Servant of the Darkness (Milo)

[RC 212]

Mygeeto
[member="Milo Ren"]

Darth Raxis had called Milo Ren to Mygeeto. The two of them came from different philosophies. He was a Knight of Ren, an Order that left a sour taste in the Plague Bearers mouth. she was not interested in half Sith, those who shirked their duties to the Darkside.

Still he wanted training, so she had obliged. It was a strange a place as any to meet. She waited for him upon the windswept plains just outside the cities sanctuary. Clad in her black suit and cape, with b;lack steel plates over her more exposed areas. With both arms crossed she leered out at the storm that brewed.

The horizon was blotted out with shades of white as a furious storm cast Ice and snow throguh the air, and wind whipped that would pierce any mortal to their bones.

Darkness enveloped her, crackling beneath her feet. Even the ground she stood on wept, blackening and snow wilting.

One word was echoed to the boy.

​

"Come."​

 

[Milo Ren]

Milo strode across the plains, wind whipping through his black cloak. Mygeeto was one of the worse planets he had been on weather-wise. The location of training, both planetary and setting, was curious. Were the elements part of his training? Or was it mere coincidence? In the Ren's experience, there were no coincidences, at least that he could see. It had to be for a purpose.

Milo's mask was secured firmly on his head, shielding his handsome face from the worst of the elements. The cold metal was almost burning in sensation now. A darkness loomed nearby. It was her. The Plague Bringer. The Ren had never met a Sith Lord before, or at least one that truly followed the vestiges of the ancient order. He had met men and women who were comparable in strength, but never one who was completely one with the dark side. The opportunity to learn from Darth Raxis was titillating, to say the least. It would certainly broaden Milo's horizon of the Force, although he surely didn't want to reach the level of corruption that was oozing from the woman before him.

There she was, covered in black. Was it just him, or was the ground beneath her blackening as well? He stopped about five feet in front of her before dropping to a knee, bowing before the Lord. It was better to show respect to those with more power over you. In his studies, he discovered that the Sith were prone to viciously murder those who even made a slight error, or the tiniest show of disrespect. The Ren wanted to keep his head that day.

"I am here."

[member="Darth Raxis"]

 

[RC 212]

[member="Milo Ren"]

"Welcome Ren."

She was less interested in his mask and other trappings. The Ren to her were abominations. Lawful Sith were a ridiculous notion to her. the Darkside was a territory that came with many things, but laws?

She grinned and then motioned to the snow.

"Are you ready to begin your training Knight of Ren."

The snow was picking up now, wind whipping harder.

"I will make you a true Sith. More powerful than your peers. But you will have to do many things you will not want to do. these will be necessary for you to evolve. I am not easy to please, but the Darkside is even harder to please."

 

[Milo Ren]

Milo stood up and nodded, eager to begin.

"I am ready to do whatever it takes."

The Ren was certainly prepared to train. Although he didn't seek to fully embrace the dark side, there was a certain allure to it and the strength it granted one. Milo could feel it now as he remembered returning to Tatooine, where he was enslaved by a cruel Hutt. He had a strike team of Death Troopers with him, and they had laid waste to the Hutt's palace, slaying her guards and various other locals who had been unfortunate enough to be in the vicinity at the moment. He remembered the rage that burned through him as he struck the killing blow to the Hutt herself, sending his lightsaber through her fat and nearly cleaving her in two as revenge for the death of his mentor and friend, the one who had brought him to the Force and trained him as if he were his own son. From that day forth, as him and his entourage left the burning wreck of the palace behind them, the Ren had felt different. Stronger, and for the first time in his life, free.

It was an invigorating sensation, and Milo wanted more.

[member="Darth Raxis"]

 

[RC 212]

[member="Milo Ren"]

"Good, good."

She crossed her arms.

"Darth Plageuis once took his own student down here to train. I will use the same techniques, as they are the most effective."

She motioned again with one finger.

"Strip. Down to nothing."

She waited, and watched the snow begin to build with blinding furry.

"The path to the true Darkness begins in pain and anguish. These can harnessed into aggression, which is the prime emotion that cements your connection to the Darkness. The Darkside is more than just a tool. As you control the dark currents, they control you. One does not claim the darkness as their right. The darkness claims them."

 

[Milo Ren]

That was certainly not what Milo was expecting. He raised an eyebrow, unseen within the confines of his mask. If it was what was required of him...

