Private Lair of The Witch

[Kaila Irons]

A loud ✱clap✱ caused the young sith lord to jolt as a branch whipped her from behind.

"...sorry" she sighed, knowing what it meant.

Nearby shadows, disappointed that the woman had deviated from the path, morphed to point her in the right direction as the Dathomiri woods continued to guide her away from traps and into the arms of she who had built them. Pom Stych Tivé had been in league with her lord Darth Carnifex since before Kaila even knew of the dark side, and the two woman knew of each other distantly for some time. Yet, as the utter strangeness of Dathomir now reminded her, there was so much she did not yet understand. The one thing she did know of Tivé however, was the woman was a powerful Nightsister. And so here she was, wandering the vast wilderness of Dathomir in search of the witch's lair.

Dathomir had a way of making even the mightiest warriors feel small, she thought.

The crystal felt cold in her hand as she held it up, listening carefully as her eyes scanned the ground for those pointing shadows, their fiery glow piercing even the red mist with their golden hue from beneath her hood. Yet it were her ears that alerted her to the path as the trees creaked, bent and bowed in the witch's direction, hoping to direct the sith who wished to return this crystal to it's rightful Dathomiri owners.

And in exchange, hopefully have her questions answered.

Eventually she would come to the witch's shack, a humble, dilapidated looking thing that almost felt uncharacteristic of a woman of such power. How else would she have the ear of her soon to be former master?

She came up to the door, staring at it for a moment as she worked up the courage to knock.

✱slap✱

"Will you stop that?!" She hissed, a rogue vine shirking away when she turned.

Really though, it was the whispers that concerned her more than nature's physical "encouragement". They had grown louder the closer she got, and more numerous still. Voices she could not identify, speaking a tongue which she did not.

Finally, forming a gentle yet determined fist around the crystal, careful not to crush it with her metal bones, she knocked twice on the door, and waited...

But what awaited her in turn? She could only imagine.


Pom Stych Tivé

 

[Pom Stych Tivé]

Kaila Irons
​

Whispers regarding the visitor arose, catching PomStychTivé along with the Wanica Coven at the final stage of casting a series of spells over the cauldron. At the moment the Base Stock is almost perfectly prepared. Without skipping a beat, a nonchalant flick of her wrist drew into existence the Matriarch's Doppelgänger. "Time is of the essence," it said, while the Coven continued chanting undisturbed.

The Warlock's Gate will activate soon within its hidden location, behind the veil of the Nether Realm, secured from approach by laymen among the physical world. The Gate permits the living and the dead who dwell in this section of Dathomir to merge into a single realm, allowing the Nightsisters of yesterday and today to exchange knowledge and sew their magickal powers together. Only those who the Matriarch permits, have been welcome to enter within the enigmatic materializations of the Warlock's Gate. It had been unlocked by Darth Carnifex personally, and under control of the Kainate from Malsheem, is heavily guarded by his devoted personal henchmen.

The Nightsister Matriarch's ruse of a little shack, most would pass by for appearing dilapidated and abandoned. The foliage set many traps for those disrespectful enough to the culture here, the vain seeking control and to do harm. The shadows however are not governed by physical boundaries, save that of Force Light.

The worn wooden plank door of the mysterious shack opened outward to Kaila Irons as the Doppelgänger stepped from the shadow within. "Welcome," the soulless embodiment of PomStychTivé greeted with a broad foreboding smile. "The Witching Hour is nigh upon us. Come." The Doppelgänger stepped lightly across the floor and disappeared once again into pitch black shadow.

Adjacent the shack, stood an ancient burial mound. It laid the spiritual foundation for the Wanica's Bone Temple, from within which a haughty wailing erupts across the land. The cries are not mere ghostly echoes of the past, but the discorporated spirits of Jedi, who had been slaughtered on this most unpopularly hallowed Dathomir soil. Under prime conditions of the planetary alignment the Warlocks Gate energized, transforming a portion of Dathomir within its reach into an ethereal playground. The Gate erected an enormous ethereal barrier dome across a great portion of Dathomir, casting its literal physical existence into the Netherworld. The barrier began its transformation at the threshold of PomStychTivé's doorway,

All light would seem swallowed up by the shadows beyond her threshold, until Kaila crosses over.

"Come." The Dopplegänger reached a hand out from the darkness to Kaila, beckoning her to join the Wanica under the remarkable Magick of the Warlocks' Gate. Knowing Kaila had never been here before, it added, ”It will feel like walking a mile straight to your perdition, but that will fade and all will become clear, as soon as you cross the barrier.”
​

 

[Kaila Irons]

"Lady Tivé," she bowed her head in greetings, unsure what to expect. Though in fact, being welcomed was not what she had imagined, and neither was this "Witching Hour" the Nightsister illusion spoke of. Yet she was none the wiser as to it's true nature.

Initially she was taken aback by the mystical barrier which suddenly grew over much of Dathomir, initially suspecting it to be some manner of wall until she looked up at it's dome-like structure, then back down to see that, though enshrouded in darkness, the door remained open to her.

"Come." the conjured witch repeated, and Kaila was quick to acquiesce.

With but one last glance to the burial mound outside, and a vague hope that she did not join the disembodied souls which haunted it so, she took the witch's alabaster hand and was pulled through to the other side.

In all honesty, the young Darth had no idea what to expect. Her previous expeditions to Dathomir had gone quite wrong, ending in her own possession by the spirit of a sith lord who once terrorized jagged mountains and thorny swamps on the far side of this world. The clan who directed her to his tomb were far more interested in sending her away than in teaching her, and her own studies of Dathomir proved ineffective due to the scarcity of documents regarding the world's history and culture outside of the scattered villages tucked neatly into the wilderness.

