Humble Beginnings

[Nassus Nell]

[member="Bond"]


Nassus had been at the temple for some time now. He decided while he awaited his new Master to turn up, he'd hit a few things. So he hit things to occupy himself for a while, until he tired out, which had taken some time. Now, he was sitting in the center of the training area, silent. Waiting.

 

[Raijin Arashi]

So, here was another apprentice. Come to think of it, he would be the only Sith apprentice I had. If I taught him well enough, I could possibly mold him into a great Knight. One who fought for the right reasons. Our order was too permeated by those who were blindly loyal to the Emperor because of the rank, rather than the benefits that the citizens of our Empire reaped.

I stepped into the training arena, a bit of nostalgia from my own training washing over me. I used to love coming here, except when people mistook me for a training droid. They usually only made that mistake once. But this time, there was only one acolyte here. Mine. He seemed to be slightly surprised by my appearance, and by the fact that I was a droid wearing clothes, but he wisely remained silent.

"Hi there, Nassus. You're going to be my apprentice. Good to meet you."

[member="Nassus Nell"]

 

[Nassus Nell]

[member="Bond"]

When he heard footsteps, Nassus instantly shot up. He was, of course expecting his master, and while what he wasn't expecting was the droid that greeted him, he knew that looks could be deceiving. As he turned completely toward the robot, he heard it speak. He bowed after he listened to it, "Hello... erm.. it is good to meet you too... ah, Master."

Nassus stares Bond down for a few seconds, before turning back to the center of the training arena. "Is there anything I need to do before we uh... begin?"

 

[Raijin Arashi]

I laughed, an odd, metallic, sound.

"You thought I asked you here to fight? If I wanted to watch you fight, I could have sent you to the proving grounds, like the Lords do. Or I could have lead you on some merry chase in the underlevels like Kezeroth did to his rookies."

I pulled out a box of sugary-looking candy, and some whiskey.

"Here. Sit down. Eat, and I'll talk."

[member="Nassus Nell"]

 

[Nassus Nell]

[member="Bond"]

Nassus was confused, to say the least. He wasn't expecting food and casual conversation, but then again, he had no idea how these things usually went down. He definitely wasn't going to turn the offer down, mainly because free food is free food, but also because conversation was nice. He didn't have enough of it nowadays.

He shrugged, sitting in front of his master and in front of the box. "I'll eat and listen then..." He reached inside the box, going for the candy. He wanted to be sober for whatever his master was about to say...

 

[Raijin Arashi]

I nodded, slightly amused by the acolyte's confusion. A nice conversation over a drink definitely wasn't how acolytes were typically introduced to their masters. But I'm not the typical Sith.

"So, Nassus, I am Bond. I'd rather not be referred to as 'master'. Just 'Bond', or 'sir', if you're feeling formal. My lightsaber is called 'Diamond'."

I held out the long-handled weapon, with the spike at the pommel. It was the best weapon I had used in my life, and I loved it.

"As you can see, my weapon is not similar to that of most Sith. Diamond is... different. Fueled by my dead ancestors, and forged from crystal. Basically, the lightsaber is a mirror of my existence. Crystal and metal, diamond and gold."

[member="Nassus Nell"]

 

[Nassus Nell]

[member="Bond"]

Nassus looks up at Bond before shoving a piece of candy below his mask. He turns his attention to his master's lightsaber, noticing it's oddities compared to other, more generic lightsabers. His eyebrows raised at the mention of the lightsaber being 'fueled' by his dead ancestors. Nassus cleared his throat, "If you don't mind my asking... what exactly are you? I mean... your race, I didn't mean to eh.. offend." Nassus bows his head slightly, before shoving another piece of candy under his mask, keeping his eyes up, trained on his Master.

 

[Raijin Arashi]

I shook my head, laughing again.

"No, no, don't worry about it. I'm a Shard. A crystalline sentient that is capable of merging bodies and consciousnesses together by a symbiotic bond. So, basically, I have dead Force-sensitive beings powering my lightsaber."

