Shroud of Darkness

[Cylus Jest]

Breaking minds was one of those things that people hated and yet did not understand in the slightest. It was simple psychology, you made the person realize that they weren't all they thought they were. You showed them a picture of evil and then shined a mirror at them until they started to see themselves in the frame.

The reactions he had gotten from Des were like shining that powerful piece of glass at him. He was starting to give in, Cylus could sense it almost as easily as the Jedi and Sith could sense eachother's presences throughout a world. He was a predator of the mind, and [member="Des Kovak"] was his prey.

He waited quietly until a platter of food was set in front of him, some form of game animal found on a distant world. He wouldn't ask questions, instead he took careful bites of the meal and waited in relative silence. He was alone at the grand table, and for what was not the first time he wondered whether he truly needed any sort of companions to keep him company.

Wiping away some grease from his lips, he motioned for an Undying trooper to step near. His green eyes scanned the trooper and he gave a gentle nod as he motioned the trooper to take a seat. The man obeyed, however Cylus could see that he was a little confused as to what was going on.
"Take what's left of this thing to the prisoner." He ordered and the confusion cleared up in the man's movements.
"Of course, sir." He said obediently, rising to his feet once more.
"Oh, and trooper. Take a mirror to the prisoner." He asked as he took another bite of the meal.
The trooper nodded slowly, as if he didn't quite understand the reasoning, but didn't want to doubt the Servant.

The Undying Trooper approached the cell, opening a small slot in the doorway and handing through a tray and silverware filled with the strange cuisine of the alien animal as well as a small glass of water. Directly to the left of the platter would lay a small hand-mirror.

 

[Des Kovak]

[member="Cylus Jest"]

Des hadn't moved for some time now, deeply sunken in his own private thoughts. There was a lot of doubt and uncertainty there, but as time progressed, Des had managed to come to some sort of reasoning as well. People brought out the worst in each other sometimes, and Des was far from perfect. But as the Jedi Masters had told him, he had a lot of growing to do. The inquisitor Cylus Jest had showed him that he was capable of terrible, terrible things, but that was all the more reason for him to improve on himself, Des had decided. Yes, he was guilty of wrongdoings, but people like Cylus Jest were even more so. He would make it his mission to rid the Galaxy of Jest and others like him. That would be his atonement.

When the trooper brought him his meal, Des looked up. Only now, he realized how hungry he had been, and he all but attacked the food without paying much attention to what it was. It could be poison, but the thought did not cross Des' mind at the time. Besides, the inquisitor had no reason to murder Des in so elaborate a way if a bolt to the head would do just as well. Halfway through his scraps of a meal, he paused and looked up at the trooper, waiting for him to finish so he could take the tray and glass away. "You," he spoke, getting the soldier's attention. "Are you proud of what you're doing? Murdering and oppressing civilians? Bullying an eightteen year old boy?" he asked, referring to himself. "I have not met many soldiers, but I've spoken with a few. They take a great pride in doing what they do, fighting the fight. What you do... It's not soldiering." He let the accusation hang in the air, and knew the trooper would not respond. They were trained not to. But perhaps, in the way Cylus Jest tormented him, he could make this one soldier question his motives just a little bit. He finshed his mean and all but threw the tray and glass at the waiting trooper. "Now take this away like a good servant," he sneered, hoping to make the man further question his position.

The mirror had stayed behind, clattering on the floor and grabbing Des' attention when he gave the tray back. He picked it up now, the door slamming shut behind the trooper. He studied his reflection, the bruise from the backhand Cylus Jest had given him darkening under his eye. What he saw was what he'd said to the soldier just now. An eightteen year old boy, way out of his depth. But Des would come out of this, he resolved firmly. Cylus Jest could mold him if he liked. Des knew he was malleable. But he would not break him. Never.

 

[Cylus Jest]

Cylus glanced up only slightly when the Undying trooper had returned, his motions were just the slightest hint different than when he had gone in and he had a snaking suspicion that the Jedi had said something. Perhaps it was just his mind getting the better of him, playing tricks where he knew there were none.

Perhaps. It may still be a good idea to have a conversation with the trooper later about his positions in life and how he was liking his service as an Undying. They were starting to get a quiet reputation, not as the paratroopers they had originally been designed to be, but more as a police force. A brutal and fierce police force at that.

He laid his green eyes upon the mask which sat at the table with him, and glared into it's eyes. He saw himself in the reflection, and noticed that in essence, both the mask and his face wore the same expressions. Cold and unfeeling. They were like a beautiful crystal now covered in frost and kept away from the world. That was an odd thought.