What awaited her here among this coven who were unlike any she'd seen before? Perhaps even the other clans could not know.



Pom Stych Tivé

 

[Pom Stych Tivé]

The Dopplegänger grinned again watching the expression of their guest, while the surface of Dathomir transformed, slipping into the masterful effects of the Warlock's Gate. The land disappeared and their surroundings fell into non-existence momentarily. PomStychTivé and every other beast dwelling within the barrier experienced their heart skip a beat and begin once again in synchrony with the sudden stillness. Then The Darkside of the Force invigorated into a frenzy. The air staled, fouled by the stench of the corpses of Nightsister elders, recent and long deceased, who howled with excitement as they resurrected and climbed down from their burial scaffolds. Disjointed rickety bones clacked as they ascended from the trees. The elders each evolved quickly into their individual personifications.

They knew one another by face, name and individual skill, and noticed the newcomer. "Welcome." "Good timing." "Never too soon to begin." All manner of kind greetings were cast towards Kaila Irons .

The land took on an ethereal glow, altered and vastly more dreary than the physical planet. The Wanica left the cauldron base to finish, and the witches living and dead all huddled in one large circle. PomStychTivé's Doppelgänger approached and placed Kaila's hand into the Matriarch's before vanishing. Pomsty gave the young student a nod and cast a genuine welcoming smile, not at all crazed as that of her Doppelgänger. Suddenly the entire coven teleported at once into the Nether; the event marked by the familiar sensation of falling down and swooping upright again, as if being turned upside down yet your feet never leave the ground. The witches were not lost to an unfamiliar flat plane, or nothingness as one might describe of the Netherworld, before they learn to plot a course through it in order to go to different places among the physical realm. They are actually standing upon the familiar landmass of Dathomir which fell inside the farthest reach of the Warlocks Gate's, now existing within the midst of that nothingness of the Netherworld.

"I have been expecting you. Conjuring here is far more…fantastical than in the physical realm," she said. The extent of the reality is that the Potions Ingredients cultivated here are more potent because of the constant tending by the elder spirits. "Also, we have many teachers here willing to share what they have learned, with those worthy. They care vehemently about the future progress of the Nightsisters." PomstychTivé explained to Kaila as the witches stepped away from one another to go about their conjoined tasks. "The Warlock's Gate marks the time we may come and go, but this section of Dathomir was made by it to always exist in the Nether. The Gate is now also safeguarded within the Nether. It protects the Covens from genocidal maniacs."

The mound of the dead who sought to conquer the Nightsisters of Dathomir began to wail, as these invaders too began to take on their prior physical existence once again, however their existence is horrendously altered, as none of the witches would share the incantation to form them properly. "The Bone Temple," which is fed by the mound of the damned, "is primed for a ritual. What brings you here this night?" she asked finally, willing to spend time with Kaila, as the coven is perfectly capable of continuing the ritual with or without her presence.

​

 

[Kaila Irons]

The Dopplegänger certainly wasn't lying. Kaila felt as if a hike across all of Dathomir suddenly caught up with her in an instant, muscles sore and throat parched as she stumbled through the door, wiping sweat from her brow onto her sleeve.

But then it was gone quickly as it came.

To say that this was all new to Kaila would be an understatement. She may have been a dark scholar, she may have known a few lost arts or forbidden techniques, but for all her recent momentum the young darth was still a student discovering new things in her seemingly endless quest to find her place in this universe.

But this was an ancient power before her, something not even sith understood.

Her heart skipped a beat and everything went still. The sounds of distant nature went silent, but they were not replaced by the crackling of a fireplace or the footsteps of the witch.

Kaila looked up, golden eyes aglow like fire as the dark side seeped into every fiber of her being and that every stone and plant in the strange clearing she now found herself in. But it was not the cold and artificial embrace of the corrupted force as she once knew it, but the subtle warmth of a primal nature that once seemed so painfully distant amidst the metal interior of imperial starships and habitation blocks far from here in the "civilized" worlds bordering the core.

The screams which broke the silence however, that was familiar.

She had spent quite some time among the undead, both in the tomb of Parasideus and Adeline Noctua 's occult academy deep within dead Yalara. The stench of death caused her nose to scrunch but it was surprisingly short lived. She watched with morbid fascination as the cycle of decay seemingly reversed, faces many, both soft and withered alike, soon took shape. And from smiling lips came friendly greetings that caused the young darth to nod, a feint smile about her own.

The previously stoic apprentice of Darth Carnifex seemed dumbfounded as she stared at the elders in awe of their reanimated forms and pleasantly surprised by their greetings. These were not the false promises of friendship that spelled certain betrayal as she had come to expect from most, no thanks to the sith, but something weirdly genuine.


It wasn't until a moment passed that she felt the sensation of a warm hand against her own, The Dopplegänger having joined Pom and Kaila's together before vanishing.

Her eyes were torn from the scene as the Nightsisters huddled in a circle, bringing Kaila with.

She looked down at the Lady Tivé, the real lady Tivé, noting the gentle contrast between the Night Mother and her strange Dopplegänger.

"I-"

It felt as if the whole world was violently spun the wrong way, then immediately corrected.

She groaned, and when she opened her eyes again she found herself in a world that was both familiar and yet new, surrounded by nothingness as far as the eye can see. Yet here in this little pocket, like an island amidst a dark sea, she was safe.

"I have been expecting you. Conjuring here is far more…fantastica than in the physical realm,"

"...expecting me?" she inquired softly, hand still lingering in the witch's.

"Also, we have many teachers here willing to share what they have learned, with those worthy. They care vehemently about the future progress of the Nightsisters."

