Private Picking up the Pieces

[Taeli Raaf]

Brow furrowed in thought, Darth Arcanix examined the images being displayed by the holocron on her desk. A gift from, would she call Spencer a friend... no more of an acquaintance of mutual respect, regardless she had resumed her studies into the gift she had given on Borosk. The wars being waged had distracted her as of late, and the implementation of the plan with Kaine, but this was something that could be extremely useful in the days, weeks, and months to come. It was something not even Kaine or Braxus knew she possessed, and it would stay that way for now.

She could feel one of her newest apprentices drawing closer, along with another dark presence in the Force she recalled from another acolyte audition for lack of a better term. Good, forming connections early would help in more ways than one for Alina Tremiru . The young woman would need allies and every advantage she could get, especially competing against Quinn as she was to be in her favor.

A touch of the Force and the image shifted to another.

The artifacts she had retrieved, although she might not know what they were for, would be useful for the Lady of Secrets' current project. They might not mesh with the girl's skillset or proclivity in the dark side, but that did not mean everything to her. Successful retrievals could be just as rewarding in a way, as this would be. She sensed them at the door and it would slide open for Alina and Darth Daiara .

"Welcome back, ladies," she said, still examining the core. "I trust you were successful?"

 

[Darth Daiara]

Well. At least she looked normal. Aradia strode in, an air of fake confidence about her as left Alina to push the cart the last few feet in. "Yes, congrats it's a crate."

Kaalia Pavanos would see through her behavior in an instant. The usually reserved girl was even tempered and practical. Aradia didn't recognize the woman before her. Maybe it was the blinding stage lights or her strong-headed attempt to keep her Master's eyes on her, but she hadn't noticed many others that day.

Her hands went onto her hips, the acolyte asking boldly.

"What's in them?"

She'd learn the merit of this master yet. She was a teen. She was good at finding buttons.

She prodded at a lid, trying to peer in.

 

[Alina Tremiru]

Alina immediately did as any good acolyte should do. She dropped to a knee and bowed her head in greeting to her master. "We were. I made sure no one knew what was in these chests, as asked." Similarly she didn't know what was in the boxes. That was the point. Keep it secret, keep it safe. Though an immediate cold sweat went down her back as she watched Darth Daiara do the complete opposite. Her gaze slowly lifted to watch her new.. Well, if they were going to end up friends, they likely wouldn't now.

She said nothing. Didn't dare to. Hesitantly she looked to Taeli Raaf , hoping that her master might actually have a good sense of humor and wouldn't just beat Aradia into the ground. There were plenty rumors about other Sith Lords doing just that, and she didn't know enough about the Lady of Secrets to know if she was like that or not.

 

[Taeli Raaf]

The snark from Darth Daiara was not unexpected, she had trained her youngest sister into a Sith once upon a time and she had been the most sarcastic person she had ever met, nor was the deference given by Alina to her unexpected. The prodding was a test on the part of the apprentice to Kaalia, trying to see what might push the Lady of Secrets' buttons as it were. As for her own apprentice, Alina Tremiru wanted affirmation, to know she did a good job.

"They say curiosity killed the cat," she responded quietly, shutting down the image being displayed by the holocron on her desk, "and unchecked curiosity has resulted in more needless loss of acolytes and apprentices than Korriban as tombs."

She would let the statement hang in the air, just long enough for Aradia to start wondering if it was a thread or not before Taeli proceeded to open the lid herself with a small application of the Force.

"But inquisitiveness is how we learn, as long it doesn't run unchecked," she continued, coming up to the crate and pulling out one of the artifacts. A ceremonial golden mask was held in her hands, and to the untrained eye, it would appear simply as a decorative item. One in tune with the Force would feel the dark side clinging to the mask, whispering of fears and nightmares long since faded into shadow. It had taken some effort to locate it, millennia old artifacts were rarity after all, but the mask of Raptus would prove useful for her project along with the other items recovered.

"You both did very well, I am very pleased," Taeli responded, moving back to her desk and placing the mask next to the holocron. "And that means a reward should be offered. I'll let you both pick one technique you want to learn, anything at all. Or perhaps something more material is in your mind, and while rather boring, can be easily arranged."