First came off the mask. Milo's bright green eyes shown amidst the pale background, and his white hair virtually disappeared from sight, blending in perfectly with the snow. Next came the gloves. Then the boots. Then his belt, along with it his lightsaber. His robes were next, which took long, as tightly wrapped around his thin body as they were. Finally, his underwear was thrown into the pile of clothing and gear that was rapidly being devoured by the snow that whipped his naked body. Icy pain shot from every inch of skin as the man began to shiver uncontrollably, his hands covering his nether regions so he could at least be modest while he froze to death. The Ren cast a baleful glace at the Sith Lord before him. He was certainly in pain, that was for sure. Between chattering teeth and a numb face, Milo slurred.

"What...what comes next..."

Exposed out in the snow and the sharp gusts of wind, the Ren didn't expect himself to be able to last very long. There was only so much that the human body could withstand. From an outsider's perspective, the man would appear mad, standing out in a plain, naked as the day he was born, while a woman oversaw. It would be a humorous situation in separate circumstances, but now, it was a matter of life or death. Whether or not Milo could adapt would mean the difference of walking away with knowledge or dying in the snow, his corpse stumbled upon months later by an unwary sentient.

He wasn't ready to die.

The situation almost reminded him of the time he spent wandering the Dune Sea, searching for his ship after escaping the shackles of slavery. Drawing upon the rage and bitterness of that moment as he left behind his friend and instructor's corpse for the sand and wild animals that roamed the desert, a spark flickered in his chest, then rapidly expanded, warming him with the fires of hatred and anger. It was a burning feeling expanding from his chest cavity to his limbs. Was this what she wanted from him? For his rage to consume him, to sustain him? If so, she got exactly what she wanted. Milo surrendered to the darkness. Bitter tears freely fell from his face and rapidly evaporated. Was it just him, or was he now actually steaming? That hissing sound emanating from his body wasn't just made up. No, the snow around him was actually melting.

Howling with rage, Milo's voice almost matched the intensity of the wind whipping his naked body. A small puddle of water was forming at his bare feet. The Ren didn't feel cold anymore. No, he felt anger, and hate, and an all-consuming desire to kill someone, something, anything, everything. It was that same hatred that had sustained him for so long in the deserts of Tatooine, the same feeling he had as he boarded his ship and slaughtered every scavenger aboard it with the Force.

It consumed him, and as his howls rapidly transformed into menacing peals of laughter, it dawned upon him.

This felt good.

[member="Darth Raxis"]

 

[RC 212]

[member="Milo Ren"]

Darth Raxis nodded.

"Good. The pain is harnessed and makes you stronger. Already you grow in the darkness. Pain to aggression, aggression to power."

She motioned to the icy pond nearby.

"Take it a step further. Survive in the pond for thirty minutes. Embrace yourself in the darkness and you will truly tap the darkness."

Each passing moment his power grew.

"When you learn how to harness these feelings, each painful event, each painful moment builds upon the next. Once you have enough of these moments, once you taste true Darkness. you'll never forget it. This is the source of your power. In battle, pain will will fuel you, in peace, your meditations on your past will fuel the aggression which will make you strong."

 

[Milo Ren]

The pond was only just a few steps ahead. Each moment that passed Milo felt warmer. He didn't think this level of rage could appear in a moment, but the Ren surely ha a lot of pent up emotions beneath his calm, cool, and composed exterior.

Without a second thought, he waded into the icy pond, pushing aside chunks of ice that floated about. He was submerged up to his neck now. The cold was creeping in, slowly but surely, and Milo fought against it with all of his might.

Remember Massus...remember his body lying dead before my feet, mortally wounded from a blaster bolt cast by the Hutt's guards...

Slowly, but surely, his temperature began to even out. He wasn't warm now, not in the least bit, but the cold water was nothing more than a nuisance now. He felt that in his current state, he could be there all day. The rage in him had steadied from a blazing inferno that threatened to consume him to a controlled bonfire. Yes, this was exactly what he was searching for. A balance between self-control and madness.

His lessons were off to a good start.

[member="Darth Raxis"]

 

[RC 212]

[member="Milo Ren"]

After she let him bathe in the icy waters for hours she was satisfied. Darth Raxis nodded and motioned for him to exit. He was well versed in the art of harnessing his anger and aggression, turning it to energy. That was a good start but raw aggression and energy could not alone win the fight. To defeat the Jedi would take more than raw force power.

"Get out, get dressed. Sleep and meet me here tomorrow. Then we'll begin the next phase of your lessons."