"The Warlock's Gate marks the time we may come and go, but this section of Dathomir was made by it to always exist in the Nether. The Gate is now also safeguarded within the Nether. It protects the Covens from genocidal maniacs."

She watched the coven disperse around this strange pocket of Dathomir, though she was certainly listening to the mysterious Night Mother all the while. A pang of guilt struck her upon hearing The Gate's purpose, knowing that sith not unlike herself numbered among the ever growing list of peoples who had sought to eliminate the witches at varied times in history. It was good to know that at least one coven had secured it's future so thoroughly. There's was important knowledge and a fascinating culture, something the academic sith wished to see preserved.

Then she heard the screams again, causing the young darth to turn sharply.

It wasn't like the elders, who howled with excitement as their bodies were restored, rather these were of utter anguish. She narrowed her eyes at the malformed undead in the distance, breath a little heavier than before.

"The Bone Temple," which is fed by the mound of the damned, "is primed for a ritual. What brings you here this night?"

Kaila remained quiet just awhile longer, lips pressed into a thin line as her thoughts finally returned to her. As wonderous and exciting as this place could be, she knew it could also be dangerous, and it was not a territory familiar to her.

She was in Tivé's home now.

"...I'm not sure, I..." Kaila turned to face the witch.

"I came to return something, liberated from the hands of another sith"

It wasn't her true purpose here, something else which she could not yet explain had drawn her here. But it was a start.

She placed the nightsister force crystal in Tivé's hand, hoping the witch would not assume she'd stolen it as the previous one had upon seeing the red wrappings of her lightsaber, which was currently fastened to her hip.

"I felt... compelled, to see it returned to Dathomiri hands. My wanderings took me here. I assumed that was your magick which saw me safely through the woods?"

Compelled was the closest word she could use to describe the vague but strange feeling which brought her here, like an instinct that had never seen use till now. But she had other reasons too.

"In truth, Dathomir has been the source of a great many questions recently. I find myself coming often of late, to escape the exaustion of sith politics."




Pom Stych Tivé

 

[Pom Stych Tivé]

​

Twelve of the Wanica watched the exchange between the Matriarch and Kaila Irons from a short distance. These are the same twelve who Pom permits to possess her for the freedom to roam with her in the physical plane, in exchange she has access to memories of their knowledge and abilities.

When the young Acolyte displayed the red crystal in her palm explaining her intention to return it, PomStychTivé could hear the crystal begin to attune to the energy of the planet as it vibrated, emitting a low hum. She did not touch it, but observed. "I see you have already imprinted upon it," she replied, quite pleased with the gesture of the young one, knowing far more powerful aids to Magick exist should a Nightsister actually require deeper focus. "That there is a powerful tool for even the above average witch. It is also suitable for a quality Laserwhip. That is something, if you wish to design one, would turn out most splendid were it designed right here on Dathomir, after the stone is properly recharged with Spirit Ichor. The Sith cannot help you. It would be a disaster." She implied that the stone belongs to Kaila, as it is proven by the manner in which it hums in her hands. Pomsty casts a peculiar smile, wondering if the girl understands her intention. Pomsty is afterall, one who eternally has sought to empower young women to come into their own power. "I would also bet, if you request of it, your crystal would render you a dream that you might understand the overall reason why it sought to fall into your possession." Energy imbued artifacts have rather mystical properties which learned minds perceive their trek from planet core to being passed on through the ages from owner to owner as a spiritual evolution.

The Wanica remarked about the exchange amongst themselves. Each of their lives on Dathomir, knowledgeable of a different era in time. Far older than the Nightsisters were ever in existence, the stone could have been worn in the holy headdress of any one among their coven.
​

 

[Kaila Irons]

"They are not unlike Kyber then? bonding with a user over time. But these are tools of a Nightsister, I'm surprised it would bond with an outsider such as I"

Kaila placed a gloved hand to her chin, contemplating the meaning of these strange events. How could she imprint upon the crystal if she were not herself born of Dathomir? And if it were not Pom's magick which guided her here, than whose? If she could request answers from the crystal as The Matriarch suggested then it would surely be a boon to her insatiable research, but then it seemed she no longer had the bargaining chip she'd arrived with.

"...forgive me, Matriarch," she hesitantly withdrew the offered crystal

"I'd meant to trade you this crystal in the hopes you might answer some questions, I did not mean to imprint upon it"

"I have taken on a student of sorts," she referred to Tamsin Graves "Who I once thought possessed just as I had once been. Yet the spirit within her spoke of Dathomir, and I cannot shake the feeling that her affliction is no longer within my expertise"

She admitted in a tone of defeat, saddened that she may no longer be able to help her friend on her own.

"But if I can no longer trade this crystal, then may I ask how else I might buy your assistance? I am aware that all knowledge comes with a price, and I am more than willing to trade, both to know how I might properly request of this crystal, and how to assist my companion"

There was a look about her of... desperation. A deep seeded hunger to unravel mysteries which had eluded her for quite some time. She stole a glance at the whispering Wanica, the true depths of their power unknown to her, but she could feel enough to know that it was ancient, far older than even the dark well that was her master. And yet, even despite the young woman's anxieties which the sith had imprinted upon her as she had imprinted upon the crystal, she felt a degree of safety here. Peace even, despite the kind of woman she was.

"I hope you do not take offense to the notion, but I was not expecting the elders to welcome me earlier. Most I meet look at me with suspicion or even revulsion, either for my sithly attire or connection to my master. It gets... tiresome"

"May I ask," she turned to face the Matriarch again

"Have you similar experiences? Allying yourself to Him and all"



Pom Stych Tivé

 

[Pom Stych Tivé]

​

The Matriarch neglected to offer her answer for how Kaila Irons arrived safely through the woods to the Wanica's location. But the young Sith is correct, in that discerning Magick has everything to do with safeguarding the Nightsisters.