 

[Darth Daiara]

Aradia rubbed the goosebumps from her arms, acting indifferent to the chill the woman's initial words echoed through her. She shot Alina a look as the woman turned her back and approached her desk.

'Huh', it seemed to say, as if she hadn't just danced a very fine line and came out on top. Well if that didn't show Alina a clearer indication of the boundaries in her apprenticeship, nothing would. She hoped it was enough to get Alina off the floor and on her feet, she really didn't like groveling.

Aradia's hands dropped from her hip, the girl approaching the desk with a sense of easy comfort.

"Bombs?" She followed up immediately, a spark of need hitting the heavy handed request. "Or rather, how to contain them them when they are blowing up in your face." She grimaced, trying to hide the tell-tale signs of an unexpressed story by studying the mask on the table.

"What is it?" She derailed, the whispers growing louder with each moment she stared.

Alina Tremiru Taeli Raaf

 

[Alina Tremiru]

Oh. Oh no. Alina glanced between Taeli Raaf and Darth Daiara , half expecting that the fellow acolyte would be taken down immediately after her master's threat about cats and curiosity. And yet, she wasn't. Not only was she not taken down, she was.. Rewarded? For her inquisitiveness? Alina slowly stood up, looking more and more confused by the second. This didn't make sense to her. By how her mother treated her, Alina knew there should of been dire consequences.

Was her master really this different?

"Disruption." Alina blurted out before glancing down immediately. Confidence was something she really needed to work on. "On Korriban, in the tomb I went into. I could disrupt the Force around me. I want to learn how to control it."

 

[Taeli Raaf]

Such interesting and varied requests from the two young apprentices. Darth Daiara 's desire for protection from explosives likely came from a personal experience she was sure the girl did not want to duplicate anytime soon, understandably so. Taeli wouldn't pry into what it might be as frankly... it wasn't the least bit relevant to her. As for her own apprentice...

Alina Tremiru was becoming more fascinating by the day. The innate ability to suppress and disrupt the Force around her was a rare skill indeed, and it explained her apparent weakness in the Force. In a way, she would be far more dangerous than other Sith if she could hone, enhance, and master that gift... and to think her mother was going to let her daughter wither on the vine. Wasteful, but that dynamic had potential.

"There are several ways you could deal with a bomb, Aradia," Taeli said, bringing out a few pinches of Korriban incense from an urn on the table behind her. "You could conjure a Force barrier around yourself to absorb the energy and deflect the shrapnel, you could alter the internals with mechu deru or telekinesis so it cannot detonate. You could place a bubble of Force energy around the device itself, and either contain the explosion until it is spent or shape the energy so it goes in your desired direction. Has Kaalia taught you such abilities yet, my dear?"

Before the girl could answer, she turned to her own apprentice, slowly sprinkling the incense in a circle around the mask.

"Disruption is not an ability I have, although I know the basic principle behind it. You become a smothering presence to your opponent, drowning them in negative emotions and thoughts. For light siders, this ability is particularly potent as it is like a thick fog of despair passes over them and they are unable to touch the light. Strong wills can break through it however, so your will must always be stronger than theirs or your attack should be swift before they overcome your disruption to their powers. We will need the writings or holocron of a Sith known as Darth Cognus to master the technique."

A small flame leapt to life in her palm.

"The mask," she continued, "is from an ancient Sith known as Raptus. He and his six companions were known as the Dread Masters for their abilities over fear. I suspect if one were to wear the mask, they would find their ability to instill terror in their victims would be augmented, but your mind would shatter. That is not why I wished to procure it however."

 

[Darth Daiara]

Mechu deru...


She committed the name to mind, unfamiliar with it. Had her Master taught her it before. No. She shook her head silently, some of the act dropping as she listed with reverence. Aradia was nothing if not a dutiful student. Even the words passed onto Alina were hung onto, ever scrap of knowledge just as vital if she wanted to make it to the top one day. Aradia wasn't heavy in Academy activities anymore, but it didn't mean she wasn't keeping sharp.

"Where can we get this-- Mechu deru and those readings?" She inquired, pulling her hand back from the mask as she learned of its properties.

Oh that was frightening. Literally. She took a step back, fingers curling into her palms.