Still, there was more re-education to be done, and that involved a couple of calls. Specifically they were going to be calls to the family and friends of the few individuals he had just slaughtered in the name of learning. He picked up the mask and slipped it on, searching through the com-link contacts until he came to the ones that the prisoners had supplied days earlier, when they thought they could still escape.

"Evening. Is this the residence of one Solus Mal?" He asked, his voice rolling with false sympathy.
"Yes, yes it is! Is he alright? He's been missing for days!" The voice shouted, filled with both hope and expectant fear that the person may be dead.
"I'm afraid... He paused for effect, as though he were swallowing up sympathetic sadness. "He was found dead earlier today, he was murdered by one [member="Des Kovak"] who is currently in custody."
The other end of the line grew quiet for a few moments before a cruel shriek of agony retched its' head through the com.
"Des! Why! Why him!" She shouted through the comlink for a few moments before Cylus flicked the button and ended the call.

He stood, swirling the cape about his form as he walked towards the secret entrance and spoke his password, opening up the prison cell area of The Estate. He walked quietly, his dark visage resting upon the form of Des Kovak sitting on the opposite side of metal bars which he would never break, ones that would seperate them forever both physically and mentally. In what they would sacrifice.

He laid the device down, and flicked the comlinks' recording over to it. Allowing it to play loudly so that he could hear the woman's voice through it. It finished once, and then began to repeat.
"Look, upon the results of your actions. Yet you try to trick yourself into moral peace." He spoke, shaking his head and leaving the area, the machine still playing as he went.
"Enjoy sleeping with your results." He called before the Prison area was shut off once more.

 

[Des Kovak]

[member="Cylus Jest"]

Des looked up once more into the mask of the inquisitor. By now, it was a sight that was almost starting to grow familiar. He listened to the recording, his throat hoarse and dry as dread dawned on him. They were not just random. They were picked to have families. This guy knows exactly who they were, he realized. Still, he remained defiant. He was not exactly innocent, but Jest's execution oif the last two prisoners had shown him that they were going to die regardless of what he did anyway. "My actions?" he echoed. "Your actions." Still, he leaned back somewhat more heavily now, the families' plight another weight on his shoulders whether he was guilty or not. This was exactly as the inquisitor had planned, Des did not doubt. No rationale could fully absolve him, nor could it stop his emotions from racing.

That night, Des Kovak slept fitfully again, waking in the middle of the night several times as he was shocked by recurring nightmares. In them, the scene unfolded where the inquisitor shot the prisoner on his orders. But he was not strapped in a chair, instead pacing freely around the courtyard in an officer's uniform. Then the inquisitor removed his mask, and his face was an exact match for Des' face. That was when he woke up every time, again and again, panting and sweating.

 

[Cylus Jest]

Cylus slept well, as he always did. Though at one point he woke up for just a moment, feeling a tight knot of something he had come to recognize as guilt building up into his chest before it released just a few seconds later. He did not feel guilt over his actions any longer, nor would he likely ever again. It was what needed to be done for re-education.

The next morning he awoke to a hardy breakfast cooked by his ever-present retinue of servants and droids. He ate quickly and was dressed once more in his usual outfit, the cape he wore flourishing around him as he moved. He noticed an Undying trooper walking by and recognized the slight slant of his shoulders as the one from the other day.

Whatever that filthy Jedi had said, it was obviously still getting to him. Still, it wasn't time yet for him to take any sort of actions to correct that trooper's path. He had more important things to do until then. For example, there was a Jedi who needed to be talked to, and a recording which needed to be silenced.

He moved through the secret passageway as he had before, coming to the small device and de-activating it once he had come. He looked in upon the figure of the Jedi and wondered what he was thinking...what was he doing in that head of his?

He held his hand to the bar and activated the small insects inside of it. They would swarm through the open bars and towards the man they percieved as a hostile and a threat...or as a victim.
"Wakey wakey, [member="Des Kovak"]." He said quietly as he watched the swarm of two-hundred move towards the Jedi.

 

[Des Kovak]

[member="Cylus Jest"]

Des was still wallowing fitfully when the inquisitor entered, clearly not having an easy sleep. He woke to the call of his name, groaning as he hauled himself upright and cleared his vision. He was about to swing his legs over the edge of the bed, when he noticed a rhythmic clicking sound and small things crawling over the floor. He studied them more closely, and immediately pulled his legs back with a start. Was this it? Was he going to be murdered now by these machines? "No!" he exclaimed with fright. "Get back! Get back!"

 

[Cylus Jest]

Cylus simply shook his head once as the machines neared the Jedi's legs, he recalled them before they could actually make contact and the swarm immediately reversed, going back into his glove as though they were loyal hunting dogs and he, their master.