It certainly is good to see an outsider seem genuinely interested in the happenings of the Nightsisters, where so many look down upon the witches with distaste, assuming the culture to have zero capabilities, because of our primitive ways and our appearance. We choose to survive without technology, and even the Sith should understand the positive effects of appearance. To the Nightsister, everything holds abnormal energy that can be cultivated and merged with others to produce Magick. "A Crystal is so much more than an energy source for your Lightsaber, but you need to learn its language to interpret what it speaks." PomStychTivé demonstrated her lesson, as she lightly tapped Kaila's wrist which held the Crystal and it radiated a fire glow as it continued to hum. "It feeds into your focus, which has the ability to manifest anything you put your mind to…especially in a place like Dathomir, which drips with successful Magick like dew in nature. You might feel like an outsider here, but probably not for long. You were guided here on this day for a reason that only you can decipher, at the precise minute when most would intuitively run from the Nightsisters."

Kaila explained her intentions, causing Pomsty to understand her kind gesture. Having little need for the crystal, she closed Kaila's fingers over it, and pat her fingertips hoping she will decide to reap the many benefits of it, by keeping it for her own. At the mention of a possible Dathomiri spirit possessing someone off planet, Pom realized, "This is unacceptable. I truly appreciate your bringing this manner to my attention. Should this spirit prove to be a defector, we cannot have any of our secrets in jeopardy." The Matriarch already determined that she would traverse the Nether directly to the source of this being of whom Kaila spoke. Her determination shown in her piercing eyes.

Kaila spoke as if she might be able to afford the assistance of the Wanica. "Dear, you do not know me." Not many would know the Matriarch, a Misandrist, fought long and hard to hide her identity while she rescued and empowered other women to fight their way out from under the oppression of men. She had made the wanted list of the Mandalorians however, and probably a few other Factions…all of them actually. But her charity work nobody knew about, except any given planet's local magistrate, if she had been caught assisting an abused woman to eradicate her abuser. Most of the civil servants met with a fortunate case of amnesia, either willfully upon the sight of her witchiness, or most unpreferably, directly imposed upon themselves for refusing to agree to forget her deed.

In addition to her being a closet vigilante, she has taught many young Nightsisters and few Sith. "I offer to do both for you," the fact that this is a student of Carnifex, earned her something, "and teach you more…in exchange for…" she thought for a moment, "let's leave that open for now."

Kaila asked if the Nightsisters experience social discord from outsiders? Pomsty arced an eyebrow high at the question. "Listen, dear, regarding Carnifex there is rather much to note, however such a man of power is a stepping stone for you, if you know how to use your connection to him properly." Carnifex had fought and subjugated the Fanged God which grants this Nightsister Coven all the more power over the others. These Nightsisters were welcome into the Zambrano family,. For their reciprocated devotion learned all about the Zambrano family's plot regarding the long term evolution for the Sith Empire; perhaps Kaila is not yet integrated to know such things. Pomsty commented, "You do understand that immortality will be offered to you, should you choose to devote yourself to their peculiar customs?" It is a fair exchange, in the eyes of this Coven. Power, prestige, and the offer of notoriety have always been cause to turn her head!
​

 

[Kaila Irons]

Kaila seemed fascinated as the crystal in her hand began to glow with a newfound warmth, still humming softly as the matriarch explained and even encouraged the use of it's power where others before her had shunned her for possessing such things.

Pom was right, and this was far more than a crystalline tool. Not only could empower the witches but if all this was true, then perhaps it was guiding her for some purpose. Kaila rarely trusted the force, knowing that it meddled in one's destiny and that fate was not always a kind thing, but this felt... different. Whether it was separate from the force or simply more natural, she did not know, but intrigued her.

Even as the matriarch closed the young sith's fingers around the crystal, she had trouble taking her eyes away from it until the witch spoke again, the shift in her tone most notable.

"This is unacceptable. I truly appreciate your bringing this manner to my attention. Should this spirit prove to be a defector, we cannot have any of our secrets in jeopardy."

"I'm unsure of it's motives myself. It exercises little control over her, merely planting ideas in the girl's head or communicating in strange visions. She and I engaged in a blood oath, which the spirit manipulated her into facilitating some kind of... ritual. We can track one another now, something in our blood draws us together. I've never seen anything like it"

She spoke in a contemplative tone, certainly concerned that the spirit was becoming bolder and that they'd both been manipulated into such a bond, but she was also quite fascinated by the results which had been most beneficial as of late.

"Dear, you do not know me."
"I offer to do both for you," the fact that this is a student of Carnifex, earned her something, "and teach you more…in exchange for…" she thought for a moment, "let's leave that open for now."

But to the witch's offer, she raised a brow. Kaila had been indebted to powerful women before, and made a habit since then to avoid deals without carefully examining every string and all fine prints. Yet, she wished to know, needed to know, and Pom seemed to be the only woman she could turn to in these trying times.

"Listen, dear, regarding Carnifex there is rather much to note, however such a man of power is a stepping stone for you, if you know how to use your connection to him properly."

"You do understand that immortality will be offered to you, should you choose to devote yourself to their peculiar customs?"

"I-" but at this talk of her master, the young darth broke her silence.

Kaila had spent years building the persona of Darth Anathemous, the ever loyal Kainite eager to serve her purpose and collect knowledge for her empire. But Kaila Irons was that woman. She used the Kainate to her advantage, or what little gain she could scrap from the utter misery. Honesty did not come easy to her, not because she was sith, but because she wished to hide herself from her sith overlords. It was necessary to her survival, and those she loved.

But it seemed she wasn't the only one using her master. She just less effective.

