Private So What Are You Doing, Exactly?

[Alina Tremiru]

Alina had been all throughout the remnants of the Sith Order by this point. Searching for allies and enemies alike, to make sure she knew who stood where. To sow the seeds of her eventual ploy within the Order and erase the past that kept clinging to power. One side or the other. Or, as she'd come to learn, indifferent and uncaring. Such was the way of the Sith, to have their own desires and personalities. They had their own interests. So long as they did, they weren't a threat.

It was the ones without purpose that were the problem. Those who didn't seem to care, those who kept to the back lines and brushed off even their own wants as nothing. She hated those kinds of Sith. Stagnant in their claims of power. It's why she came here. Dressed in black, large sword strapped to her back, the Sith Knight descended from her ship. Consider it a check in. Alina was here to see why this Alize was so content with doing only just enough.

Alize

 

[Alize]

Alize lay in the tranquil meadow, eyes closed, and her chest rising and falling rhythmically. Her long silver hair was tied into a loose braid and a simple, sleeveless, ankle length dress that was a light grey in colour decorated her slender body.

Despite attaining the rank of Knight, Alize was nothing like a Sith in appearance for she had slowed the grasp of corruption through her unwillingness to utilize her dark aligned abilities unless it was a necessity. This was her act of quiet rebellion against her oppressors.

A sense of foreboding filled Alize causing her eyes to flutter open when she heard the sound of a ship in the distance. As the trees began to sway with increasing violence, the sound of the distant ship grew increasingly louder. It was never good when a ship came for her.

A cold expression adorned her previously calm face as she stood up, arms crossed. The lightsabre that hung from the belt at her waist thrashed as the wind grew stronger and the ship moved closer.

A short while later, the ship had begun its descent a short distance from Alize, a distance that still felt too close for comfort. Her body tensed as the mechanical monstrosity initiated its landing sequence and not long after a blonde figure garbed in black descend from its ramp.

Who was this figure and why had it chosen to trespass on her rare moment of happiness?

Alina Tremiru

 

[Alina Tremiru]

The clasps that held her blade in place released as she reached back. Hoisting the large weapon off her back with one hand. Alina strode forward, head held high. Golden eyes glaring down at the woman before her. This peaceful place, a field of grass without a hint of the darkness all Sith had been subjected to. No sign of struggle or despair. It was a dream. At one point, it had been Alina's dream.

Perhaps that was the source of her current anger.

She stopped before the shorter woman, letting her blade fall point first into the ground before her. It sunk in without issue. The weight, the unnatural edge. It cleaved through the rock Alina had chosen to stop at. Intimidation, fear. These were the only weapons she could employ, asides from her unnatural might. "Alize, correct?" The Sangnir didn't bother to introduce herself. Annoyance showed in her gaze, though more towards the field around them as she turned her head.

"I see you're as.. Productive as ever."

Alize

 

[Alize]

Alize was unsettled by the unknown Sith's appearance but she did not allow herself to show it.

She watched as the figure hoisted the blade off her back. The Sith appeared angry but she was not afraid, Alize had become accustomed to bearing the brunt of the their anger. What was another cut? Another black eye? Violence and intimidation. That was what the Sith were known for, what they craved. Her training had taught her this all too well.

Alize narrowed her eyes. Though she stood firm to show no fear, she was mentally preparing to dodge - just because she was accustomed to abuse did not mean she intended to take it.

The Sith stopped. The blade sunk into the ground breaking stone on the way down, separating the two women.

A sigh of relief almost left her lips when she saw its edge was not aimed at her.

Then the Sith spoke.

"Alize, correct?"

The annoyance was clear in her gaze.

"I see you're as.. Productive as ever."

Breathe.

"I am always productive. I am merely learning to assimilate with the non-Sith." Alize smiled and relaxed her expression. She refused to be intimidated. Although she had been resting, her words were the truth.

Alize had told her Master of her plans to "fit in" with those who were not Sith so she could observe them, perhaps even get close to the Jedi and learn of their plans and movements. But of course, that was all an excuse. She needed a cover to leave the territory of the Sith to find more information about the younger sister who had be torn out of her arms. Years of covert intel gathering had found that her dear sister was probably sold off somewhere and living as a slave.

"It is an important assignment from my Master."

Alina Tremiru

 

[Alina Tremiru]

"A lie, or not the whole truth."

Alina stayed unmoving, asides from the subtle tightening of her grip on the hilt of her embedded sword. She hated playing games. No, she hated when others thought they could play games with her. The Knight closed her eyes for a moment. Then reached out. Not literally. But through the Force. With it, she ripped the Force from her surroundings. A dark void, absent of the usual feeling.

Reaching to consume Alize.

"What are you hiding."

Alize

 

[Alize]

Alize shook her head. She had opened her mouth to protest when a hollow feeling consumed her. A sense of loss filled her.

Confused, she focused her mind and tried to reach out for the force. But there was nothing, mere emptiness.

A light that was thought to be long extinguished by the Sith who had relentlessly trampled on her being lit up in her eyes. Her curse was lifted. She was free from the cruel grasp of the force that had separated her and her younger sister.

