. “If you don’t agree, then why do you claim to be one of them? Leave the Sith behind.”

Her expression turned to one of sadness as he explained his view of life, her tension suddenly relaxing into a voice of genuine concern. “That’s not true.” She shook her head, “The fact that you genuinely believe that tells me something bad has happened to you.” The padawan reached out her own hand, “Something you didn’t deserve. I can show you otherwise. You can step away from it.”

Her hand withdrew slightly as he finally addressed her own desires, making her tense up once more. Indeed, she was seeking something more, but she didn’t want to believe she could find it from the Sith. “They are grateful, even if they don’t express it. And if not, it… It doesn't matter, I still helped them.”

Amani could not find the words to argue with him, as the Muun sowed doubt in her beliefs. It couldn’t be true, the Jedi were all she had. If it were a lie, then her entire life had been so as well. He was Sith, he was lying. He had to be.

“S-Stop.” Her voice shook as he recited his own Code, each word stinging at her heart and forcing her to look away. A mix of frustration, confusion, and anger welled up inside her, her presence in the Force darkening in response. “Stop it!” She shouted, a wave of anger emanating off of her as she did. As quickly as it came, her aggression faded, and Amani’s eyes widened as she realized she was only making all the easier for him to see right through her.

 

[Darth Argentum]

As he recited the Code, he felt her anger grow and he was most pleased. He was smiling even as she had her outburst. Then it was buried beneath the layers of her conditioning. That it was still there at all was highly encouraging.

Maro laughed at her concern for him. If he were to die or suffer harm it would be due to his own failure. As indeed it so happened before. But that event had been the catalyst for his real transformation.

She looked dejected now and he decided the best route was a softer one. He was her friend even if she couldn't understand it. In her confusion she was vulnerable. But like a deer singled out from her heard, he needed to be careful lest he frighten her too much.

"You would show concern for a Sith?," he shook his head "No, young one, I am your enemy, am I not?"

He went on with his speech. Leading her this way and that, leaving her open to suggestion.

"You should, by all rights, end me. Am I not the embodiment of all what the Jedi define as evil?"

"But I am not evil, I am strong. You say I am a victim of some past traumas. This isn't so. Events did occur, but I don't let them control me and so I am no victim."

"There is a saying," he said after a moment's pause "The weak suffer what they must. The strong do what they will."

Maro clasped his hands behind his back and began to pace slowly.

"Why would I want to turn away from strength to suffering? Indeed, it's you who are suffering now. You feel anger but are afraid to embrace it. They force you to suppress your very being. They teach you that to experience true feelings is wrong."

He turned and faced her once more.

"What sort of life is that, having to bury yourself. And why do they wish for your to do so? The answer is simple: they fear your potential. They cannot chain you if you say 'no'."

The Muun reached out a hand and clawed his fingers as if grasping something.

"Our road is the will to self-determination. The road to power. The way to freedom. Unlike the Jedi, we are not made to act in any particular way. We simply act in accordance to what is best for ourselves. In accordance with the great law of existence."

Maro dropped his hand slowly and once more clasped his hands.

"My name, my true name, is Darth Argentum. What is your name, young one?," he inquired gently.

Amani Serys

 

[Amani Serys]

Darth Argentum

Amani shook her head, trying to control her breathing and regain composure. “You are, but it’s never too late to change that. I believe that, because-” Because if someone like him could be redeemed, then so could she. For her it was a case of impostor syndrome. She didn’t feel like she deserved to be a Jedi now that she had used the Dark Side, even if it was but a moment. Though as long as salvation was possible, that glimmer of hope kept her moving.

However, that glimmer had begun to erode as well. As much as she was conflicted with herself, that conflict had spread to her faith in the Jedi in turn, and the Muun was all too successful in exploiting it even further. “No, I was the one who was wrong. The anger, it’s not… the Jedi way.” The Jedi way. Why did it taste so sour to speak it? She had expressed her frustrations before, to a Jedi master no less. Why was it so wrong to admit them now?

The Jedi were all Amani could turn to when her parents died. But the love she desired was never reciprocated, at least, not in full, or in a way that she interpreted as equal. She gave everything she had to the order. Then there was the matter of her own failures. The inability to protect others, to listen to directions. Was that not her nature, truly?

Her gaze matched his as he sought to pray on her potential. “My Master told me that I was destined to be a great Jedi. They don’t want to suppress me.” Surely the Jedi did not actually fear that, did they?