She squeezed her eyes shut, biting her tongue to keep it from wagging treasonously. But she couldn't shake the voice in the back of her mind.

Be honest.

You don't have to lie.​

It is safe here.​

​

​

"I need you to understand the gravity of these words, and that honesty does not come so easy to me"

She began, hoping the witch understood how difficult it was for her to show such vulnerability, how wrong it felt when every fiber of her being was screaming to be silent, to protect herself from the eyes and ears of her master, that anyone could be a threat to her discovery.

But something continued to plead with her, tell her that she needed this.

"I would rather die young than serve him for eternity." she finally said it, for the first time in her life she finally said it.

"He took... Everything, from me" her fist clenched as she looked up at her, the dark side burning brightly in her eye.

"My memories... my family, my identity, whatever was not conducive to becoming the perfect slave"

"I am so tired," her voice cracked as if she might weep "of debasing myself for powerful men"

"I did not choose to be sith. I wasn't given a choice, and I never have. It's just... too late to be anything else, I don't know anything else."



Pom Stych Tivé

 

[Pom Stych Tivé]

​

As the girl spoke his Mistress stood still, although her instinct actually drew her to almost render a hug upon the poor girl. Oddly enough there is more to her Master that Kaila Irons does not yet comprehend, that Carnifex does not insist everyone who allies themselves to him be a supreme master of Dark Arts. His wife from before he fell is of the Ashla. Pom herself is well studied in a balance of both the Ashla and Arts from the depths of evil. Her choice, however, is to live by a moral code; no innocent soul will ever be her victim. Kaila is correct that she is safe here.

To be honest with herself, she too never quite admired the position of concubine to any high standing, galactic-wide notorious family. It is such a belittling term as it is rendered to be so, which segregates her from the rest of the family, as the women related to Carnifex have repeatedly reminded Pom and her daughter of their lower familial status. She has been so much more from the beginning, trading knowledge with him which he never knew, and in return entrusted with family secrets and goals. None of these conflicting feelings are unknown to Carnifex nor Praxus. While they love one another, Carnifex happens to love another more. Hence she is here as she wishes to be, free to live as she desires among her own kind, live by her own ways unencumbered by social expectations which are not her customs.

Carnifex gave her the daughter she always dreamed of, fulfilling her life's dream right from the start of their encounters. Truthfully, she is relieved that he never asked her to marry. She is not one to conform under the judging eyes of others. She is neither weak, unlearned, nor lesser of worth regardless of whose standards. The Nightsisters most astounding secrets still remain safe within the deepest silence of her mind. She doesn't know who she would become, if she was tamed to marry. He is not withholding any status from her, which others perceive as elevated. She is his escape from them. Perhaps it is because of her unattainability that she won't be cast out. An unspoken respect was present between them from their start.

It is also a moment like this that her inner Misandrist speaks. "Look, men aren't near as powerful as they perceive themselves to be. Like a primitive animal, they are ruled by their urges. If he can't get from a woman what he wants, his privates literally and uncontrollably explode. That is nothing to make him the superior of the sexes, now is it? It has long been a woman's advantage to allow a man to think he controls everything and everyone. It has been that many have even laid down their life for the women they lay with. Again, who is really on the pedestal here? Its never the man. You have yet to recognize and learn to use your advantages." Pom was made Gerent of Dathomir. She was immediately elevated, not coveted or controlled as perhaps it may have seemed.

Her situation however, is very different from Kaila's. The youth would be surprised what he could offer her, if she was just a little more agreeable, the freedom to do as she wishes. "You are here now among the Nightsisters. If you wish to come into your own power, it cannot be altered from the outside by another. We always find our way back to our balance." Pom had her soul warred over by the Ashla and the Fanged God long before she even knew Carnifex. She knew the Light and Darkness to their ultimate extremes. "We are all living manifestations of the same Force. We are not all only Light or only Dark. The Force itself is not like this. It alters gradually from one extreme to the other throughout the Galaxy, throughout the Universe. We are all born under the imprint of this flow where we begin our physical journey. It is where we feel most comfortable basking in it. Regardless of your physical predicament now, always be true to your spirit. Never lie to yourself, nor to one willing to assist you; I feel this is the trait of a weak character," she spoke bluntly.

She never could turn away a sister in distress. Now regarding Darth Carnifex , Pomsty is still a woman, and her exchanges with him are quite pleasant, causing her inward and blooming jealous nature to trump all credible warning bells which are currently going off within her head. "How about we remedy your predicament right now?" she asked Kaila with a soft smile. "With Magick, one can do anything they set their mind to."

The Wanica heard every word of the exchange and stepped closer to the Matriarch, prepared to grant the wish, should the Matriarch's offer be accepted.

The Bone Temple moaned in anticipation to being party to fulfilling the will of the Nightsisters.


​

 

[Kaila Irons]

"If he can't get from a woman what he wants, his privates literally and uncontrollably explode. That is nothing to make him the superior of the sexes, now is it? It has long been a woman's advantage to allow a man to think he controls everything and everyone. It has been that many have even laid down their life for the women they lay with. Again, who is really on the pedestal here? Its never the man. You have yet to recognize and learn to use your advantages."

Kaila, despite the emotionally charged moment which she shared, managed the barest chuckle at the witch's explanation. Still, there was a silent acknowledgement in the way she averted her gaze. Despite having grown into a woman of many lovers like the Kainites whom she'd spent the second half of her life around thus far, she understood that she'd done a poor job of using her own nature to her advantage. While she'd done her best to keep secrets, manipulation did not come naturally, and she had much to learn.

Even if she was loosely aware that a young blonde tightly bound in a bodyglove such as herself certainly held a natural advantage over many. Although there were reasons she'd not thought to use it often.

