Private New Blood

[Lirka Ka]

The Sith drew in miscreants, vagrants, and dregs like no other. The murderous muck of the Galaxy slopped off the ground to be molded into the next generation of Dark Siders. At times Lirka found their tenacity almost inspiring…

Almost.

The new blood only represented opportunity to the vile old creature. While Lirka may not be a Sith, the great evil of her heart slipping through the cracks of tedious definitions and religious doctrines: she watched the movements of the newest arrivals like a hawk. For not being a Sith, she knew how to play their game like some of the greats.

But truly, it was a rarity a Sithling offered anything of true import to her dark desires. So many were nothing but brutes and would-be-sorcerers, no it was those who possessed something different that caught her eye. Some spark, once they stood out Lirka pounced. The newest of the Sithlings to catch her eye was one Darth Nwul

Those Sithlings recruited from outside the Sith’s sphere of influence always represented a flair Lirka appreciated: not immediately blinded by mind-melting-propaganda and the related ilks that kept the Imperial machine running smoothly. Not accounting for the other little quirks Lirka saw, that was enough for her to make the summons. For while she may not be a Sith, being the Kainate’s Slavecatcher General and now a long time adjutant of the Once-Emperor-Carnifex gave the beastly Sephi something resembling a bit of clout. With her interest piqued the summons were sent out

A request that would go to Lirka’s favorite place of all: the middle of nowhere. Her dungeon-ship looming on the edge of Wild Space in the bleak, dark, void. It had become a suitable place for meetings now, somewhat freed from the prying eyes of the Empire at large: and now the monstrous woman waited in a meeting chamber of bare dark metal, waiting to see if her newest quarry would bite onto the bait.

 

[Darth Nwul]

Well. This was definitely a trap, and not exactly a subtle one. It wasn't like he didn't know who the Slavecatcher General was, he'd asked around to a few of his contacts after the initial invitation arrived. Yes, travel all the way to the edge of wild space to meet a scary Slavecatcher in her personal dungeon-ship. That sounded wise. Maybe a little kinky? He snorted as he sat in the cockpit of the small personal vessel he'd been using since falling in with Caedes. The old man was only too happy to dote on Wake, which Wake figured was probably a red flag, but he wasn't about to complain about getting a ship to use for things like this.

The massive ship loomed overhead in the void, and even in the vastness of space he felt the icy chill of the dark side inflamed with pain, regret, hate, rage, and malice. It was like a cloud of that tainted dark-side power that he had begun to identify as something separate from the pure darkness he was coming to understand. Ominious, mighty, and terrible. Wow, what a way to make an impression. Wake clicked his tongue and thumbed his transponder, signalling the vessel that he was on the approach vector and slowing down to be caught by their tractor-beam and brought into the hangar.

Just a few minutes after that, he was off the vessel and being escorted by the security team to what they called the meeting chanber. Wake made an effort to look absolutely disinterested in the grim and unhappy nature of those around him, peering around the place with curiosity and asking unwarranted questions to push their buttons a little. By the time they arrived at the chamber, the guards were blessedly rid of the annoying Sith and practically pushed him inside to confront Lirka Ka.

Wake looked around the room, domed ceiling, bare dark metal, a cold atmosphere. The whole place was tainted. Wake took a breath and sighed, broadcasting his own presence as he popped his neck and straightened up a little. Shoving his hands into his pockets he smiled, the excitement and joy of meeting someone new, the wonder at the ingenuity of the vessel, the amusement over the whole situation, and the deep well of multicolored dark side power that he had been cultivating with emotions beyond the narrow band of hate and rage. They coalesced into a frigid cloak of power that kept the oppressive aura at bay. Dispite the palpable rainbow of emotions that whirled around him, his expression was calm, if a little amused, as he bowed at the waist.

"Wake Nayne has come by your request, Mighty Slavecatcher General," He said easily, stopping a good distance away from his host.