His words simultaneously tore at the very core of her beliefs, at yet made sense in a way of their own. Her guard relaxed once again. Her name? Such an innocent question, after all of that. She paused, trying to read his face for any betrayal of his intentions. “...Amani. Just Amani.”

 

[Darth Argentum]

Amani Serys

Argentum inclined his head. A name held power. Now she'd given him another hold on her. It was all going very well.

"Amani, the Jedi way is the wrong way. It's in opposition to nature itself."

"Think of it; how hard is it to suppress yourself. How much easier to express your feelings, your passions."

He paused to turn his back to her and observe the skyline over the forests. The dusk was fading now into night. It's beautiful inky blue, deepest purple and murky black swallowing oranges and reds. Argentum gestured to the sky and spoke without turning.

"Beautiful, isn't it. The darkness consuming the daylight. Listen to the creatures come to life."

The Muun paused and let the sounds of the waking fauna reach them. All sorts of nocturnal beasts rose from their diurnal slumber. Mammals, reptiles, birds and insects. All to play their parts in the dance of life and death.

"This is the Dark Side," he resumed facing her "The night that inevitably overtakes the day. In it's shadows the predators snatch up their prey. The strong survive upon the weak. That is the way of nature and nature is the way of the Dark Side."

"Your Master is right in one instance, young one. You could be great. But not as a Jedi."

 

[Amani Serys]

Darth Argentum

Amani paused as the figure turned away from her. Thoughts raced through her mind that made her head spin. To express her feelings, he said. She lifted up her left arm, now a robotic replacement, bringing back memories of the battle in which she lost the original. And of what she had done during it. The Mirialan flexed her fingers, remembering that moment and drawing on the emotions she felt then.

Fear.

Anger.

Hate.

Suffering.

The Dark Side.

Amani tapped into it for the briefest moment, and the Muun would no doubt feel its presence again. As quickly as she let herself be drawn into it, she pulled back out. It was strong. Of that there was no doubt. But it also scared her, in it's power. The padawan’s attention went back to the Sith, and she looked him in the eyes, trying again to build her confidence. “But in the end, that daylight always comes back. It always returns.” She let the light take her back once more. “I can’t turn my back on that.” She could not deny the curiosity still lingered. But Amani was not ready to give up. Not yet, at least. The padawan stood tall, facing him down with a seemingly renewed sense of courage.

 

[Darth Argentum]

Argentum felt it for the briefest moment. The young Mirialan looked upon her cybernetic hand and there was a flare of rage. Though it was gone as fast as it came. A child who wanted to touch the fire but feared it's heat.

She looked into his eyes and showed her defiance. He let out an exaggerated sigh and rolled his eyes.

"More Jedi platitudes, Amani," his tone bored "More rubbish."

"I might've killed you," he said conversationally "Or perhaps conjured such horrors from your nightmares that your sanity would fray."

The Muun let that sink in for a moment.

"But I had a feeling about you. When you looked on your hand, you fed upon the resentment. The hate for those that did this to you."

Their eyes were still locked and he began to speak once more with a hypnotic intensity.

"You've drawn upon your passions before, young one. I too did this in my time of need. It made me strong and it made you strong."

"Imagine. You could've stopped them from hurting you. From hurting anyone you've ever cherished."

He glanced down to her cybernetic replacement before resuming eye contact.

"What happened?," he asked now softly "Tell me how it made you feel."

Amani Serys

 

[Amani Serys]

Darth Argentum

Amani flinched as the Sith casually threatened her. It reminded her of the fact that she had foolishly let her guard down, and she gripped the strap that held her pike tightly. Just as casually he resumed the conversation, and she relaxed once more, understanding that to try an attack now would be borderline suicidal. “I didn’t... want to...”

She followed his eyes back down to her arm, shaking her head when he asked about it. “The Bryn’adul. On Yurb. They-“ A phantom pain tingled in her shoulder, and Amani gently cradled the arm in the other as she relived the events. “There was so much... violence. Death. Destruction. It was too much. I couldn’t take it. I felt weak. Useless even.” Her eyes matched his own again, “But, I was saved by the compassion of others. Without them, I wouldn’t have survived.” Processing how she felt was still a challenge, and when she spoke every word hung with a slight hint of uncertainty, even if she presented otherwise physically.

“To turn my back on them... I just can’t.”

 

[Darth Argentum]

He felt the emotional pain surge as she spoke. It crested as the waves of an ocean upon a shore. Part of him relished in the suffering. Argentum restrained himself from his baser instincts as other Sith didn't.

The Muun listened attentively. Instead of enjoying the wash, he studied it carefully. There were parallels to his own past. Visitations of suffering upon him in his times of weakness.

