Death Brings Something New

[Cedric Dorn]

[member="Kiber Dorn"]

Time was drawing near.

Thule had been promised to him. He would have the forces he needed, the navies and the backing of a nation. The planet would be well protected against invasion, but first he needed to seize it. For that he would need something, something that was already his in all but possession. His hand twitched slightly at his side, his heavy footfalls pressing into the deck of the large transport ship that he had seized.

It sat empty of the living, all but one individual whom he had convinced to take him where he had wanted to go, that one individual, and two Dorns.

One was Cedric, the other his Cousin.

Kiber lay unconscious within the cargo hold of the transport, dead to the world and nearly existence itself. Cedric slowly wandered back to where his cousin lay, heavy boots slamming into the ground as he neared his slumbering relative. His voice would boom, but not within the transport, instead it would resound within his cousins sleeping mind.

“Too long, Cousin.” A scratch over a chalkboard. “Too long have you been under the influences of that witch.”

He stopped, standing over his cousin, his hand reaching out, black flames sailing over his palm. “It is time I remind you why our family is to be feared.”

Gnarled fingers twisted, thumb pressing against index finger. A loud snap resounded, and his cousin would feel a wakening pulse.

 

[Kiber Dorn]

Ding dong bing bong, ding dong bing bong.

The doorbell to the mansion chimed, sounded like an antiquated clock even to those who could hear it from outside.

It was there that Kiber Dorn stood, in a white t-shirt, beige shorts and a huttball cap. Inexplicably he was holding a pizza box which within didn't actually hold spice but surprisingly (given who he was) an actually pizza. The man knew the order, spicy meatlover, topped with ground bantha, gizka bits and sliced ropo, all smothered in Flamin' Hot Krayt Dragon Sauce®.

The door opened, revealing a very bored housewife, so-scantily clad in a practically see-through nightgown that left almost nothing to the imagination, it also was evident that she wasn't really a woman that ate pizza.

Although, the order itself gave away the intent.

She smirked, tutting softly at Kiber, who stood there ogling the woman without shame. “They said 'thirty minutes or it's free',” the housewife purred (which was a really odd sentence to purr) before turning her back and sauntering back into the grand mansion.

He of course, knew the scenario, he had seen the scenario many many times before this, so of course, with a slick grin upon his face Dorn followed the woman into her not-so-humble abode, still holding the meatlover's box.

That wasn't all that the man knew, however. Given his horrifying visage, the blackened skin upon his face, the ominous tribal tattoos that decorated such corruption could have only meant one thing. That this was in fact a dream, no bored and wealthy mistresses would take such a visible freakshow onto the kitchen counter but hey, at the very least he would enjoy the dream before it ended.

Alas, it was not to be.

“Too long, Cousin.” A scratch over a chalkboard. “Too long have you been under the influences of that witch.”

“Frig! Not now, man!”

The nightgown was shed, as his mind's perception over the dream was shaken by that terrifying spectre of a voice. Still, the dream continued to play and she looked to him with a coy smile upon her wicked features, “Oh dear, I've got nothing to tip you with...but...”

“But?” Kiber responded almost desperately still clinging to the dream as much as he could.

“But it is time I remind you why our family is to be feared.”

Then so suddenly he woke up, a familiar ache of floor sleeping creeping up upon his back and the hopeless Dorn looked up to the wretched face of Cedric looming above him like the destroyer of all dreams.

“SHET! WHAT DID YOU DO THAT FO-”

The initial reaction didn't give time to realise his proper surroundings. This instinct only kicked in mid-sentence. Why was he in a cargo hold? Why was his monsterous cousin standing over him?!

“-d-did you kidnap me?!”

---

[member="Cedric Dorn"]

 

[Cedric Dorn]

[member="Kiber Dorn"]

Kidnapping.

What a petty word. Cedric didn't consider it to be kidnapping, her hardly considered Kiber to be worthy of kidnapping. This was something completely different, this was simply returning his family to its proper place in this galaxy. The Dorn name was to be feared. People were supposed to cower before them, terror was supposed to pour through them.

