Private Erasing the Past

[Darth Ahriman]

Darth Ahriman​

---

Target: Caedyn Arenais.
Location: Ervosa Civilian Space Station.

---

The truth behind the creation of Valen had been the greatest insult to the Sith Knight, far greater than one he could have imagined when roaming Arcadia-N-30 alongside Zeptepi Zambrano ; He had envisioned the likely death of his family left behind by the Disciples of Typhojem, his former captors. Instead, he had learned that not only did he not have a family to call his own, but that his very reason for existing was due to the whims of another Sith turned traitor to the Empire, having created Valen using the genetics of a former Jedi Master and once a long-time enemy of the Sith Empire.

Having slain Darth Veneer, Valen had achieved his revenge and learned the true nature of his being. He had not only killed a rogue Sith Lord but also learned the identity of the original man for which he had been cloned after, Veiere Arenais. Furthermore, he had learned about the former Jedi Master through one Asha Vynea and her mysterious ability to travel the waves of time, invoking visions of the past through control over the Force itself. Through her words and wisdom, the children of Veiere Arenais had been named and one of the said children had incidentally been the cause of his release from slavery under the rogue cult.

It was like a sick and twisted joke and had only served to disgust him further...Caedyn Arenais had rescued Valen and brought him to the Silver Rest, the heart of the Order of the Silver Jedi where Valen had been allowed to recuperate. In hindsight, it appeared that Caedyn hoped Valen would have trained as a Jedi, but instead he had fled during nightfall and sought out the Sith Empire for answers that the Jedi refused to give him. His training would begin, and so too would his quest for vengeance against the Disciples of Typhojem and Darth Veneer. Their next meeting would not be so civil.

"Master Arenais,

I need your help. I've attached my coordinates. Please, I don't know who else to turn to.

Valen."

It was a simple transmission sent out to Caedyn Arenais in the form of a data package, text without context but signed so that the Jedi would know who wrote it. Darth Ahriman knew that the Jedi would feel obligated to respond, there was a connection there that Valen had not known back then, but now understood that Caedyn had been all too aware and afraid to tell him the truth. It was a mistake that would cost him his life.

 

[Caedyn Arenais]

Caedyn Arenais had been aboard "The Vagabond" Heavy Patrol Cruiser when the message had reached him signed off by the boy that had been rescued on the world of Arcadia-N-30 some years ago now. At the time he and his Padawan had been on a fairly standard assignment investigating rumours of Darksiders within Silver Space. What had started out as a ghost hunt had resulted in a revelation most shocking, the discovery of a clone of Caedyn's own father Veiere Arenais, yet at the young age of fourteen and enslaved by a cult of sith origin.

For a year, Caedyn had tried to coach the lost teenager, encouraging him to remain with the Order of the Silver Jedi and hiding the truth from him until the Jedi Knight had felt the boy would be ready to receive the truth without becoming a further danger to himself and those around him...-Yet one-morning Caedyn had returned to meet with Valen, only to find that the boy had taken transport off of Kashyyyk and the trail had been lost there.

Sometime later, Caedyn had run into the path of Alina Tremiru who had disclosed that Valen had found the company of the Sith Empire, escaping the reach of the Jedi Knight and being lost to a much darker path than the Jedi Knight had ever wished on the boy...-So when the transmission came through to the Vagabond, the Jedi Knight knew he had little choice but to answer the call for help. Despite the likelihood of it being a trap, he knew that were the risk to Valen's well-being legitimate, he wouldn't be able to live with the knowledge that he could have helped the boy yet refused to do so.

---

Ervosa Civilian Space Station.

The Repertoire snapped back into real space with the Space-Station coming into view of the vessel's cockpit, Caedyn seated beside his co-pilot Lexas, a service droid that handled the controls of the ship while the former Jedi Knight kept a close eye on the Repertoire's sensors searching for any sign of an ambush from the Sith-Imperial Fleet.

A quiet sigh passed under his breath as Caedyn slowly sat back into his chair, eyes closing and reaching out into the flow of the Force seeking guidance and calming his nerves. How long had it been since he had last seen the young Valen? What kind of influence could the Sith Empire have had on the boy, he who had been so emotionally unstable and fighting to remember his place in the Galaxy. Time and time again, Caedyn had wondered whether keeping the truth from Valen had been the right decision; it had been supported by the members of the Silver Assembly at the time, but ultimately could have avoided the boys absconding from Kashyyyk in search of the very answers they had held from him...

"We appear to be getting no response from the station, Master" Lexas informed Caedyn, pulling the man from his thoughts and back into the present.

"Take us in anyway Lex. I don't imagine we'll see any resistance landing in one of their hangars" Caedyn replied softly, his brows furrowed at the news of the space-stations comm's silence. It wasn't a good sign.