He wasn't entirely surprised by the response given by [member="Des Kovak"], after all, it probably was not pleasant being awoken by a small army of insectoid machines with pincers sharp enough to tear through you as if you were nothing. That wouldn't be worth it at all though, why would he go through such an elaborate execution when a simple bolt was enough to do the job, and that would be a waste of all the re-education he had already put together.

Instead he simply sat at the other end of the cell, peering in through the bars and waiting quietly for a few moments before he spoke, a hint of remembrance firing through the voice, "You think you know me, and yet you don't. I do everything I do to fix things, to make things right. As a child I was always shunned and beaten...now I do not even know what is right or wrong. In the end it is all logical...equal exchange and maneuverings. You wouldn't understand, that is alright. Your usefulness will be realized." He ended softly as he stood.

He waited there a few moments longer, just glaring into the cell at the man before he removed his mask and stared at him with the same cold expression, this time shining from a pair of dark green eyes. He blinked a few times before putting the mask back on. "We are both men, are we so different." He uttered once before walking away from the cage.

 

[Des Kovak]

[member="Cylus Jest"]

Des was visibly relieved when the spiders moved away. In hindsight, it seemed silly to think the inquisitor would allow his death at this point, and Des realized with some shame that he had panicked. So much for always remaining calm.

The inquisitorial agent's words made no sense to Des, and he frowned incredulously. How does murdering all those people 'fix' things?" he demanded, not expecting a clear answer. "How do you logically balance six lives with one. Or any lives, for that matter. People are not checks and balances. You snuffed out lives yesterday. There is no logic in that." This man was cold, Des realized, to view a life that he had ended himself as little more than a statistic. It was something he never wanted to understand.

Because of that, Des was all the more surprised when Cylus Jest revealed himself to be... just a man. In his mind's eye, Des had pictured monsters, wells of darkness, slavering maws, but never just a face. The question shook him back to his senses. "Yes we are," he said decidedly. Of course they were different. "I will never be like you."

 

[Cylus Jest]

Cylus simply sat there, staring into the nothingness as the servants brought him a platter of food. It was still early, and yet he found himself famished. As though the idea of revealing himself to the other man, showing his face to him had starved him...perhaps it had starved him. He wasn't used to showing his face to prisoners after all, this one was so different that he felt inclined to.

Instead he needed to be thinking about the next stage of his re-education. It was difficult sometimes, coming up with things to break the will of the Jedi. He wasn't a horrible monster...he'd never harm children, that was where he drew a line and found himself surprised that he was capable of it. It wasn't efficient after all.

The slumped shoulders of the Undying trooper he had sent days earlier flew through his mind and he decided a little distraction was neccesary. The idea didn't come fully into his mind until after he had already spotted the trooper and motioned him forward.
"You seem troubled." That was all he said as he eyed the other man.
"Yes sir, the prisoner...said some things the other day...is what we're doing right, sir?

Cylus knew from then on that the next stage of re-education would be such a simple one...and such a powerful one as well. The other man had no time to react before the crack of the stun bolt caught him full in the chest and toppled him. Cylus would have no questioning of his men's loyalty, they needed to be kept in line at all times.

A pair of Undying troopers carried their unconscious ally to the cell of [member="Des Kovak"], one keeping careful aim on the Jedi as the other unlocked the door and tossed the man in. Already he was beginning to awaken, but it would be a little while before he was completely coherent from the shock. The door shut and clicked into place as it locked. The Troopers left, leaving Cylus there to watch.
"I see you're causing trouble amongst my ranks, you try to act moral still. I can see, act like we aren't the same. My words bring death, and yours do as well."

 

[Des Kovak]

[member="Cylus Jest"]

Somehow, it surprised Des that his words had apparently had influence on the trooper. He was far younger than anyone else here, and a would-be Jedi among a legion of Sith troops. And yet this man had a change of fate shortly after he'd spoken to him. As a blaster was raised at him, Des stepped away from the cell bars and raised his hands, watching the unconscious trooper and the one who had his sights on him. Now could be an opportunity, when they were occupied with their charge. But Des did not have the skill with the Force needed to wrench the trooper's blaster from his hands, so he remained compliant.

"I do not know what transpired between you and this man," he protested to the inquisitor. "But why do you punish him? For showing doubt? For asking questions? For not falling into perfect line? For not being everything you expect him to be? It is your choice that put him here, mister inquisitor." He considered a moment. Cylus Jest had seemed such an unreachable man before, but now that he'd seen his normal, Human face... Perhaps he could be talked to. "How long until you purge another soldier from your command? And another? How long before you have no allies left, and you have only yourself to blame for your state. The more you tighten your grip, inquisitor, the more people will slip through your fingers."