That was the way it was supposed to be.

Yet Kiber was ruining that.

He was under the thumb of some witch. Not even a true Sith. His face twitched with anger at that thought, emotions of rage and agony tore through him. For a few seconds he considered simply eviscerating his cousin, but now...no. He needed to fix Kiber, he needed to make him strong and powerful.

That was what he had to do. His back stiffened slightly, red muscled skin seemed to flare for a second, then he looked down at his Cousin.

Cedric reached down and grasped his cousin by the scruff of his neck, lifting him like a kitten off the floor and placing him onto his feet. It seemed so easy for him, as if his cousin weighed next to nothing. He looked down at Kiber, scowling in his odd little way, emotion carrying through his eyes.

“Follow.” Was all he said before he walked passed Kiber and down the ramp.

 

[Kiber Dorn]

Maybe it was time to start hitting the gym.

He was almost starting to get bothered by the amount of times that he was getting manhandled in his day-to-day life. By men, women, probably children if they had the chance, but only those super zealous children that had shed the joy of being young to reach the realms of reality.

His very handsome (snerk) cousin picked him off the ground and placed him onto unsteady feet, a slight throb at the back of his head making itself very aware. How had he been snatched away anyhow? A big club and a burlap sack? Kiber couldn't for the life remember but it probably had something to do with that particular source of pain.

Follow. Never much of a conversationalist was dearest Cedric, but follow where? It was an ominous request but one that the glitbiter had to follow.

Going down the ramp Kiber gingerly prodded at the back of his head, trying to find some source of blunt force trauma but instead only found his own crusty hair. Crusty with blood or just terribly unwashed? Who knew.

“...we don't happen to be goin' to a strip joint, are we?”

---

[member="Cedric Dorn"]

 

[Cedric Dorn]

[member="Kiber Dorn"]

He stepped without care or worry, his feet crushing into soft grass covered soil.

A small patch of green about the Sith Lord seemed to whither away, blades of bright and luscious grass immediately folding down into a deathly beige color. It seemed to shift and die, falling into immediate state of corruption as the Sith Lord walked upon it.

Before them, perhaps two hundred meters down a large hill lay a village. It seemed to be small town, a lake sitting by it. There was fires within the windows, small glowing bulbs of light that showed silhouetted figures passing over them. Cedric pointed a single gnarled finger towards the village, the darkside rushing over his muscles in a strange crackle of lightning.

“No.” He told his cousin. “That is where were going.”

It didn't seem like the type of place anyone would want to go, especially a Sith Lord, especially a Sith Lord like Cedric Dorn who was only concerned with one thing. So then why were they here?

Only time would tell.

 

[Kiber Dorn]

Come to think of it, how would the Dorn Cousin Stripper Experience play out? Two very gnarly lookin' dudes wanting to oggle some premium (or not-so-premium) bottoms. Force no, Cedric would probably slaughter the strippers for being lesser beings, for being pathetic. Kiber could picture it clearly in his mind, red arcs of lighting frying the poor sods, turning supple flesh crispy and a good day out into an awkward experience.

He observed with those emerald eyes the aura of decay that surrounded his cousin, wilting the very life around him. That was some serious bad ju-ju right there. It brought about a slight inkling of a notion within Kiber's head that perhaps he should have been there for Cedric, as a little guidance of humanity upon his road to dark powers.

Dorn almost felt guilty for running away. Should have stuck by family. Such a thought almost made the man vomit but the notion was still there.

Could have helped him.

Could have helped this man, this monster, this creature of similar blood, the very same one that had berated, beaten and disfigured him. His blackened face twisted as if Kiber had come across a rotten smell upon their descent down the hill.

“So...uh...how you been doin', cuz?”

There was an awkward pause in the air as he scratched the back of his head, observing the approaching village.

“You doin' good?”

---

[member="Cedric Dorn"]

 

[Cedric Dorn]

[member="Kiber Dorn"]

Cedric didn't bother replying to his cousin.