She had some other lessons but they involved more subtle arts. He'd need rest and a full stomach to endure what came next.

 

[Milo Ren]

The next day
--------------------
Milo walked back to the field in which he first met with Darth Raxis. He was exhausted from the previous day's ordeals, both physically and mentally. Withstanding that amount of damage to his body should've killed him, but it didn't. The Ren's rage was now easily accessible. Having to depend on it to survive, he now could quickly send himself into a state of anger, drawing on the negative occurrences of his life to push himself to new limits. It was tantalizing and frightening at the same time. What were his limits? Would he be able to push himself further and further? What point would it be where his body just simply refused to take any more damage and gave up? They were all valid questions, but the Ren was not eager to discover the answers for them, especially the last one.

Now, to find his instructor...

Milo walked to the same spot where they had first met. The scorched earth was still there from the Sith Lord's presence. There was also an additional feature that wasn't there yesterday: a small pool of ice, made from the melted snow that Milo had created in the wake of his rage. He was fully clothed now in his usual attire, minus his mask. He let his long hair flow freely in the icy gusts that scoured Mygeeto's surface as he peered about for Raxis, eager to begin training again despite the soreness of his body and mind...

[member="Darth Raxis"]

 

[RC 212]

[member="Milo Ren"]

She was there, with arms crossed as usual. This time she had a more daunting task in mind. She would push him past his limits, past whatever he thought he could do. Her student would learn and learn quickly how to survive endless hours of combat, suffering and fatigue. the day was far from over, but today as gut check. If he passed this test, he'd be truly orthy of her more concrete teachings.

She began circling him, yellow eyes piercing his soul.

"Every Sith is the embodiment of the will of the Dark Side. We already discussed aggression, anger, and harnessing pain to create them. Agression alone will not win you a victory in a truly gruelling conflict. You may be called upon to fight two, or three battles back to back. In order to build the will power for such battles, I have another test for you."

She reached out her hand, and his saber flew to her grip.

"You wont be needing this.....tool. You ill earn it back. And when you do, you will be a true Sith."

Then she pointed to the lake. It was another day of suffering for him.

"Swim across, and then back. When you return, we have a run planned."

Her eyes darted to the high peaks of the Mygeeto landscape. Some ten thousand feet tall of ice. Others even farther....

 

[Milo Ren]

Milo's lightsaber flew out of his belt. That was all right. He didn't need it. The Force was his weapon.

Despite not receiving instructions to do so, the Ren took off his tunic and gloves, leaving him bare chested. He didn't want to overheat, now. He turned his back to Darth Raxis to head over to the lake. She could see the old scars running across his back where the whip was given to him. He received those wounds just a day prior to him and his mentor's escape from the Hutt's palace for not paying enough attention to her.

Flicking a mental switch in his mind, Milo ran and jumped into the lake with no hesitation. The soreness of the previous day's events was already rapidly being replaced by dark energy radiating from his chest to the rest of his body. It took some time to swim back and forth, but he did it. The Ren stood before Raxis, the icy water steaming off of his body visibly.

"I'm ready."

[member="Darth Raxis"]

 

[RC 212]

[member="Milo Ren"]

Darth Raxis nodded, sweeping him over with her yellow eyes. The test was far from over. She had to wear him down, then expose him to even more hardship. It was the only way.

Next to her was a rucksack, filled with rocks. She had brought with her earlier and buried it in the snow to prevent him having any inkling of what was to come.

"Don the rucksack. It weighs one hundred pounds."

She whirled, clipping his saber to her belt. If he wasn't tiring yet he soon would.

"Follow me."

She took off running, fuelled by the darkside. Her legs turned over at the speed of rotor blades on an atmospheric craft. Her arms swung in perfect rhythm. A black dot streaked across the blazing stark snow plains, towards a high mountain, being slammed with snow and thick with ice.

She was going to the top.

 

[Milo Ren]

Milo swung the rucksack onto his bare back. By the Force, that was probably one of the heavier things he's carried in his life. He watched as Darth Raxis sped off faster than he thought would be humanly possible. Channeling his rage, the man attempted to run at the same pace. Alas, while he certainly went faster than normal, he was unable to reach the Sith Lord's speed, partially due to the weight of the rocks, but mostly due to the fact that he had little experience in this sort of thing. Still, Milo pushed on. If it took him a little longer to reach the top of the mountain, so be it.