"...in truth, matriarch, I tend to prefer the company of women most evenings. Though I suppose I'm not incapable" she chuckled softly

A toothy smile crept up the corner of her lips, and her cheek became tinged with rose as the thought crossed her mind —that she had proven desirable time and time again, just in ways more frivolous than pragmatic. Perhaps then she would experiment with these... talents.

Just not with Him. It was the one dignity he hadn't taken from her.

She knew that if the day ever came that she should reduce herself to becoming a common whore for a man like that would be the day that he'd truly won, for whoever she was before would have surely died a long time ago for her to be so desperate. She would never lower herself to such a degree only to appease her enemies, she had just enough pride to prevent her from doing so. But to control loyal pawns of her own? Perhaps she could allow this.

"Regardless of your physical predicament now, always be true to your spirit. Never lie to yourself, nor to one willing to assist you; I feel this is the trait of a weak character,"

To this however, she frowned. It wasn't that she disagreed with the sentiment, merely that it felt somewhat accusatory. Perhaps it was her own fault, a lack of explanation on her part which led the witch to feel a need to teach her this lesson, But Kaila was more honest with her allies than any sith she'd ever known. It was just that her allies were very few, and that she had difficulties determining the nature of other sith in order to change this. It had simply been easier to operate under the assumption that all were against her until proven otherwise.

It had been a lonely life she'd lived, with the exception of fleeting moments in the evening which had always come to a sudden end by morning.

But it seemed that some things were about to change.

"How about we remedy your predicament right now?" she asked Kaila with a soft smile. "With Magick, one can do anything they set their mind to.

Kaila looked to her, trying to find the hidden meaning in the witch's expression, a dagger behind smiling lips as had always been the case, all power coming with a price and rarely fair at that.

But she found none.

"...you would really teach me these things?"

These were secretcs which sith and dark jedi alike had sought to steal for hundreds of years, maybe thousands for all she knew. Something that many had died trying to reach, only two sith she knew of ever having attained such power and lived. But it was not a power to offer outsiders, and as she realized in this moment, Pom intended no such thing.

her lips pursed as the coven seemed to drift closer, and their macabre bone temple groaned with dark magicks eager to be released.

This wasn't merely a tool The Matriarch offered. It was a place, a way out of her aimless wanderings lost amidst the uncaring galaxy, a community even, as foreign as the word felt.

Pom was not given her secrets to an outsider, for she did not intend for Kaila to be an outsider.

"Am I... to become a Nightsister?" she wondered aloud.

"I-" she bowed her head to the Matriarch, clutching the crystal close to her chest

"You honor me, Matriarch, more than you may know"



Pom Stych Tivé

 

[Pom Stych Tivé]

​

The Nightsisters smiled when Kaila Irons spoke of not truly preferring the company of men. What else could one expect of the Nightsisters?

But something happened which Pomsty did not expect, it was the way Kaila interpreted the Wanica's offer to assist her. The Wanica expect to perform their charm upon Kaila, and not exactly to teach her how to do it to herself, for it isn't necessary she do anything but be present. Pom lightly gestured the Wanica to halt in completing their approach for the moment. She did not correct Kaila in her assumptions, although the Nightsisters are not a fraternity. Nightsisters are taught to perform magick from the cradle. Their lessons are unbridled, never scolded. A tot is able to fully overwhelm her intended victim, in any number of focuses, be it basic poisons, mental hypnosis, or peewee incantation.

There is a particular Grimoire Pom can share with Kaila, which teaches basic skills to build upon. No outsider has ever succeeded to a level of proficiency of an advanced witch. None have ever measured up to that of a Nightmother. Outsiders usually decide to advance on to another focus, such as the Sith teach. In spite of all this, the Matriarch felt something powerfully devout in the Acolyte's words. She was moved by the genuine display of respect. She also felt there is something more there, than she has to yet comprehend, something undeniably Fateful in motion. For whatever reason, the girl was already welcome onto the soil, and by the Warlock's Gate. In addition, there is no doubt that for Kaila to learn a little magickal focus will help secure her a better reception from Darth Carnifex .

Choosing her words carefully, she replied, "You know, I never thought of it like so. But you are correct, when I take a student, I teach them my sacred arts, which only a Nightsister would know." She turned to the twelve who she knows more intimately than any other beings, and remarked, "Perhaps there ought be a bit of pomp and circumstance to commence these sort of occasions," to which the Witches each smiled and nodded in affirmation. Turning back to Kaila, Pom concluded, "So it shall be."


​

 

[Kaila Irons]

"You know, I never thought of it like so. But you are correct, when I take a student, I teach them my sacred arts, which only a Nightsister would know."

She averted her gaze, unsure if she'd been overzealous in her enthusiasm or merely given the Matriarch an idea. She had assumed that only a Nightsister would be permitted to learn such things, but perhaps things were not so simple? Her master knew of witchcraft after all, or so she'd heard at least. Then again she'd heard all manner of tales that could easily be false, such as Carnifex being the Fanged God himself.

Even so, the witches seemed enthused by whatever was to transpire, and perhaps she should be too.

This was still an opportunity to learn after all, even if she wasn't sure what it all meant just yet.

"Perhaps there out be a bit of pomp and circumstance to commence these sort of occasions," to which the Witches each smiled and nodded in affirmation. Turning back to Kaila, Pom concluded, "So it shall be."

"Forgive me, for the overzealousness of my enthusiasm. despite the frequency of my visits as of late, I am yet unfamiliar with the customs of these lands and covens. Another witch, Dreidi Xeraic , has attempted to teach me some things, though she is not a Nightsister. I believe she aligns more with the teachings of Allya, and thought to turn me away from the dark side. Only... she was unsure that I, as a foreigner born far from Dathomir, could take to the magicks in the way she could. To say that I was disappointed is... an understatement, and so your offer is intriguing to say the least, even if perhaps I have misunderstood."