Small talk was not his specialty, had never been, now it was merely a thing that brought annoyance. When Kiber spoke, Cedric found that urge of wanting to impale his cousin slowly return. He wanted to grasp him by the throat and end him in one fell swoop. A scowl pulled at his face, muscles twitching, his hand tightening at his side.

Rage was so difficult to control.

Bright yellow seared across the village as it quickly approached, his gaze falling upon a man standing in a nearby field.

They would be the harbingers of his rage, they would be the bulwark consumed by it. He straightened slightly, then stuck out a hand before his cousin. The two men stopped upon the measly path that Cedric had begun to carve for the two of them, the plants around them began to wilt and die, and Cedric stiffened slightly as he felt power drain into him.

His finger scrapped across the air, pointing towards the man. “Bring him to me.”

 

[Kiber Dorn]

He was really truly terrible at small talk.

Softly, Kiber sighed and his expression shifted to one of mild constipation as his attempt at conversation was completely ignored. Sure, that's fine, don't talk back. See if I ever ask you how you're doing again! Of course Cedric would probably prefer that scenario, so his thoughts had to be revised. Yeah, actually I'm gonna ask you how you're doing all the live long day, buddy. Better get used to it.

There was a pause for concern, as his cousin ordered him to bring a man in a field to him. The chances of the purpose for such being very nefarious was high and while he came from a long line of sketchy people, who associated with Sith and while he himself was associated with none-too-savoury cultists….

...wait, what was the point again?

“As you wish, Massa,” Kiber mocked, doing his best impression of a gungan slave as he made his way into the field where the (now alarmed) man stood.

“What up, dude?!” he called out with a grin upon his blacked face, teeth very much highlighted and somewhat menacing without meaning to be. The man stepped backwards, gaze shifting between the approaching Kiber and the menacing Cedric in the background.

“We're from Coruscant Capital Circus and we're in a bit of pickle, if ya get me,” he continued trying to be as non-alarming as possible, “We're totes lost and need some directions. I'm one of the clowns, y'see and my buddy over there,” Kiber lowered his voice, shifting to hushed tones, “well, he's a fire eater but he had a bit of an accident. So uh, don't mention the face.”

Before the man could back off Kiber had already made the approach and had wrapped an arm around his shoulder, escorting him back to Cedric while continuing to blatantly lie about the circus.

“We'll hook you up with some free tix if you just help us with the directions, yo."

---

[member="Cedric Dorn"]

 

[Cedric Dorn]

[member="Kiber Dorn"]

The minute the man got within arms reach of Cedric, it was over.

The reaction wasn't instant, but the twisting of the innocents face told a tale of pain, agony, and change. The man would buckle and scream, he would fall to the ground and cry, curling into a ball as agony ravaged his entire body. Cedric said nothing, he did nothing, he simply stood and watched the man fall beneath his cousins grasp.

A twitch ran through him.

The man's skin began to grow pale, his veins turned black, the eyes within his socket turned a stark white. Blood began to pour from his eyes, and he screamed loud enough to tear his vocal cords. Pure and utter agony ravaged the man, and Cedric simply watched.

“Witness this, Cousin.” His voice echoed within Kiber's mind. “Watch the weak become strong.”

The man began to change. His skin turned near translucent, his veins popped one by one, his fingers became gnarled and twisted while his hair turned jet black.

Slowly he changed.

 

[Kiber Dorn]

Kiber immediately stepped back, his façade of friendliness slipping into a grim line as the man soon fell to the ground in evident agony. Safe to say he wasn't exactly elated at this turn of events, of course, he knew that whatever Cedric was going to do, it wasn't going to be pleasant, but still…

Sorry, man.

It was uncomfortable to watch, seeing the humanity leave a man in such a terrible way, through blood and screams. Looking away from the grotesque scene Kiber looked to his cousin, face absent of his crooked grin but instead pointed features sat stony and serious.

Was that really his cousin? Was that really Cedric Dorn, the handsome man of ambition who had roughed him up years prior? Kiber wasn't so sure.

