Private Lords of Tender Mercies

[Zlova Rue]

A Side Story
Courtyard, The Imperial Palace, Jutrand​

After the celebratory festivities began, a certain red Twi'lek found herself moving through the crowd. She'd spent some time examining artifacts, taunting attendees, and generally remembering why she didn't usually frequent the Sith Court. It wasn't because of the backstabbing or their heartless pursuit of power. Zlova was no saint as Talohn himself would attest -- though he continued to overlook her lack of concern for others for her 'better' qualities. It was, dreadfully enough, the lack of trust she could have in anyone she laid eyes on.

Long ago, Zlova had been betrayed by the one person she'd trusted. Someone she thought understood her, and she them. They nearly killed her, and despite surviving the attempt Zlova could only go into exile before they discovered she'd survived and had her new friends hunt her down. Then, through some cosmic joke, the Lethan woman had met that Cathar man in his formal suit and stupid helmet. It was absurd. An amusement that persisted after that party despite her countless warnings about someone entering into a relationship with a Sith Lord. And over time, despite all her efforts, Zlova actually found she cared what happened to the blue ball of fur. Worse, there wasn't any downside to caring for him. No betrayal. No constant looking over her shoulder and worrying whether those he hung around with would turn on her. They were Mandalorians! Honor-bound, metal-wearing freaks wouldn't try to kill her unless she gave them an objectively good reason to do so.

So, Zlova didn't have a reason to go back to whatever Sith Empire or Order or Inquisitorial Force popped up. They all had the same problems born from the same lust for power. She found she was actually happier being outside of their system. Free to pursue her alchemical and archaeological pursuits. Sometimes, yes, forced to support Talohn in his bleeding heart saving of slaves and captives and whatever else the Mandalorians wanted, but a small price to pay overall.

All that being true, she still liked meeting those that understood her best. They were still psychopaths, but they never judged how you acquired more power or knowledge. Unless they wanted to kill you so they could steal everything you'd discovered. No family was perfect.

Despite the festivities, however, Zlova wasn't wasted with drink as she would have been years ago. She'd had a drink or two, of course, but slamming them back was no longer her style. Was she an alcoholic? Well, she wasn't a degenerative one. Not since she lost Talohn for those years and had to tear the galaxy apart to find him. Seemed better to not waste time drinking when there was a Cat to keep near. Except when it involved forcing him to be around other Sith. That Cathar's tongue would have landed him, her, and Aether in an endless amount of trouble.

With her inspection and harassment winding down, Zlova drifted toward the edge of the crowd again. Maybe there was still someone or something interesting to see at the party. She kept her golden eyes open for the possibility.

Mercy

 

[Mercy]

Zlova Rue

Mercy had arrived only a while ago, but already found a dinner plate, stuffed her face with it and then slammed several drinks in a row over like it was nothing at all.

Just the first course, so to speak.

Then she found herself a smoke and did some people sight-seeing. There was always something amusing to see at a Sith party. Strange things, interesting things, one time Mercy had witnessed a Sith that could split himself into twins and merge back again. It hadn't been an illusion, illusions don't bleed after all.

Mercy was hard to miss, she loomed over the crowd, taller and larger. With clear vision lines across it. So it was that when Zlova came into her vision, she was spotted almost immediately. She was a Sith, that much was clear. Moved like a dancer too.

Interest piqued.

"Don't think I have seen you during one of these before." Mercy murmured warmly as she carved through the fraction of the crowd still between them like a knife.

"First time?"

A rather innocent question from someone who looked like a mountain and was build like one too.

 

[Zlova Rue]

The Twi'lek turned to look at the unit of a woman that approached, heedless of anyone in her path. Dark lips curled upward in response.

"I've been to my share, but not in a long time. Different Empire. Different time." Zlova planted one hand on her hip as she shifted her weight onto that foot. "So I don't have ancient allies to secretly pass whispers, or enemies to seethe at from the shadows. All I have is the fact that everyone notices me and wonders who that sexy bombshell of a Twi is doing there and why they'd never seen me before. Which amuses me."

"What about you, tall, dark, and smoking?" Way Mercy was built, she probably got plenty of eyes at these sorts of things too -- whether she wanted them or not.

 

[Mercy]

Zlova Rue

A soft laugh there and Mercy offered her hand, palm up, to the fellow Sith. Offering her the touch to guide her through the crowd and into the outskirts proper, exactly where Zlova had been heading.