-------------------------------

He was gasping for air now. Almost at the top. He was nearly there. The weight had began to take a toll on the Ren, made his movements more sloppy and less coordinated. An upturned stone nearly tripped Milo, then another one, and finally one managed to knock him down, sending the full weight of the rucksack onto his torso as he ate poodoo. The handsome face of Milo Ren took the brunt of the fall, landing particularly hard on outlying rocks. Cuts and scrapes ran through his cheeks, and he was pretty sure his nose was broken now. Blood oozed out from his nostrils. It was a pity. Milo's face was almost universally regarded as handsome by nearly every woman he had come across. His nose would most likely be crooked now. Still, the pain drove the Ren on. The fact that his face was now marred made him mad. It made him want to tear down the mountain with the Force, to hurl every stone into the cold reaches of space.

Once again, the pain fueled him. Milo leapt up with agility that was inhuman for someone with that much weight on their shoulders and sprinted off. Only a few more yards remained. He could see Darth Raxis now, standing on the summit, his vision outlined in red. His eyes were beacons of yellow now, losing their green calmness that he had inherited from his mother. The man skidded to a stop before the Sith Lord, his Master, and panted, although his gasps for breath sounded more like the growls of a feral animal at this point.

"What...is next...?"

[member="Darth Raxis"]

 

[RC 212]

[member="Milo Ren"]

They had reached the summit. By now she had pushed him to the limits of his physical endurance. Now was the last part of his physical endurance. The field of Wampa nests below would challenge the young Knight in ways he could only imagine. What powers would he fall back on? Did he have any or did he rely too much on his sword. Without his full strength he'd have to be a smart Sith, not just a brute force Sith.

"Being a true Sith is more than just brawn. The most successful planned and plotted. Adaptability and cunning can out manuever a stronger opponent most of the time. For example Plagueis killed his Master Tenebrous during a rock slide, by seeing his opportunity and taking it. You have to learn how to face each challenge. Power can be taken down by agility. Agility can be taken down by a well alid trap. A combination of the three can be especially deadly."

She crossed her arms, yellow eyes sweeping the plains, black hair flowing in the wind swept top of the mountain.

"The way down is fraught with Wampa nests and other dangers. You will navigate these ways."

The Wampas would stir as she blasted the area with force waves. Their minds felt little pricks that awoke them, and then were invaded and enraged by her power. She grinned at the sight of her students battered face and the bloodied nose.

"You will fight them with no weapon. Lightsabers are nothing more than a tool. The Ren rely far too much on them. The force is a greater tool. Now go."

She pointed down into the valley, which lead into a field of ice thousands of feet down....

 

[Milo Ren]

Milo stared at the valley before them with yellow eyes. He was far beyond his breaking point now, but the Force sustained him, granting him unnatural strength and endurance. He didn't mind not having a lightsaber. Milo, in fact, agreed with the Sith Lord. They were tools, useful when applied properly, but one's reliance should be primarily in the Force. The Knights of Ren put a heavy emphasis on one's skill with a blade, so the Ren was proficient with it, but he did not need it.

Milo reached up to the straps of the rucksack and tore them cleanly with a simple pull. The broken sack fell to the snow, spilling the contents of rocks. From the pile, the Ren chose the biggest and heftiest one, holding it in his right hand as he strode down into the valley, ready for the next test.

---------------------------------

Milo trudged through the icy chasm, alert, ready for any danger. A cave coming ahead looked like a possible exit point for a Wampa nest. As if on cue, one of the hairy beasts strode out, enraged at have being waken from it's sleep. It roared and charged at the thin man before him, ready to rend his flesh and break his body. The stone from Milo's right hand floated up at eye level. With a wail of effort, the Ren flung it forward with his mind, charging every molecule of the rock with power. It snapped to the Wampa's head with blinding speed and strength and made contact, turning the beast's head into pink mist as it cleaved straight through it's skull, then floated back to Milo. Another Wampa emerged and howled in a feral fury. The stone made short work of it in a similar manner, punching a hole through it's chest cavity, the blood of the ice creature staining the snow red. The Ren proceeded forward, turning a stone corner right into the claws of another Wampa. It struck downwards, and Milo sought to evade it's blow. The claws scraped his chest, drawing blood, and he used the sharp pain as fuel. With an outstretched palm, Milo sent the beast flying forward with a telekinetic blast, where it crashed into a wall of rocks and laid still, spine broken.