 

[Alina Tremiru]

Several ways to deal with a bomb? None of those were ways Alina would ever be able to deal with one, though there were a couple ideas formed none the less. What she couldn't do with the Force, perhaps she could replicate it with technology. Yeah. That's what she should try and figure out next. The acolyte stood up straighter as Taeli Raaf answered her question. A holocron?

"Then I'll find the holocron." There was a rare confidence and determination in her voice as she spoke so calmly about it. She'd do it, there was no doubt in her mind. Her gaze shifted to Darth Daiara curiously. Had she felt the power of the mask? Or was it inert but the idea of it was still frightening? She didn't ask out loud, but her gaze did fall onto the mask.

 

[Taeli Raaf]

"Mechu deru is a skill several within the Empire have specialized in. Knight Dorniarn is very adept at the techniques for an example," she explained to Darth Daiara . Her apprentice's declaration that she would find the holocron of Cognus had a touch of the confidence and determination that would serve the girl well as she developed her powers. It would also provide her with another reservoir of knowledge to study, and Taeli always enjoyed learning something new. And it would be interesting how the search itself would change Alina Tremiru .

"To control and manipulate machinery and electronics by thought, to morph it to your whims, is quite useful," she continued explaining, the flame in her hand igniting the incense circle. Blue flames started to give the room a more eerie ambiance, the scented smoke rising and twisting in unnatural shapes. "Beyond deactivating explosives, you can easily slip into computer systems and steal information. Sabotage ships and weapons. You can even create technoviruses to infect and mutate organic life into a hybrid droid Sithspawn known as a technobeast."

The whispers from the mask started to grow louder, agitated. Before she turned her full attention to her summoning, she gestured and two books would lift from the many bookshelves in her office, one each for the girls. For Aradia, a beginners' guide to mechu deru that was common for students of the Ziost Academy. For Alina, a history on Cognus for her to research her target and to figure out where she might have hidden a holocron.

"A guide for your paths, my dears," she said, "and now for why you brought this mask to me."

Rayiai Dujomi iw Tsatota, Asarsi ki riyikrauti dia driuni.

A spell of Sith magic, born from her words, twisted as a dark mist into the flames and smoke. The smoke would form into the shape of a Sith Lord, long dead, his form wavering, but his voice and dark presence would be firm.

Why have you summoned Raptus, Weaver of Nightmares?

 

[Darth Daiara]

Aradia grabbed the book, the movements quick and decisive as she clutch it to her chest. A bit of the tension eased from her core, a long withheld problem finally reaching a solution.

They had no clue how much damage she had taken from explosions. She was starting to feel like a bomb magnet, and there was no doubt in her mind it would happen to her again. With the new layer of control in her hands, she watched the woman work. Her ears perked at the twisted tongue, searching for sith words she knew among the chant.

From the mask, a spirit coalesced.

Aradia took a stumbling step back, her pale features blanching as she beheld the presence unraveling into the room. She shoot Alina a trepidatious glance.

Her master wasn't gonna like. Practice on them. Right?

 

[Alina Tremiru]

Alina took the book quietly from her master, more interested in what Darth Daiara was learning. Or going to. Mechu Deru. It sounded quite imposing, especially in this modern age. She froze, though, as the mask suddenly spoked and brought out the spirit of a dead Sith Lord. This wasn't the first time she'd seen such a thing, but it still brought pure fear into the back of her mind. She took a hesitant step back before glancing to Taeli Raaf .

Weaver of nightmares? Just what was her master trying to accomplish?

 

[Taeli Raaf]

Darth Daiara Alina Tremiru

"To see if you would respond," she remarked to the spirit. "We will have much to discuss in time, Lord Raptus, about your work on the Core and where it is."

The spirit didn't respond verbally, merely bowing its head to the living Sith Lady and Taeli dismissed the spell by snuffing the flames away. Good, having access to Raptus would allow her work to progress much quicker. Turning her attention to the worried apprentices, she gave them an easing smile and picked up the mask to examine it a moment longer.

"I think this should be put somewhere for safe keeping and research," she said, placing the mask back on the desk. "And I think it goes without saying we shouldn't broadcast we recovered the mask. Who knows what the Jedi might attempt if they knew hmm? You both did excellent work and I suspect you want to get started on your reading."