 

[Cylus Jest]

Cylus simply shrugged at the accusations that he was a terrible person for taking a trooper who had decided to doubt his orders. In fact when that particular part of the conversation did come up, all he did was nod along as if he were agreeing with everything Des was saying and that those were the exact reasons he was doing what he was doing.

It came pretty close, the trooper needed a lesson in service and loyalty and [member="Des Kovak"] still needed to be re-educated more than could be provided at such a meager facility such as this one. Which meant only one thing could be done to truly break the young Des from his state of mind.

"Here is our deal, I want you to listen closely. The family of those WE murdered are coming to pay their respects to the corpse. I will let you go, but you must do something for me. I want you to take off the hand of the Grandmaster of the Jedi, and I want you to show it to me through a public Holo. If you do these things in the next one week, then I will not execute these individuals and will show you their release on live Holo. I hope we have an understanding?" He finished, glaring at Des as if to threaten him with what would happen should he refuse.

 

[Des Kovak]

[member="Cylus Jest"]

To the demands of Cylus Jest, Des' jaw dropped. He had not even met the Grand Master of the Jedi Order. Let alone take her hand. How could he even get close to her? It seemed impossible. How would he even accomplish it? Should he simply ask for this Jedi's hand so he could save these people? Or should he try to fight her? He would hve to figure it, but figure it out he would. He hanged his head in defeat, knowing that Cylus Jest had won this either way. "Very well, inquisitor. I will do this thing for you."

He paused a moment, then looked up and met that mask's agze again. "But after I do this thing, you swear you let those people go. Either way, I will be coming for you."

 

[Cylus Jest]

Cylus simply nodded, opening the cell door with a click of metal as a large spider-like Rapax droid stalked down the corridor, making sure that everything went well and that it's master was not harmed. Cylus simply stepped out of the way of the now open door, allowing for Des to leave at any time.
"This is my true victory, [member="Des Kovak"]. You'll spare your pity, and either way you choose, you cannot win." He spoke with satisfaction mingled in with frost.

Undying troopers were waiting along the entire walk to the front doorway, a ship waited outside, it appeared to be some form of YT-frighter that was in a condition which belayed it's old age and miscare.
Cylus had won, hadn't he?

 

[Des Kovak]

[member="Cylus Jest"]

Recognizing his defeat, Des nodded slowly. "I can only choose the degree by which I lose now," he admitted. More lives, or simply a hand. The choice was easily made. Hands could be replaced. He stepped past the inquisitor hesitantly, and risked another glance back. "This man, the trooper..." He hesitated again. "What will happen to him? Can I take him with me? For his sake?" It was a stupid question, Des knew, but if the man was going to be disposed of and Cylus Jest had no further need of him, he may as well try to save him as well, with whatever slim chance he had.

Whatever the answer, Des sighed and dragged himself away from this inquisitor, this madman, this monster. Now all he had to do was confront the most powerful Jedi in the Order... and find a way to take her hand.

 

[Cylus Jest]

Cylus simply shook his head. That singular little effort, that mannerism had sealed half of the man's fate, the rest of it lay now on [member="Des Kovak"]. Who now marched off to do a task which many would call impossible, a task which he could not win.
"We'll meet again, Monsieur Kovak." He spoke quietly as the man left his presence.

They would meet again, and in that moment blood would mingle with the ground. A mixture of his...and Cylus'.

 

[Des Kovak]

[member="Cylus Jest"]

At the inquisitor's promise that they would meet again, Des nodded. It would be later, and perhaps Des would have more training. Perhaps he would even be a Jedi, though that seemed less likely now that he was going to attack the Grand Master. "I'm counting on it," he said as he boarded the ship, the ramp sliding up behind him.

The controls were unfamilair to Des, but he managed to start the trip with a few hitches. Fortunately, the ship's navicomputer was functional and equiped with coordinates for Ossus.

---

Des landed the battered old ship at the Ossus Temple spaceport carefully. Traffic officials had guided him to the landing zone, and now he exited the ship, grateful for the trip's end. He'd had several hours to prepare for his arrival, so he was ready when a customs official approached him. "And you are?" the man asked. "Des Kovak, Jedi Initiate," Des said. "I was on a training mission on Umbara, but I got lost in the fog and my return was delayed. I should have been expected back several days ago. You can backtrack in the logs and check." The lie came remarkably easy. The man went into his office to check his logs, and then waved over at Des. He was clear.