"Amani," he said softly and for once with sincerity "I can see that you've never turned your back upon those you love."

His ghastly yellow eyes radiated a sense of almost compassion. Almost.

"It was they who turned their backs upon you. It wasn't anyone else but you who gave you enough strength to pull through."

The Muun spoke again in a subdued voice.

"You haven't turned your back on them. Never. It was they who betrayed you."

Argentum stopped for several moments and drew within himself. Perhaps she might strike out at him. He'd seen her flinch towards her weapon. But his mind debated what he knew and what he supposed.

"I cannot understand your loyalty. Not after they so clearly let you down. It's clear that they didn't teach you well enough."

"You fail to understand their scheme. They adopt Forceful infants, or children young enough to indoctrinate. Perhaps the destitute who give up their young in some hope of a better life."

"But it's never out of benevolence. They hope to make slaves to their cult. Soldiers to fight and die where they point. Instructors of yet more youths brought in under these lies."

The anger in his eyes wasn't for her. It was for those who'd betrayed and lied to him. Those who'd held him back. Anyone who had hurt him in his past.

"I offer you a chance you realize your true strength. Your real potential. I don't make any false promises of 'peace and enlightenment'. I can't tell you how to make the galaxy whole. I only know how you can stop being a victim."

He extended a hand, palm up.

"Take my hand, Amani. The truth is not beautiful. But your mind is your own. I can show you, if you only have the courage."

Amani Serys

 

[Amani Serys]

Darth Argentum

“I-- They didn’t betray me. I would have died, if my master did give me a part of his life force when he did. They said as much.”

Her own memories of then were vague. The idea of them deceiving her seemed hard to swallow. That couldn't be true. She looked back to the Muun, “Even if the Jedi are guilty of that, the Sith are guilty of the same ten times over!”

Argentum’s words gave her pause. She had no reason to believe anything he said was true, but his convictions seemed so strong they bordered on believable nonetheless. He offered a hand to her, an offer to join him.

There was a long moment of nothing, before she finally spoke. “I can’t.” The padawan withdrew, “I won’t.” Even as she spoke otherwise, seemingly set in her ways, the deeper answer still clung all too clearly. The stunned silence. The wavering in her voice. The twitch in her fingers. Hesitation. Consideration. Even if for just a moment. But today, she denied him.

 

[Darth Argentum]

He let his hand hang a moment before letting it slowly fall. Yellow eyes became dull with disappointment. Amani Serys would surely feel the weight of his gaze as he studied her. Considering if her life was forfeit.

Argentum decided that, no, today would not be that day. There was still potential within her. The Dark Side was ever patient. A spider waiting in the shadows for one to trip it's webs.

Whether the young Mirialan knew it or not, she was now in a long game with him. The Muun could afford to wait. He finally smiled his familiar smile. One which did not touch his eyes.

"Very well," he said calmly "You won't for today, anyway. But do keep in mind our talk. Should you ever wish to speak again, Amani..."

He moved his right hand with deliberate slowness. To show her that he was reaching within his dark green cloak. Not for a weapon, but for something else. A business card with a holo contact sheet.

It would list him under an alias working for one of his many shell companies. She might contact him there, but if she chose to betray him, her masters would find nothing. He drew out the flimsi and showed it clearly. A slight touch of the Force floated it towards her.

"Take care, young one. Lannik is full of predators."

Another ghastly smile and he would seem to vanish before her very eyes. One of his spells to cloak him as he moved into the shadows and towards his waiting shuttle.

 

[Amani Serys]

Darth Argentum

Amani tensed up at the Sith’s glare, holding her breath in anticipation for what she was certain would be an attack, and flinching slightly as he reached into his cloak. Instead, he relented, offering a smile and a business card.

“I…” The padawan was at a loss for words, taking it as much out of confusion as curiosity. The Muun vanished with the darkness, the only trace of his being here, the card Amani held in her hand. She studied it carefully, deciding what to even do with the information she had been given. She should just toss it aside. Forget that a conversation even took place. Report him to the Jedi, and move on.

Instead, Amani pocketed the card. She tapped into her commlink, “EmTee, is the ship prepped?”

“Yes, Miss Amani! Are you on your way? I would have thought you would be here by now!”

“Um, yeah, don’t worry. I’m on my way. Just got a little… sidetracked.” With that, she took one last look at the dark forest beyond, spinning on her heels back into the direction of her ship. Why did she take it? Amani did not even try to find an answer for herself. It was time to go.