[member="Nassus Nell"]

 

[Nassus Nell]

[member="Bond"]

When Bond spoke of what he was and what was in his lightsaber, something seemed to click in Nassus. He didn't know why, but there was something honorable about carrying your dead ancestors with you into battle, at least to him. Nassus shoved another candy under his mask, swallowing before speaking, "So it's kind of like... honorable right? To carry your ancestors into battle with you?"

 

[Raijin Arashi]

I shrugged, and leaned back in my chair.

"Never thought of it that way. It was more of a sentimental or convenience thing, on my part. But I rather like the way you think. A crystal wielding a weapon of crystal is rather poetic."

I leaned forward, and rested my hands on my knees.

"You ever ride a Nexu, Nassus?"

[member="Nassus Nell"]

 

[Nassus Nell]

[member="Bond"]

Nassus stares up at his master, somewhat pleased that he felt Nassus was... poetic. He wouldn't ever have imagined that he would be thought of as poetic. When Bond asked him about a Nexu, Nassus drew a blank. "Sorry, a what?"

 

[Raijin Arashi]

"A Nexu. Big kitty cat, basically. Sharp claws, four eyes, and a hell of a temper, in the wild."

I would have grinned if I could, but I settled for spinning my chair around, again.

"I ride them in battle, sometimes, and I believe I will teach you how, too."

[member="Nassus Nell"]

 

[Nassus Nell]

[member="Bond"]

"A giant Sith on a giant, short tempered cat.." Nassus chuckled. He wasn't regretting contacting Bond to see if he would train him. Whiskey, candy, beast riding? He made a helluva pick. He seemed pretty cool too, and he was very intrigued as to what else Bond could possibly teach him.

 

[Raijin Arashi]

I chuckled, and nodded.

"Yes, I imagine that we'll have to get a rather big one for you, eh?"

I spun in my chair again, and looked at Nassus again.

"So, what do you know of the Force? Don't give me Lightside/Darkside stuff. I don't believe in that."

[member="Nassus Nell"]

 

[Nassus Nell]

[member="Bond"]

Nassus stayed silent for a small bit of time. He looked down at the ground for a little, thinking. "I uh... I'm pretty sure it binds everything in the Galaxy together. That's uh... pretty much the extent of.. what I really know of it."

Nassus cleared his throat, staying silent once he was finished answering.

 

[Raijin Arashi]

I seized upon the statement about the Force binding the galaxy together.

"But it doesn't. The survival of the Yuuzahn Vong, for example, after their race was cut off from the Force, shows this to be wrong. And the Ssi-Ruuvi. They're Force-blind down to the last scaly bastard of the lot."

I shook my head, and looked at Nassus again.

"What I really meant was, what kinds of powers do you know? What marked you as a Force Sensitive, in the first place?"

[member="Nassus Nell"]

 

[Nassus Nell]

[member="Bond"]

Nassus nodded as he listened, making note of his mistake. He looked up at the ceiling, pondering his Master's question.

"Well, at first.. Well I always heard that force sensitives were stronger than most... and I was stronger than most, even for a stone mason.. and I was a little quicker than most of the guys in my village. But most noticeable was that I was a little more lucky than anyone else... I always heard that force sensitives were luckier than most..."

 

[Raijin Arashi]

I nodded, and I would have smirked if I could.

"For a force sensitive, luck and the Force are two different things. Many people say that luck is the Force. But that's not true. I've had luck in places that are beyond the Force's reach."

I spun in my chair, leaning my feet on a ledge in front of me.

"Tell me, has anybody told you of the ysalmiri?"

[member="Nassus Nell"]

 

[Nassus Nell]

[member="Bond"]

Nassus nods at his Masters question. "Indeed, I've been told of them. They're lizards that can repel the force, right?"

 

[Raijin Arashi]

I nodded back.

"More or less. In groups, the rejection spreads further, to the point where you can't be within almost a kilometer of a forest on Myrkr, and still use the Force. If you ever see an enemy with an unduly large backpack, or the hint of a plastic frame behind their back, and find that you can't sense them, either aim for the pack or frame, or get the hell away."

I leaned back even further in the chair.

"Back to how you got here, though. The power you describe is Force Body. Enhancing your body to suit your needs. It's not the strongest of offensive powers, but it'll probably save your life at least once."

[member="Nassus Nell"]