But with Mercy leading, there would be no one standing in the way or trying to engage her in additional conversation.

"Truly? Then you must know all the fun lines I could use. From You look like you can dance so well to Oh, those tattoos look wonderful... with some heavy eye contact to suggest I'd like you to tell me all about the tats."

Smirking a bit deeper as they got to the boundary of the crowd and some space opened up between them. There Mercy would lean against one of the pillars and took her new conversational partner in. It wasn't the first time that Mercy had encountered a twi'lek, but the fact that her lekku were also wrapped in tattooes was something special.

She knew those were incredibly sensitive, so the process would have been agonizing.

"Oh, this is my... second, I think?" A little shrug there. "I don't often come this way, but after Atrisia and the third Death Star, well, I just couldn't help myself."

Mercy couldn't help but be pleased by the compliments, even if she knew that they didn't mean anything coming from a fellow Sith.

"What's your name, pretty dancer?"

 

[Zlova Rue]

Zlova looked at Mercy's hand before she took it quickly and firmly (but not trying to crush it like a fool). Strange offer, but what else did she have to do? Night had been winding down until this towering creature conjured itself out of the void.

"Do those tats go all the way down?" Zlova purred. That was bad enough, but when you combined it with the fact Zlova ultra rarely wore anything obscuring her mid-section... Only the blind had any right asking that question expecting to be seen as sly. "If you're asking, I could tell you all about them. Each one has a story."

As they got to the edge of the party, the Twi'lek's attention remain openly on Mercy . There was no need to feign disinterest.

Golden eyes narrowed slightly as they drifted over Mercy's figure. The Lethan stepped forward at the question. "Zlova. Zlova Rue. I have another name, but no one calls me by that any more, and you're not here on business are you? Strong, bold woman like you... you're looking for something, and it isn't Sith foolishness." The red woman stepped even closer. "You already have my attention. Are you looking for a private dance? I hope you'll tell me your name as well if that's the case. Makes the experience more intimate."

 

[Mercy]

Zlova Rue

"Do those tats go all the way down?"

Mercy had the common decency to fake a wince there.

"You poor woman." The Sith purred in return. "We are surrounded by pigs and disgusting wretches, aren't we?" Full of sympathy, as if Mercy herself wasn't full of filth and hungry desire. But part of being a Sith and especially part of being Mercy, was being a bit of a hypocrite and judging others on a different ruler set entirely.

Zlova was coming on strong but luckily Mercy wasn't intimidated by women who knew what they wanted... or at the very least who feigned what they wanted for one benefit or the other.

"Zlova Rue..." Mercy purred softly, repeating her name with warmth. "No, I detest business, if I am being honest. I much prefer pleasure." A little smirk there, but Mercy's idea of pleasure was rather elaborate.

Even ripping someone's head off could be a fun exercise of joy in the right context.

As Zlova stepped closer, Mercy slowly reached out, taking her chin in hand and tilting it up just slightly, adding to the tension there.

"Mercy, is what they call me." She said softly while looking down at her. "You may have heard of me? I was all over the HoloNet a while ago." Champion of the Galactic Kaggath that had brought her from Ruusan to the depths of the Netherworld, until she returned triumphant.

And that was only one story of hers.

"Am I special, Zlova, that you offer a private dance so quick? Should I be blushing... or maybe you are the one searching for something specific?" An eyebrow going up there, interested in her answer.

 

[Zlova Rue]

"Surrounded by fools, blind fools, and wretches." If there was one thing Zlova was not it was a hypocrite -- according to her. Because she thought little of the majority of the galaxy in the first place, and exceptions to the rule were just that. It helped when you didn't even try to adhere to morals, ethics, and standards as well. Thankfully, all those demanded by the Mandalorians actually meshed well with her. Except when they went on a "Force User bad" bender, but the Mandalorian Empire hadn't gone there so that was nice.

Pleasure was it? Yeah, a lot of Sith Lords said that too. 'My business is pleasure. Torturing the weak. Annihilating the unworthy. I purify the galaxy of its sins!' Then there was a cackle, or a grin. The only ones Zlova believed didn't get their jollies off on it all were those that were far, far, far too serious. You could tell they not only looked like they were made of stone, their heart truly was.