Lirka Ka

 

[Lirka Ka]

While the living cargo of Lirka's dungeon ship was rarely seen, hidden away deep within the vast bowels of the vessel: their presence could be felt regardless, and misery hung heavy in the air. This was an evil place, even beyond the unfortunate souls confined here for the most reviled business in the Galaxy: no, even the Force itself seemed to ripple here, There was something a much fouler evil that permeated this ship.

Lirka herself almost matched the room, at an immediate glance she looked closer to a droid than a living thing. Clad in power suit of similar dark metal, silent mechanical noises followed her at all times as the inner machinations of the suit performed their many duties. Her face entirely obscured by a blank-faced helmet, two glowing eye lenses boring into Darth Nwul as he entered the chamber. But most importantly of all, her presence in the force was all but entirely gone. A void. A faint trace compared to the auras of the average living thing. She was a creature befitting the unnatural evil of this place.

His display of bravado seemed to phase her none, and as his words rang, a distorted noise barked out from her helmet. A snort or a laugh, it was all but impossible to tell with how heavily the Once-Sephi obscured her voice.

"The formalities are noted, but unnecessary Sithling. Come and take a seat, I am to understand you have quite the seasoned history for one so young?"

As she ordered the boy to seat, Lirka rose: a towering goliath of a woman, oozing raw mechanical might. If he wanted to make appearances, Lirka was more than ready to take part in the same dance.

 

[Darth Nwul]

Wake's nose wrinkled at the intesifying presence around him, sinister was fine, chilling and palpable was good, but was the excess of misery really necessary? Was that really all his peers knew how to do? His hollow, glittering, eyes, filled with that writhing wrongness, fell on the droid-like figure. Not entirely a droid, the force presence was both strong and utterly vacant. Like a void with a halo of bright light around it. Wake's lips thinned, it reminded him of the wound in his abdomen, the cold slice in his spirit that constantly spilled purified darkness into his being. Her snort or laugh, whatever it was, elicited a small grin from him. Was that a sense of humor he detected?

He hoped so, it'd make this whole trip worth it.

Wake glanced at the seat offered to him just as the figure got to her feet, he tilted his head and narrowed his eyes at her. A power play? Already? Let him sit while she stands and leads the conversation? Come on. Now who was posturing? He snorted out his own derisive laugh and shrugged, walking over to sit himself down on the offered seat and kicked out his legs. "You know what would make this great? Some candles, and a nice tea mat. Do you drink tea? Drink? Imbibe?" He asked curiously before letting out a hard breath and scratching his head, "Look let's get something out of the way, if you think is this bravado you're about to have a really hard time. I just enjoy everything I do," He said with a shrug.

He rested his arms on his knees and smiled up at her; "Yes ma'am, I'm a Fallen Jedi, killed my master, Ibini Abaas, and was on the run for eh, five, six years? Darth Strosius found me while I was fleecing some pirates, blah blah, helped on korriban, ate some jedi on the Caldera, you get the point. I suppose I do have a bit of a resume don't I?"

Lirka Ka

 

[Lirka Ka]

Clasping her hands behind her back with a metallic click, the true uncanny nature of Lirka became quickly apparent: while Darth Nwul grinned and moved with the minutiae of a living thing…Lirka did not. She stood there, completely still with every thought underneath that suit all but completely obscured. It really was like talking to a droid.

“Candles are a wasteful thing, the longevity of lumens are far preferable. Besides, the craftsman of the Empire are shoddy compared to true finery.”

By all pretense, she shouldn’t let her biases show, and the simple fact that her “religion” forbade such dabbling in the senseless finery of the Galaxy. But if Lirka Ka was one thing, no matter what, she would always be a hypocrite.

“Rarely. Nutrient slurry is a fine replacement when I am so often sort on time for trivial things.”

Her eyes seemed to glow brighter as he spoke. Perhaps processing? Or just a trick of the room.

“Enjoy what you enjoy, it is a miserable existence to not find pleasure in your work. But know it or not, Sithling, the dance of egos is the way of the Empire. I’m sure you’ll understand it soon enough, the grand game of impressions and posturing. Tiresome, really.”