Surprised by this new revelation, Alize had forgotten about the presence of the black clad figure in front of her. Tears fell from her clear blue eyes onto her cheeks, gently leaving a damp trail down her face before reaching their final destination at the top of her dress.

Freed at last.

A delicate smile made its appearance on her lips.

Alina Tremiru

 

[Alina Tremiru]

This was..

Alina had no idea how to react at this point. She stared at Alize with pure surprise etched over her face. Intimidation, coldness, it was all just gone in a moment. She'd gotten used to the idea that there were people who could handle having the Force cut from them. But she'd never seen someone cry tears of seeming joy after it. Her grip tightened on her blade as she let the aura drop. Let the Force come rushing back in.

"Why are hell are you crying so happily!? I don't- What the hell is wrong with you?"

Nope, she couldn't keep a straight face or a calm demeanor any more. Whatever intimidation she might've built up was gone, replaced by the sheer surprise of it all.

Alize

 

[Alize]

The tears dried up when Alize felt her connection to the Force rekindle.

No.

The curse that had been placed upon her by her connection to the Force was broken. Momentarily, but it was broken.

"Why are hell are you crying so happily!? I don't- What the hell is wrong with you?"

Alize heard the words and remembered the Sith in front of her. Her temporary severance from the Force had trapped her in a world of her own, oblivious to the happenings around her.

"Because my curse was broken," was her simple and honest reply. There was no emotion in her voice, only emptiness.

The fleeting moment of hope followed by the swift destruction of it had left a painful hollowness where the hope had once taken root.

Alina Tremiru

 

[Alina Tremiru]

Curse?

Alina stared blankly for a moment longer, then let out a sigh. A heavy, needless sigh. Especially given she didn't need to breath in the first place. The Sangnir reached down, pulling her blade from the ground before slipping it into it's sheath on her back. The pained, hollow look. She recognized it enough. She turned, planning to just leave Alize like that, not bother with the broken girl she'd turned out to be.

But stopped before she got to her ship.

"I don't know what curse it is you think you have. .. I don't know this world. Where do you eat?"

Alize

 

[Alize]

Staring blankly, Alize watched as the Sith sheathed her blade and headed back to her ship. But instead of boarding the ship, the Sith stopped.

"I don't know what curse it is you think you have. .. I don't know this world. Where do you eat?"

What?

Confusion spread across Alize's facial features. She realized she could not allow the woman to leave yet.

"Eat?"

Alize paused. Now was not the time to speak of such trivial matters such as food or eating.

"Wait!"

She ran towards the Sith, her arm reached out as if trying to stop the woman. There was a question she desperately needed the answer to.

"Did you do that?"

Alize had known it was possible to to separate from the Force but she did not know how.

"And if so, how?" she whispered, vocalising her thoughts.

There was a sense of desperation within her demeanour as she stood before the Sith.

Alina Tremiru

 

[Alina Tremiru]

Desperation was unfitting for a Sith. Alina stared at the girl with.. Well. She felt disgust, at first. But whatever this desperation was born from, all she had was pity. Pity for someone who's dream was to remove the one thing Alina wanted nothing more than to experience for herself. She closed her eyes to hide either of the emotions she felt from Alize's study, in case this whole thing was just an act.

None of the signs were there that it was, though.

"I can't feel the Force, and in turn, I can do the same to others. Temporarily. Now do you know a place to eat or will you just stay here in the grass again?"

Alize

 

[Alize]

"Oh."

Alize paused.

"So it was only temporary..."

Nevertheless, the Sith had peaked her interest. Why would someone so fortunate not choose the path to happiness, to freedom but rather choose to walk the path of corruption, of treachery and become a lowly thief who robbed others like her Master had done to her?

She was curious.

"I know of a cantina where we can eat. It's a little far, in a nearby city." She said and pulled out a small holoprojector. Activating it, a map of the planet lit up in her hand.

"Here."

Alize pointed out the location in the projection.

Cantinas were not her preferred place to dine but Alize knew she could not take a Sith to the restaurant she favoured. It was a cosy little place run by an elderly couple located in a nearby village where there were families. And more importantly, there children in that village. The Galaxy did not need more children who had experience to the loss and suffering she had.

The Sith had rendered her damaged wares.

Cantinas suit villains like us better.

Alina Tremiru

 

[Alina Tremiru]

"Most people are relieved to know it's temporary and you look like I kicked your puppy. You're weird." That's all Alina could think to say. She peered at the map, at the location. Cantina, huh? That didn't make sense either, given the grassy field Alize had been found in. But.. Well. Maybe the girl liked the music or something. The Sith nodded towards her pilot. Another pale skilled humanoid, much like herself, nodded in turn before punching in the coordinates.

"Then a Cantina meal it is, I suppose. If it's not good I can just find someone to feed off of. .. Now you going to explain why you want to be cut from the Force like some crazy person?"

Alize

 

[Alize]

Alize joined the woman.

"Is it crazy to crave freedom? To not want to be tainted by corruption? I am sure you have seen those who have been consumed by it."