"Are you certain this is wise, Master?" The droid asked while guiding the ship in towards one of the Station's Hangars as instructed.

"Not at all..." Caedyn answered the droid apprehensively, "But this is something I need to see through" he added with a sense of finality to the discussion.

 

[Darth Ahriman]

Darth Ahriman​

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Target: Caedyn Arenais.
Location: Ervosa Civilian Space Station.

---

Darth Ahriman had sensed the arrival of the Jedi Knight, there where Caedyn would only find the remains of dead crewmen, dockyard workers and the evidence of heavy blasterfire. Sigma-Five-Delta had arrived aboard the Space Station alongside the Sith Inquisitor and under the orders of their Lord, had exterminated all who had stood in their way towards the central hub of the dormant space giant.

Several of the Sith-Imperial Troopers seated within the security control centre observed the Jedi Knight and immediately closed the blast doors that would keep Caedyn's starship from leaving. Ahead of Caedyn's path, all doors leading towards the heart of the Station would unlock and open, while all other paths would be sealed and locked to ensure that the Jedi Knight would have no choice but to move on towards Valen's location.

​

When the Jedi Knight would inevitably reach him, Darth Ahriman would be found kneeling on the far side of the factory floor, the facility which by all appearance seemed built for the creation of droids. Machines designed for the operating of iron and metal work all in motion, controlled by an automated and autonomous system that left no presence of sentient life within the vicinity; a VI operated construction line, shared only by the Sith Inquisitor who had waited and drawn upon the darkness that surrounded him; and the Jedi Knight who had answered the call so predictably.

 

[Caedyn Arenais]

Not shortly after Caedyn Arenais had left the shelter of the Repertoire, he turned sharply at the sound of bulkheads shifting above, the hangar bay doors descending down behind his ship and darkening the entire bay significantly without the light of the stars to illuminate his would-be exit from what was indeed looking like a trap by this point.
With a furrowed brow and a great look of disappointment, the Je'daii Knight turned slowly back towards the end of the vast Hangar, searching for the entrance which would lead him further into the facility. There were bodies sprawled out across the surface of the vast section, none of which were moving of showing signs of life. "Valen, what have you done?" Caedyn whispered under his breath as he slowly walked away from the ship, his right hand moving to detach the Armistice Lightsaber from his utility belt, now feeling the need to be on his guard more so than before.

In some way, Caedyn had hoped to be wrong about this meeting being a likely trap by the boy that he had once rescued and cared for, but with the news of Valen's joining the Sith Empire revealed by Alina Tremiru some years ago now had evidently led to a bias growing between what could have been a far more peaceful and fulfilling life for the younger man.
Walking with the knowledge of Valen's background, Caedyn had a feeling that the young boy's ambitions to discover his origins were partially responsible for the Je'daii's summons there today. Had Valen learned that Caedyn and the Order of the Silver Jedi had withheld the nature of Valen's creation? Had he discovered that he had been cloned using the DNA of Caedyn's father, Veiere Arenais? What then was he walking into? Did Valen have what it takes to kill the Je'daii, and how far would Caedyn be forced to go in order to leave...

The Corridors were dark, save for the emergency lighting, red lights slowly flashing in varying intensity, a sign of the space station's initial distress. It was unclear whether there had been a full crew aboard when the Sith had arrived, and how many had been injured or killed in the hope that Valen could have led Caedyn there. The Hangar was evidence enough to tell that Valen had been willing to take lives for the sake of trapping his target, a testament to the man, no longer just a boy, who changed for the worst since his joining the Sith. The Dark Side was strong throughout the Station, the Force flowing densely around Caedyn as he sought the route that had been laid out for him. All doors were sealed along either side of the central corridor, leaving only the open accessway directly ahead, limiting the Je'daii's options and ultimately forcing him to walk right into the trap that had been laid out for him.

Stepping out into a larger room, Caedyn's eyes fixated on the lone figure seemingly meditating across from him. It wasn't the meditation of a Jedi, but common for the Sith to practice upon their knees, a show of submission before their Masters and those superior in rank. The Empire had always worked in hierarchies, reminding those below the circle of the leadership of their place on the ground. This was Caedyn's experience, at the least.
Turning his gaze to the rest of the room, the Je'daii Knight studied the construction line of droids that worked to the left and the right sides of the facility, droids not made for the service of sentient life but rather built with formidable strength and armed with blasters; they were built for war. Sighing under his breath quietly, the Je'daii stepped further on into the room, finding the courage and seeking out the wisdom of the Force to give him the strength and peace of mind to prepare him for whatever Valen had planned.

"I'm here Valen..." Caedyn called forth, "After all this time, why only now have you tried to reach me?".

Darth Ahriman