She spoke casually enough, though there was a knife’s edge to every word. As if ready to be turned into the metaphorical shank at any given moment. The Slavecatcher General was quite the snake, after all.

“The company of a Jedi-Killer is always appreciated.”

She looked him over a handful of times, the rest of his story seeming to matter little to her: names were always a jumble and Lirka tried to keep as few known as she needed to.

“You do not look like a flesh eater, and…”

Her eyes glowed again, now that bundle of technology was actually doing something.

“…You’re obviously not an Anzati. Tell me, how did you feast upon your foes? I can only assume you and I use that word in very different context.”

 

[Darth Nwul]

Well, this one was a whole lot of fun. He sniffed with a bit of amusement and rubbed the back of his neck as she dismissed his attempts at comfortable conversation at every turn. She seemed to have an answer for everything. Great. There was an edge to her words too, one that he couldn't quite put a finger on. Not like she was intentionally hostile or anything but rather, perhaps, she was just built that way. It was a shame, really, eccentrics like her were usually pretty good company.

His lip twitched at her remark that a Jedi-Killer was always welcome. He didn't particularly get off on killing jedi, though their deaths were pleasant for him if they were used as a means to an end. Fallen Jedi were far more useful than dead ones. He crossed his legs beneath him and leaned back, regarding her evenly as she worked through his statements. His smile spread a bit wider-something he said had finally landed. Her interest was focused now, though he wondered why she'd invited him here in the first place. Not that he'd ever get that kind of answer.

He held up a hand and a misty white swirl danced around it, fog forming when the air brushed against it. "I mean it literally, their minds anyway," Wake said in an almost hollow tone, "Their neurosynapses, their brain activity, every memory, every thought, every emotion, their knowledge and being," Wake said, and clenched his fist. "I've had hundreds of meals."

 

[Lirka Ka]

Lirka's lenses following the wisps of energy as they moved in his hand, perhaps in fascination, perhaps in simple acknowledgement. She stood taller, a ripple of machinery through her form. It seems Darth Nwul had the chance to be everything the beastly creature wanted him to be. Not quite looming, but still standing over her "guest" Lirka's words leaked with drops of wicked glee beneath all the distortion.

"Sounds like an overflow of useless drivel."

Just because he had proven himself immediately more useful didn't mean Lirka wouldn't take any chance to prod and jab. It was the closest thing she had to a joke these days, after all.

"But I know your ilk, Vampire. I have seen Sith feast on the minds of others before. Tell me, Sithling, do you crave knowledge? Hunger for it?"

While up till now she had been a cold machine of a woman, there was a growing energy to her voice: she grew more animated as if some sort of vile passion had gripped her heart.

"To reach into the darkness and pull out the forbidden lore of this Galaxy, peering into the abyss?"

Sephi did always love their melodrama.

 

[Darth Nwul]

"Sounds like an overflow of useless drivel."

Wake snickered thoughtfully, "They do get a bit noisy, and to be honest I don't know what hobbies are truly mine anymore. I learned to knit at some point," He barked out a laugh, turning her jab into a source of a musement. That feeling, though, was quickly consumed and converted. The dark side growing just a tiny bit stronger as he used every emotion present as fuel.

He raised his eyebrows, 'vampire', now that was a new one. It wasn't like consuming these minds extended his lifespan or anything. Did it? He reached down to his abdomen where the chiling void-like force wound could be felt the strongest in his spirit. He'd come to acknowledge its presence and the purity it represented. Untainted by the bile of hate and rage but representing the full spectrum of emotion and life.

He bore his teeth, savoring the melodrama. He loved this shtick.

"I do it every day," He said with a twisted smile, "In the morning, I welcome the sun and pray to the dark side. In the afternoon I revel in knowledge, feast on memory, and pray to the dark side. At night, I admire the moon and pray to the dark side," Wake said as his emerald green eyes turned yellow, "I drink in the joy of discovery, I dine on the love I feel for my fellow sith, I feast upon the knowledge I've consumed and study the texts I have acquired, I rage at my kin that destroy ancient secrets, I pity my kin who are so blocked up they cannot feel the full spectrum of the dark side. I reflect on it, consider it, admire it, I am a philosopher, a priest, a student, and a teacher,"

He laughed coldly, "Some have even called me a Therapist."