Doesn't look like strength to me.

He reached up to touch his own face, feeling the cold, craggy blackened flesh beneath the surface of his fingertips. The nerve endings, he found, had been destroyed, leaving his own face dead to sensation. Truth be told, it was handy given how often Kiber received a fist to the face but it left him wondering:

How many lives would his cousin wind up corrupting?

“What...” he sighed, face still grim, emerald eyes staring Cedric down, “...what have you done to him?”

---

[member="Cedric Dorn"]

 

[Cedric Dorn]

[member="Kiber Dorn"]

The man twitched and cried, until he suddenly stopped.

It appeared that the man had been turned into a corpse. He did not move, he did not make a sound, he did nothing. Cedric looked down at him, as if he was expecting something. Then slowly he turned his gaze upon his cousin. His bright yellow eyes stared daggers into Kiber, though there was no threat within his look, not this time anyway. He stared silently, then slowly shifted back towards the man.

“I showed him truth.” Cedric said as though it were explanation enough.

“The truth that all those who wish to be strong must see.” Again he was vague, yet he gestured towards the man who slowly began to stir. “The darkness within. That abyss that eats at the soul. That is where true strength comes from. Those who realize this...”

He trailed off as slowly the man began to rise.

His hair was black, his face eyeless, his skin pale. His hands had grown to claws and his entire body seemed more muscular, yet frail. He rose to stand in front of Cedric and Kiber, his lips blackened but unmoving. He made no sound or movement, simply looked at Cedric. “Find peace.”

 

[Kiber Dorn]

For once Kiber didn't back down, opting to stare right into those yellow pits of Chaos instead of diverting his gaze. Surprisingly courageous given that Cedric likely could have destroyed him with nothing more than a thought.

It just felt, wrong.

Rich words coming from a man who was known to deal spice, might not have been the most direct way to ruin and end lives but still…he had operated under a pretence of helping people, showing them pleasure and how to truly live but…

...what was the difference between that and Cedric's truth?

The man, who had since stopped screaming and writhing rose to his feet, no longer a man and Kiber felt well and truly sick. Gaze shifted between his cousin and the monster, before finally settling upon the former. No, this didn't sit right.

“No, this isn't right, man. You can't do this to people,” he said, hesitation creeping in as he did something brave for possibly the first time, “You can't. I….I….won't let you, Cedric.”

---

[member="Cedric Dorn"]

 

[Cedric Dorn]

[member="Kiber Dorn"]

Cedric looked over to his cousin.

The muscles that had once controlled his eyebrows twitched slightly, as though he were trying to raise them. Surprise? No. More like condemnation.

Cedric didn't like being second guessed, specifically by his cousin whom he had repeatedly taught lessons to. It seemed however that Kiber still had yet to learn, that he did not understand what was happening, that he didn't quite get what exactly Cedric was accomplishing here, what greatness he was bringing to these people.

The Sith Lord turned to his cousin.

“You won't let me, Cousin?” His voice was a growled rasp. “These people as you call them are worthless. They live aimless lives. They wander and do nothing. I give them purpose I give them strength. They will have a place with me, they will have a home with me. They will stand alongside me as I rule Thule. Without me, they will continue to revel in their worthlessness.”

 

[Kiber Dorn]

He winced as Cedric's ghastly attentions were turned towards him. What was he expecting? To stand up to his cousin and for him to go, 'Oh, okay, let me repent and turn to the path of righteousness.' Yeah right, actions have consequences, boyo.

“N-no, I won't,” he repeated, trying to stand his ground up against the Sith Lord.

His blackened brow creased, as he tried to find both the courage and the words to stand up to Cedric's horrific plot. Difficult to do, the fight and flight within him screamed for flight. Running was what he had always done, flight just came so naturally.

“Who are you to decide worth, Cedric? You...you're not a God, you can't play with people's lives like this! They had purpose before you….you're just….you're just...”