Zlova's tattooed brow rose slightly as Mercy felt confident in taking hold of the Twi'lek. "Yeah? Champion at the Galactic kegger, right?" Mercy had no idea how long the Lethan had been waiting for someone to give her the chance for that butchery. She blamed Talohn.

Well, one good turn deserved another. A red hand lifted to caress the side of the tall woman's pale face. The Lethan's hand was as warm as her skin reflected she was Sith. "It's good to know what people really want from the start, isn't it? Cut through all the false modesty and lies to arrive at the truth faster. Me? Relics of knowledge and power. All these years of being left alone by my fellow Sith has allowed me to pursue quite a few alchemical endeavors without interruption or fear of theft." Which was overselling it a bit as there had been guests on Talohn's ship that'd tried to make a mess of her workspace. Not because they were evil. They were just incapable of controlling themselves. Madlad. Domina. The list went on. "I don't suppose that sort of thing interests a firm woman like yourself?"

Mercy

 

[Mercy]

Zlova Rue

Mercy squinted at the word play and considered if she wanted to be offended by it.

It was an easy thing to do in this case, but Zlova was lucky that she was... rather distracting, honestly. It was hard for Mercy to hold onto the rising ire, when she was talking to someone who could have walked out of a movie thriller in front of her.

"Well, I do know how to drink and drink well, so I could be champion of that too." Mercy drawled instead, adding a little toothy smirk there, but also showing teeth that were definitely too sharp by half. She tilted her hand as Zlova reached out, but curiously Mercy didn't back away. Instead she smirked as she looked down at the Twi'lek while she touched her face.

Mercy's hide was hot to the touch, almost like a fever was permanently embedded in her flesh, or a fire that ran for as long as she took breath.

"I think people, Sith included, have a high dose of bullshit around them. It's one of the things that wears on me whenever I go out to these things." Reaching out to Zlova's hand on her face, touching her wrist and letting her fingers run along it.

"Me? I am honest. You know what to expect of me... always, at all times." Mercy drawled lazily as she held her hand right there. "Mm, do I seem so brutish to you? Uninterested in the finer, esoteric arts, or the annals of history?" Almost purred there as she tried to gently tug Zlova with her, away from the crowd, onto the balcony instead.

For a fresh of air, but also a gorgeous view.

"I have people constantly searching for artifacts, for knowledge, for history. There is power in the lessons from the past." Something that would sound awfully odd from a monster of a mountain like Mercy.

"What do you enjoy about your artifacts most?"

 

[Zlova Rue]

Zlova didn't bat an eye at the heat in the woman's face. Warmth? A little warmth wasn't going to frighten the Twi'lek Sith Lord. Her title hadn't been pulled out of a McYoda meal. Poetically, meant the woman was spicy. Zlova happened to like fiery types being one of them. Didn't matter what people wanted or what they expected, she did what she wanted, when and how she wanted it. Mercy seemed the same with her attempt at physically dominating the moment. Probably scared all the little boys and girls into their proper place.

A chuckle bubbled forth as her free hand lifted to settle on Mercy's hip. Spicy woman thought to ensnare her hand and keep it there for Zlova's efforts? That was fine. Just meant only one of them had a free hand to do whatever they wished. Being a fire brand, however, best not to move too presumptuously and get bitten. It was a well-positioned hold as Mercy seemed inclined to guide them away from the crowd soon enough.

"Brutish? Why would I think that? Because you're an Unit?" The Twi'lek waited until their steps stopped before she sought to step into Mercy's space, or nearly up against the other woman if space was already at a premium. "And what do I appear to be? A seductress? A dancer only to sate carnal yearnings?"

"I try to keep artifacts out of the hands of fools. If I come across those with something I can use, I learn from it; otherwise I simply store it somewhere safe. There are certain Lords of bygone eras I favor to learn more from. People that sounded like they had a grasp of the bigger picture." Any one person didn't live forever to know everything; why not take a short cut and learn from others so there was that much less to learn by experience? That's how the education system worked. Why not the acquisition of power?

"And yes, that includes from recent, reigning monarchs. It wasn't that long ago the Maw sought to set the entire galaxy on fire -- to purge its inadequacies and make room for rebirth from the ashes. All it would take is another leader like that for artifacts to end up right back into the same sort of hands. Honestly speaking." Zlova smirked up at Mercy. The woman had said she was honest; Zlova wasn't exactly a Truthsayer, but her tongue could be sharp and moved freely when the mood struck her.

Mercy