He exhaled, the excitement and revelry, the joy this conversation brought, building inside of him until he condensed his response into something far more direct. "Yes, I do."

Lirka Ka

 

[Lirka Ka]

She stood silent once again, that burst of emotion quickly fading away into her droid-like state. As he spoke, she dully acknowledged each word ruminating over it all. Darth Nwul was a zealot, that much was evident: and unfortunately for Lirka, a zealot for the wrong cause. That complicated things, that complicated things quite a lot...

Nothing ventured, nothing gained.

A hundred possibilities flew in her mind, strings of what ifs and where they stood among her grand schemes. Perhaps there was space for this Sithling after all

"I used to weave when I was younger. Tapestries made from my plunder on Moridinae, during the reign of my liege. Long before you were born, child."

It was a rarity for Lirka to show anything resembling humanity, and it was never shown without something of an ulterior motive. An open hand before she'd close the vice of her vile machinations. She turned on her heels, beginning to pace back and forth like some sort of beastly predator, she almost seemed to shudder in disgust at the mention of a therapist

"We are in agreement, I too seek knowledge. Long have I hunted for the depths of this Galaxy and beyond. You are what I hoped you to be, I require agents to join me in this quest for knowledge, I am but one woman, and my reach is only so vast. My resources are many, and you will be well rewarded for assisting me in my research..."

She stopped her pacing, turning to face him once again. Daggers from her eyes and the gravity of her voice could not be overstated.

"But understand, my work is to remain completely secret to the Empire's prying eyes."

 

[Darth Nwul]

He squinted at her, she had a curious range of emotions and lack thereof. His eyes searched her aura for hints at what was going through her mind, but it seemed more and more to him that he was not going to penetrate her walls that easily. He leaned back a bit where he was relaxing and fixed her with a curious stare; "Your work, let's talk about that then. Because so far we've only talked in vaguries and posturing, shown off a bit of our passion, but..." He tapped his nose, "I want specifics. You don't expect me to just agree to helping you just like that, do you? 'Rewarded' can mean a lot of things."

He slipped to his feet, finally standing up, and staring back at her as she pressed down on him with enough impetous and gravity to make his knees shake a little. He held fast, though, it was the least he could do. He wouldn't cower, no, despite the fact that this lady was fricken scary when she wanted to be. Instead he gave her a thin look, "You don't have to worry about me going to tattle to the empire, I have only one loyalty," He said evenly.

"So what do you really want me to do?" He asked.

Lirka Ka

 

[Lirka Ka]

Another distorted noise came from her, Darth Nwul seemed to have earned the benefit of somewhat amusing her. Or with whatever vestiges of humor still remained in that metal suit.

“Wiser than the common Sith mutt, I’m almost impressed.”

It was becoming increasingly obvious, despite her allegiances, Lirka did not think all too highly of the Sith.

“You must understand, I work in many a layer of secrecy. When I have results, the Emperor will hear of it. I seek understanding of the Charon: assuming you are unaware, they are an all but extinct race of insectoids, the ones widely recorded were pacifists and hyper capable doctors with strange bio-organic technology not unlike the Yuuzhan-Vong that dwell in our realm of existence.”

She let the end of her quick summary hang in the air, giving it that hint of gravity before turning once more to pace and talk.

“More importantly, they are supposedly extradimensional: and these useless pacifists of yesteryear are a minority from a savage armada of world-ending savages. I seek to understand the latter, to understand how they came to our existence from their own.”

Again, a brief pause

“You, will assist me in that, Vampire. I require talented individuals that are able to scrounge through the muck and mire of fables and legends to pull out the truth. I know the remnants of these savage creatures are out there, and if we could expand the Empire to something beyond our own existence…I don’t think I need to extrapolate that, now do I?”