A disturbance was in front of the Ren. Another cave was near, teeming with more Wampas. They saw the bloodied and battered man and howled. Milo roared in response. There were too many to kill individually. One would eventually reach him before he was through with all of them. He had to dispatch them all at once. Using the gore-coated stone, the Knight flung it forward, turning the closest Wampa's head into a shower of brain matter and gristle, and reached out with the Force to the cave itself. With a tremendous pull, the lip of the entrance was collapsed, burying the other Wampas alive in their own den. Stone, ice, and snow rained down in a tremendous crash as he proceeded.

------------------------------------------------

The valley was behind the Ren now. It took great effort to even put one foot in front of the other, but Milo had made it. He was now in the icy field. His staggered footsteps led him to his knees, and finally to all fours as the Knight crawled through the snow and ice, leaving a trail of blood in his wake. Upon arriving at the center of the field, Milo fully collapsed, completely drained of all energy, both physically and mentally.

Am I dying? Is this what death feels like?

The urge to just lay his head down in the snow and drift off into oblivion was strong. He thought he could hear his mentor's voice from across the grave.

Milo? Milo Zett?

Massus? Is...is that you?

It's not your time, kid. Get the kark up. You're a fighter. I didn't sacrifice myself on that forsaken sand dune of a planet for you to die in some ice field. Get up!

Massus...I want to be with you...you were my best friend. You were more of a dad to me than my actual father was.

I know, kid. But it ain't your time. I lived my life. Now you gotta live yours. Come on, stand up. That's it. Tall and proud. You've got guts, and spirit, and a bright future ahead of you.

The Ren was now on his feet. He could see the crusty old man in front of him now, with a proud smile on his face, light glowing from all around him. But he started to fade away, and Milo frantically stumbled towards him, calling out in a howl of anguish.

"Don't leave me!"

As the last bit of light shimmered away, so too did Massus. A final sentence echoed out, fading into the roar of wind that engulfed Mygeeto.

I never did...

It was now just Milo, alone in a field of ice, grasping at snow. The man fell to his knees, weeping bitterly for the man he once called friend. He struck out at the snow blindly in rage, and in his anger poured out at nothing in particular with Force Lightning from his hands. A thunderous crack erupted from the field as the bolts of pure Dark Side energy rained down upon the snow, melting it and scoring the ground in front of him black. The Ren was spent now, on his hands and knees once again, breathing haggardly, spittle and tears dripping down from his mouth and face and collecting upon the red snow, tinged with droplets of blood from his wounds. The man felt different. He felt changed, and for the first time in a long time, Milo Ren felt whole.

[member="Darth Raxis"]

 

[RC 212]

[member="Milo Ren"]

She was there beside him as he collapsed. Her student was spent. His force powers had waned down to nothing and she could sense he was barely hanging on. A cruel smile split her face. this as good. This was where the true power of the Darkside was unleashed. What he had been using, pure emotion and aggression was gone,

Now he would have to dig deeper, to channel raw force through his body. It was deeper than just the light or the dark. It was not driven by anything other than desperation. The Darkside would stake it's claim in him, and if he was worthy it would allow him to live. If not....well....

She cast his saber into the snow in front of him and stepped back.

"Your force lightning if you could call it that is weak."

She was goading him now.

Both arms uncrossed and she extended her fingers.

"You will not like me, you will not love me. You will hate me, despise me. I will be the bane of your existence. The relationship between Master and student is just that. I will push you, break you and deny you. You will lust after my power, and despise my very guts. Without that basic bond, the darkness does not flow."

Electrical arcs began to build, flashing green, purple and blue upon her fingertips.

"You are lower than the filth of a pond, than a worm in the dirt. You are nothing Milo."

....

"Now rise and fight. Hate me. Or die!"

The lancing crackling lightning burst forth now. She was in her prior life exposed to it. No true form of it could be conjured unless one was touched by it themselves. Anything else was just imitation.

Would he get to his saber? Would he pull through?

 

[Milo Ren]

Milo roared with ferocity, grabbing his saber and activating it with a red hiss. Peals of lightning struck him, torturing his battered body even further. Still, the man pulled through, blocking most of the streams of energy with his lightsaber. The Ren was livid now. His vision was red with rage, and all he could focus on was a singular objective inside his head, chanting rhythmically like a dark ritual.

Kill. Kill. Kill. Kill. Kill. Kill.

Milo drew closer to Darth Raxis. His hate for the woman grew by the second. Who was she to call him pond scum, a worm in the earth? He didn't see her complete any of these trails. He didn't see her tear through the Wampas. Now, she had the audacity to call him weak?!

He'd make her pay.

[member="Darth Raxis"]