It was a half truth but she could not divulge the truth to anyone, lest of all a peer. The whole truth was her weakness, a weapon that could be used against her.

"The Force is a double-edged sword especially for those who follow the path of the Sith. While it gives, it also takes. So if you are unwilling to pay the price that such a path demands, would it not be easier to forfeit the connection that binds you to it?"

Alize continued, there was a coldness to her tone.

"You are aware the path is chosen for some of us? Failure to comply would be to choose death."

She shook her head. She had yet to meet anyone who understood.

Alina Tremiru

 

[Alina Tremiru]

"Better than most." Alina muttered near the end of what Alize explained, sighing in annoyance. Yeah. The life of a Sith was often one forced on them. It was forced on her, all the same. "And yet you're still here. Why not just run? With how destabilized the Sith are you can just fade away and no one would be the wiser." She'd done it herself. Asides from bounty hunters and the occasional Jedi, no one from the Sith actually hunted for her.

And unlike Alize, Alina had put a target on her back all on her own.

"What keeps you here?"

Alize

 

[Alize]

"If running was so easy, I'd be long gone." Alize sighed. An invisible chain in the form of her Master bound her to the Sith.

She tensed at the thought of her Master. His crimson lightsaber and sulfuric yellow eyes haunted her nightmares. His presence had made her feel like the helpless, 11 year old child she was when they first met.

"But my Master might have me tracked down and killed." And that was a risk she was unwilling to take, no matter now small that chance might be. Especially if she succeeded in her search for her sister while on the run. Her life held little worth but the same could not be said for her younger sister's. She was still somewhere in the Galaxy, Alize could feel it.

Her choice to do the bare minimum was a blessing and a curse. While she escaped the grasp of corruption - for now - she lacked the means to free herself. She had no doubt in her mind that any decent Sith Knight or perhaps even a particularly skilled Sith Apprentice could slay her with ease if confronted head on.

"What about you? Why continue on the path of the Sith? You seem like you can hold your own."

Alina Tremiru

 

[Alina Tremiru]

Yeah it wasn't the fear of death that kept her here. Alina squinted suspiciously. If she lost the Force, any Sith Master would have her executed to spare themselves the embarrassment. There was something else. But like all Sith, secrets were just a fact of life. The Vampire left it be, instead scoffing to turn her gaze away. "I did leave, but kept finding myself hunted. Not by the Sith, mind you. Jedi, Bounty Hunters, the Force itself. Even if I abandon the road, the Galaxy will force me back to it anyway. So, I'll just use the Sith to kill the Force and spare everyone from being the Force's chosen or hated."

She shrugged her shoulders, seeming uncaring at just how out there the whole thing sounded.

Alize

 

[Alize]

There is no escape.

Was a normal, mundane life really impossible for her?

Even if she did evade her Master, it seemed there were others who would want to hunt her - that much seemed to be true from the woman's words. This would all be if Alize did not have something she needed to protect.

"That is a noble idea and I sympathise with your sentiments, but how would you destroy something most do not understand?"

And if it were possible, is there anything I could do to contribute to this? Alize wanted to ask but she was unable to read the woman. Was the woman speaking the truth or was this a ploy to test her?

Nonetheless, she was intrigued. This Sith who stood before her piqued her interest. It was completely unheard of to find someone within the Sith who desired the destruction of the Force.

"You are awfully virtuous for a Sith, seeking freedom for all."

Alina Tremiru

 

[Alina Tremiru]

"The freedom of all is a convenient lie. I don't care what happens. I don't care if it destroys the galaxy as we know it, or ruins lives in the trillions. The Force sends it's minions and faithful to try and kill me, so I'll kill it first. .. Whether or not that's possible is a whole different subject." Alina shrugged her shoulders. She wasn't alone in this pursuit. Kill the Force. Kill the will of the Force, she didn't understand it's nature enough to know one way or another. Without feeling it for herself, she'd never truly know.

But she was working on that.

Alina leaned her chin in her palm, staring out the window of her shuttle as they flew from the grassy plains to a closer port to the cantina in question. A dull expression took over her eyes as she stared, watching the life of the world below. It's people.

"You're awfully trusting for a Sith. What if I decided I wanted to kill you? You're on my ship."

Alize

 

[Alize]

That was more like it.

Sith and virtue were like oil and water. Virtue was for the righteous. As far as her understanding went, the Sith pursued their goals for selfish reasons.

"Trusting? This is more intrigue than trust. To be honest, I am fascinated by you and reward is often not without its risks." Alize gave the Sith a stern look. "I have yet to meet someone with abilities like yours. Your ability to temporarily free others from the grasp of the Force is interesting."

Alize frowned. She agreed that it was rather silly of her to join the Sith upon her ship without a second thought but sometimes reason gave way to curiosity. More importantly, there was more she wanted to know about this woman, especially in regards to her connection or rather, lack thereof with the Force.

"Additionally, if you intended to kill me, why wait? I am not anyone of significance nor am I privy to information of any particular importance or value. Are you that desperate for a conversation partner that you have chosen to delay my untimely demise or did you not intend to kill me in the first place?"

Alina Tremiru