He pointed towards the twisted monstrosity that once stood as a man, frustration visible in his stare, still directed towards his cousin.

“What about him!? Can he feel!? Can he even think?!” Kiber didn't expect that he could, and that Cedric would even care but at this point words were just bursting out of his mouth. “This isn't right, cuz, and you know it. There's gotta be another way we can do this, I'll help you with Thule.

But not like this.”

---

[member="Cedric Dorn"]

 

[Cedric Dorn]

Cedric watched his cousin. At least he was standing up for something, at least he wasn't a simpering little fool already curled up into a ball ready for his beating. That much at least was progress, that much at least meant that Kiber had some fight in him, even if he idiotically chose to fight for the wrong thing.

Briefly Cedric thought of the last bit of humanity within him.

His sister.

He believed if Evelynn had been here, in her full and proper form she would have supported him in his actions. After all Thule would have been her home as well, and he was simply doing what needed to be done in order to regain that home. Evelynn would have understood, she would have helped him. That last human remnant of Cedric Dorn yearned for the companionship of his sister, someone who would understand him.

Cedric didn't tell Kiber that though, no, instead he simply looked down at his cousin. His face twitched, shifted slightly as he looked down at Kiber. There was no lack of disgust in his bright yellow eyes, twin suns staring down.

Without a single word Cedric reached up and grasped the rebreather on his face. Slowly his fingers tightened, twisting until a loud crack could be heard. The rebreather would break into pieces, and slowly Cedric pulled the apparatus from his face, removing it and tearing it away until it was naught but small black pieces within his palm.

His face revealed, his teeth gnashing, he spoke to his cousin. “Kiber.”

The dread within his voice was enough to cause the creature Cedric had birthed to back away slightly, the filth that spilled from his tongue caused life around them to fade and whither.

“I am a Dorn.” The grass around them began to fade. “I decide what is right. Thule will be taken, and it will be taken my way.”

Cedric looked down at his cousin, energy once again pooling within his palm. His hand reached up, slowly, like a viper tracing a path towards its pray. A whisper began to escape from his lipless maw, a resounding chant that seemed to fill the area around them. "Allow me to make that clear."

 

[Kiber Dorn]

He held his ground.

Was he terrified? Absolutely. The man wasn't exactly Kiber's number one fan, in fact the only reason that he still stood today was because of his Force-forsaken surname. That didn't grant immunity however and were he to stand in the midst of Cedric's path it was likely that death would be the result.

Family or not.

He could feel that decrepit yellow gaze boring into his skull, the hairs beginning to rise upon the back of his neck. The rebreather was crushed, revealing the hideous face that lurked beneath. Features gaunt, flesh exposed, it was the stuff of horror stories and bad trips, instinctively the very sight caused Kiber to take a step back.

“Look at yourself, man...” he pleaded, blackened face twisted in a combination of fear and sorrow. What had happened to that handsome man that had kicked seven shades of shet out of him before? Sure he was a jerk, but he wasn't a monster. “...you're barely even human.”

He was too late.

The dark power growing thick in the air around them was difficult to ignore, the chant filling Kiber's head speaking of horrific things to come. Fight. Or. Flight. Swallowing his terror he stumbled towards his cousin, knowing that he had to interrupt whatever it was that Cedric was doing.

The man moved to try and grab the Sith's hands, while those gangly legs moved to try and trip his cousin up, it was all that he could think to do.

---

[member="Cedric Dorn"]

 

[Cedric Dorn]

[member="Kiber Dorn"]

Cedric's hand moved like a viper.

It was unexpected from the decrepit Sith Lord, seemingly impossible, his bony fingers wrapped around Kiber's throat, his hand would scorch and burn in place, leaving no physical mark but causing pain untold beneath the skin as the darkside warped around him. Cedric said nothing for a few moments, his chant continuing, his teeth chattering slightly as they gnashed against one another, until finally his tongue ceased its movement, and suddenly everything became still.

"Human?" He spat the word. "We are above humanity, Cousin. We are Dorns. The blood that runs through my veins...and yours..."