A well rehearsed half-truth, Lirka sought far more evil things that merely expanding the empire’s range. But this boy didn’t need to know that, not yet, not till he showed any sort of inkling of understanding the One Galactic Truth.

“Luckily for you, I do not care about loyalty. I demand obedience, nothing more. Kneel to who you must, but here we perform a grander purpose.”

 

[Darth Nwul]

Wake's lips twisted into a smile when she snorted again, he was beginning to get a measure for her sense of humor. Everyone had one, you just needed to know where to look.

"I try," He joked before nodding as she began her explanation, then his expression stiffened, so she was seeking truths beyond just this galaxy. Her mind dwelled on more esoteric and eldritch things. He cocked his head to the right and considered the implications before regarding her with genuine curiosity, "Color me interested, I wouldn't mind diving down the rabbit hole of the extraplanar," He said, shoving his hands into his pockets.

His eyes narrowed, "Not a vampire," Wake corrected, he was getting tired of people calling him that. He supposed it was an apt description but it still got under his skin a little. He crosed his arms behind his back and looked towards the right, his thoughts churning. The many-minds within his head all arguing various philosophical viewpoints on what this woman suggested. Ultimately, Wake took their impressions and settled on his own final viewpoint.

"You'll have my help, my mind, and my legs," He said with a sly smile, "I'll go where you can't use perspectives you don't have, but my will is my own. I have no interest in sharing this knowledge outside whomever you see fit but I also won't come running like an obedient dog," He said, bearing his teeth with a bright smile. "But I can get behind a 'grand purpose'."

Lirka Ka

 

[Lirka Ka]

Lirka, for all her stoicism, did little to hide the seriousness in her tone to respond to his curosity. Those lenses narrowed again, evidently she liked to do that to extenuate her points.

"This is not some holo-net rabbit hole, understand that well. This is a dark path, we seek demons and monsters alike: their world is not made for our kind, we tread upon the brink of damnation on annihilation. What I ask of you is great, and you will be rewarded well for your assistance..."

But, as if on a coinflip that seriousness seemed to flare into rage as Darth Nwul corrected her, not the usual disdainful anger that filled Lirka's being, it oozed out a disappointed. It seems he may have worked against her expectations this time.

"Then what are you!? A ghoul? A leech? A cadaver masquerading as a man, puppeted by the stolen thoughts of your prey? Abandon these foolish sentiments! You are already a monster, same as I even if you deny it! If you truly wish to walk this dark path with me, we can not have the luxury to deny such things!"

Her rage simmered, and once again she returned to her "normal" self: evidently, Lirka had something of a temper still inside her. A mixture of a curmudgeonly old lady, and a visionary with such high expectations for her quarry.

"...But maybe, you just another boy, vying for greatness and prestige in this grandiose Sith machine? And yet perhaps, I can not judge you too harshly. You are still but a child, I can not expect you to understand. Yet."

She paused for a moment, letting her thoughts simmer. She was no mentor, but Lirka was never one to shy away from sharing her "interesting" philosophy if she knew the Empire wasn't listening: even if it did begin in her usual vagueness.

"I don't need an obedient dog, if I wanted another mutt I'd have one made. I need a hunter who can follow instruction."

 

[Darth Nwul]

Wake's lip twitched but he didn't argue the point when her temper flared. He was well aware of his monstrous nature. The force wound in his abdomen ached as if in response, reminding him of it's presence. The icy sensation washed over him and he let out a breath, scratching the back of his head. Yeah, she wasn't wrong. Fine. But he refused to be compared to those vampires. He was more than that.

Wake shrugged, "Maybe, or perhaps I'm more monstrous than I care to admit," He admitted, shoving his hands into his pockets.

"Fine, you have a deal. We'll scour the galaxy for the truth, and in exchange you'll help me with controlling these monstrous gifts of mine. I won't do anything for free," Wake said with a smirk, looking up into those frightful eyes.

Lirka Ka