"Truth be told, I've often wondered if I might have chosen another path, had I not been forcibly taken by the sith. It's just that now, after so long, I know nothing else."

Her eyes flicked towards Pom, having since accepted that though she may of their magicks, she might never become a true witch.

"What must I do then, to begin learning the magick? I promise to be a most diligent student."




Pom Stych Tivé

 

[Pom Stych Tivé]

​

Pomsty's natural accent thickened, as the mention of Allya touched a nerve from her personal experiences. "Allya has absolutely no stomach for the Magicks of the Nightsisters. She is not a jealous God of all her children. But surely, the Darkside gods never give up on gathering any lost soul back to the fold!" Pom had studied all natures of her craft, in hopes to discover means by which to counter everything that could possibly be thrown at her Nightsisters. As a result, her Grimoire is quite massive, and inscribed upon multiple forms of medium, encoded in the language of her most ancient of elders. "There isn't much to tie our hands, as there is not much frowned upon, save for one to use the powers of any god who will turn her back on us in our time of need."

She felt a smidge of empathy for the young woman's situation. "It is true that dedication and ambition will only advance one so far. Our Magick does not exactly mimic that of using the Force. However, unlike the other Covens, we have a generous god who is more powerful than our historic Fanged God. Darth Carnifex has subjugated him to us, where it was before we were made to beg our god to bless our magick. We toiled lengthly moon cycles." Pom knew this ideal to be not one generally understood among the Sith. Such can be comprehended by the fact that the Dark Lords of the Sith lend power to assure favorable outcome from among their underlying soldiers during battle. "Perhaps your lord will look favorably upon you afterall. We shall see to that," she promised.

Darth Carnifex always knows when the Wanica reach for more unorthodox heights. The Runes mysteriously scrawled across every inch of his flesh suddenly engorge with fiery energy. Just as Pomsty had given her life for him, he too bleeds to lend his Force energy to her conquests. Luckily for Kaila however, this magick does not require the conjuring of such phenomenal power.

"Firstly, let us uncover what draws you to our kind. You may yet discover a sleeping talent." Maybe it is simply the calling of the crystal, or perhaps the entity which inhabits her student. It could also be the touch of someone long forgotten down Kaila Irons ' ancestral line.





​

 

[Kaila Irons]

"Can't say I've ever been a fan of Allya's teachings." she clarified with a chuckle.

But then the story took a turn, and Kaila was no longer amused. She understood of course that the witches seemed a practical people, and that they would take any measure necessary to secure the future of Dathomir. But what did Pom mean subjugated the fanged god? Whatever it was, it might be beneficial to her master and so she did not like the sound of it one bit.

"May I ask what you mean by this? I'm afraid many of His exploits before Mandalore remain a mystery to me. He doesn't really talk with me, only gives orders. Especially now that my duties often tie me down to Order space."

She looked both confused and a little surprised to hear that there was some truth to the tale. Though how much? she could not say.

Though perhaps she should focus on the matter at hand.

"Forgive me, I do not mean for us to become sidetracked." she shook away the thought.

"I am yet unsure as to why, but I've felt the pull ever since coming to this place. I first noticed it while possessed by a sith who'd died here hundreds of years ago." Kaila's lips twisted bitterly at the memory.

"But I have since dispelled imprisoned his spirit, yet the pull remains. At first I thought it simply a longing for the outdoors beyond his tomb before my escape, but it has only grown stronger since. My apprentice has only come into my life quite recently, and so I believe this unrelated to whatever inhabits her form."

"Honestly it doesn't make any bloody sense to me." she sighed in frustration.

"You coven are the only Dathomiri to which I've stayed in close proximity to, given our shared off and on home. And I highly doubt I was secretly born here, given that I am Vahla and raised by Mandalorians."

"Though- please- do not speak of this to Him? He doesn't know that I went digging into my lost memory, of which he was careful to hide from me." she was quick to add.

"I hate to imagine what he might do if he knew the things I've done to find that information."



Pom Stych Tivé

 

[Pom Stych Tivé]

​

Pomsty knows outsiders have loads of issues believing the reality of the Nightsisters. It is not that outsiders are incapable of comprehending the specifics. But Nightsisters eat sleep and breathe their magick from the womb. The Fanged God did something to Pom, something very cruel. She was studying the Light under Allya. At first she did so because she wanted to know what lightsiders would throw at her in war, and she wanted to know how to counter everything. But Allya's love stumped her, almost crippled her, and she stayed for a while longer than necessary to be taught. She met a lot of wonderful people she called family. The Fanged God caught up with Pom in the Nether Realm, because it belonged to him. He and Ally had a literal tug of war with her soul, and tore her in two! It was Carnifex who unified her soul once again. It took his intervention because Pom couldn't stand the sight of her 100% pure sugar cookie self! She was sickened by the persistent presence of her redeemed twin. Pom tortured her, and yet all her twin did was pray for her. When Pom died for Carnifex, her twin willingly gave of her physical self to become once again whole, and unify with both extremes of her soul. Such things are the everyday existence of the Wanica. Being willingly possessed by twelve of your ancestors, giving them a body to traverse the physical plane, in exchange for their abilities, that's not common knowledge!