There was a pause in that, as if he was disgusted to admit it. "..Elevates us above the common rabble. It allows us to do things others could not, it allows us to live and thrive in ways that are unimaginable. It allows me to do this."

A surge of power would run through Kiber from Cedrics hand, a dark burning that would settled upon his chest like a wildfire tearing through a forest. Black inky lines would carve their way across Kiber's chest, settling in deep and digging into his flesh until they were pressed into place as though he had been branded.

 

[Kiber Dorn]

Instant regret.

Cedric was better than him in every aspect (besides social functions). He was stronger, faster, more learned in the Force. When Kiber picked fight over flight he had picked the wrong option, but there was no chance of running now, not like there was chance before, not with his lung capacity and his cousin's abilities.

The hand around his neck felt like fire, he shouted and yelped, trying to kick out Cedric's knees but it was fruitless, the man was too strong for him.

They were both Dorns but they were cut from different cloth. He always talked about the family, about status and power but he was a man born from a powerful Sith Sorceress, whereas Kiber came from the dud-side of the family, the losers, the hanger-ons. Where Cedric was born for greatness, he was a statistical anomaly. Had the family known about this monsters existence they would have likely hailed him as the second coming.

Any further thoughts of this were cut off as a rush of the dark side crashed into his chest, rendering the burning hand around his throat as forgettable. Kiber howled, nerves screaming out in agony as his entire world was turned into naught but pain and horror. It was nothing like he had ever felt before, after all Dorn had known pain, he had been knocked across the galaxy by this, that and the next person but this was different.

It was malevolent at its core, near indescribable.

His eyes rolled into the back of his skull, revealing bloodshot whites alongside his gaping, screaming maw.

Everything turned to black.

---

[member="Cedric Dorn"]

 

[Cedric Dorn]

[member="Kiber Dorn"]

Cedric let his cousin drop to the ground.

The Sith Lord stared for a few moments, observing as the black lines finished etching across Kiber's chest. There was no hint of emotion within him, no pleasure at having harmed his cousin, no distaste at what he had said. Instead, Cedric simply stared down at one of his last remaining family members, watching him with an odd curiosity, as though he were a boy with a magnifying glass watching a bug crawl across the ground.

After a minute had passed, the Sith turned his attention to the creature standing before him.

"Gather the villagers." His voice was a gnashing rasp that grated the ears. "They will share your fate."

The creature did not react.

If there was remorse or pain, if there was a hint of humanity, if there was anything left of the man that Cedric had transformed, then the creature did not show it. Instead it simply turned on its heel, pale skin flashing in the orange light, its steps certain and its stride long.

Soon, screams echoed in the valley.

 

[Kiber Dorn]

The darkness was suffocating.

Another dream, and yet it was nothing. There was no backdrop, no figments of imagination to interact with, he wasn't entire sure that he himself was there. All there was, was emotion. It resonated around him like the same chant that had left Cedric's chattering maw.

He must have been there. It was so hard to breathe, hard to think even. All he could feel was the roar of malevolent emotion sat burning in his chest. Burning hatred pounded as if it had formed the heart within flesh and blood, chaos clouded out any other semblance of thought that tried and failed in vein to exist.

It was almost as if he was about to burst, and he did not know what malice would come spitting forth from the cavity.

Slowly Kiber came to life once more, the burning upon his chest still resonating but at least now he could breathe. His eyes came to face the stars of the night, an eerie stillness above in the beauty of the sky. What time was it? How long had he been out for?

He sat up and immediately wish he hadn't. Cedric had been busy.

Gathered around was presumably the rest of the village, all no longer human, all the same deformed husks like the first man before. Not only that, but hideous black lines snaked across his own still burning chest. A definite cause for concern. His attempt to stand up to his cousin had been a drastic failure and had in fact only served to worsen circumstance. Remaining sat upon the ground, Kiber looked up to Cedric, features clearly pained.

“What did you do?” he asked quietly, evidently not talking about the villagers.

---

[member="Cedric Dorn"]