The fact of the matter is that Darth Carnifex is stronger than the Fanged God. "I cannot possibly get into such detail right here and now," she replied to @Kaila Iron's inquiry regarding Carnifex. The Fanged God is demanding of his worshippers, never volunteering, his narcissistic hunger for elevation by worshippers is never appeased. How the Nightsisters toiled to be recognized, to be granted a morsel of satisfaction! Somehow in all his dark shadow, for a deep as he fell, Carnifex loves those who willingly join themselves to him. Despite her status within his family among the other women, nobody will ever be able to deny her that truth. No matter the lies she tells herself in order to accept life as it is, this single truth manages to outweigh all those whispers which lash back against her heart's desire.

"Neither myself, nor anyone of mine will tell," she promised which is 100% truthful, however she knows that her lover already knows exactly what wickedness she is about to perform. He always knows the moment that the Bone Temple comes alive; it is through which the Wanica Coven communes with him from afar. She knows that he won't be near as pleased with her, as she is with herself…but she craves his attention, any attention at all which earns her a moment of falling into the depth of emotion which stirs behind his eyes..

Always she has this profound weakness..

It isn't her fault! He has been very busy conquering worlds away from others! On top of THAT, always playing games with the young ladies! A girl gets sulky afterall. PomStychTivé won't settle for being thought of as BEING JUST ANYBODY!

Regardless of his expected forthcoming ire with her actions, she knows Carnifex always accepted her stance regarding the liberation of women from injustice. Never has she felt him guilty prior, but based on Kaila's views, he is. She just cannot resist the temptation to play with his toys, and earn herself a moment of recognition, to be called to stand in his presence once again! 'Oh, no. We won't tell..'

"Shall we begin?" she asks, as a member of her own personal entourage steps forward, one having lived solo among the physical realm, about 2,678 years prior the era of this day. She stretched out her hand towards Kaila and exposed a tiny shimmering gumdrop of sorts. The look of it, is expected to magically entice anyone. A warm smile etched across her lips, a grandmotherly gaze pours from her eyes, yet beauty above all her features, glimmers in the glow of the planet's Spirit Ichor which currently dances across the entire surface of Dathomir.

​

 

[Kaila Irons]

"You discretion is most appreciated, Matriarch." Kaila bowed her head deeply in thanks.

Her feint but thankful smile soon gave way to pursed lips as one of the older Wanica approached, drawing her ever curious gaze. There was no visual indication of the witch's age, but there was something warm and long lived in her eyes, which reflected the green shimmer of a the spiritual sea around them. It was an otherworldly thing, to be long dead yet so beautiful. That was a power the young sith coveted deeply, to be unchanging in the face of fate, her life and youth preserved, forever in her control where so many things were not. Yet there was a darker depth to her desire, a paranoid need to outlast her master, to survive the centuries it might take to learn not only his weakness,

But the demise of an even greater power.

For now however, she was but the servant, stuck in the mindset of an apprentice. And so she would learn and she would scheme until she too was as radiant, as powerful and as unnaturally beautiful as these women.

"Thank you." she inclined her chin to the ancient witch, taking the strange droplet in both hands.

It was strange in that it shimmered like precious metals, yet it was soft and malleable.

"Shall we begin?"

She glanced to Pom, then back to the ancient witch, and then finally her eyes came to rest upon the drop as she took it between her fingers. Kaila lifted it to her full lips, hesitating for but a moment. This could be anything, it could do anything to her. Yet as she looked into the witch's eyes one last time, her gaze seemed to melt those fears, and a peculiar sense of trust came over her. And so she carefully pressed her lips to it as if savoring a berry, and it was gone.

She then looked to Pom with a questioning gaze whilst chewing, unsure what was about to happen.



Pom Stych Tivé

 

[Pom Stych Tivé]

​

As soon as the gumdrop touched Kaila Irons ' lips, she would feel as if plunged into water, and sinking, watching the land of Dathomir which exists beneath the veil of the Netherworld suddenly shrink into a tunnel of absolute shadow, until it totally vanished from her visual perception. The Wanica clutched hands encircling her. They witness the Magickal properties of the lozenge seep into Kaila's veins and begin to send shockwaves through her nerves.

Memories are woven into one's very soul. If you love… When you hate… Emotion is part of who you are, recorded upon your everlasting essence. The answers you seek will be uncovered by none but the record keepers of humanity, the Fates. The Fates do not exist upon Dathomir, although one would think they might like to do so.

The Nether hands you nothing of warmth, nor a life preserver of any sort should you panic. Your only escape from its effects now, is that you endure the effects of your surroundings and manage to think yourself as having moved beyond them. For those of the Light, that involves invoking the name of the God; but the likes of us have no savior. Who you are is mirrored all around you. There is no hiding behind excuses and the lies we tell ourselves. There is no solace, no forgiveness for our shortcomings.

The god of the Nether World is the Fanged God for the inhabitants who feed into its existence here. Abandoned to exist on its own merit, far reaching from the shadow of mercy or mere pity of the Ashla of the Empyrean. Just beyond the limited reach of the alteration under bubble created by the Physics of the Warlock's Gate, the Nether here exists as an abomination even unto Hell. Its residents fight with all their might to exist as immorally as they may. This place is avoided by free spirits, alienated by religion, forgone of remembrance, rejected even of a single kind word. Nightmares of the mind are incapable of mimicking this place. There is no ability of fighting back, no spark of recollection of one's innate will to prevail..

For the dead, the living are a welcome presence. For those who are capable of stepping out of their misery to recognize anyone in existence other than themselves, the living are a means of escaping here; for all know that the living will soon be ejected from this place. So many wish to possess them by offering gifts in exchange for letting them in.

The circling Nightsisters levitated Kaila's body between them, so that she would not need to fight her way through a medium which she has never traversed before. They pushed their way through the ilk, in search of the Fates.

The Wanica moved through the masses of souls which surrounded them permitting no means of passage. They protect their Mistress from the barrage with a vengeance. However, Kaila might find the many offers granted by the dead to be enticing.

​