Private Somethings Are Better Left...

[Darth Strosius]

Azure.

"I don't think I've ever seen so much water in one place...it's surprisingly beautiful." The masked Acolyte idly thought aloud as the shuttle flew high over the waves of the rogue planet. Even now the planet was shrouded in darkness, almost too thick to be pierced. Lacking a proper solar system with a star to light up the world tended to do that. A world of eternal darkness and crashing waves, a perfect place for a Sith outpost.

The world had once been under the control of the now fallen Sith Empire, and while it hadn't been too strategic it had been used as a storage for weapons and other items of significance throughout the war due to it being relatively far from the war front. While the weapons and whatever else would be a useful find, Alisteri was hunting down something far more valuable than mere material objects.

He plucked the datapad from his pocket and brought up the manifest again. Having recovered it from another Sith base on Felucia, the manifest had been key to finding caches and stores from the Sith for him to take from. Most importantly though, it also gave locations for a variety of Sith relics and artifacts that he could reclaim and keep out of the hands of the unworthy. One being the very relic he was after now, a Sith Scroll. It was ancient and held information on many of the old Sith ways, if the manifest was accurate of course. It hadn't led him astray thus far, and so he went to Azure to find it.

Eventually an island appeared on the horizon, one mostly covered by a large building and a small area for ships to land. That would be his target, if the coordinates were correct.

He maneuvered the shuttle down and slowed until it could move in for a landing, having to use the lights on the shuttle itself to actually find a landing pad. Well, one that didn't have any sort of wear and tear on it anyway. The building wasn't too tall, only two stories, but it was large enough to serve as a repository for all sorts of valuable information and objects. Had he the time, he would have loved to spend hours perusing it all.

However, as he stepped out of the shuttle and onto the landing platform, he knew that his time was limited. This was wild territory now after all, just about anyone could show up and interfere with his plans.

Naivia Neryn

 

[Naivia Neryn]

The sea, the oceans, the islands... Lost among many Mid Rim star systems, Azure was one of those places where you could sit down
surrounded by books and read softly, gazing into the distance and trying to guess what awaited the main character of the story, who he would meet? What he would feel? How the world would change in his eyes after that fateful meeting?
These are the questions Neryn was asking herself, who on her own initiative flew to one of the ancient outposts of the Sith in search of interesting and valuable artifacts that could help her learn the philosophy of the Sith and their
...and their thousands of years of history. The girl ended up arriving in a makeshift ship, with little food and the certainty that in a pinch the force would save the girl from imminent death. Walking through the ancient corridors one could find
that many elements of the décor were still in place, and most of them were still there. Paintings, carved statues by very high-class craftsmen, small armchairs, even whole sets of clothes in case of evacuation! The place was completely
filled with all sorts of strange elements that were not peculiar to a normally forgotten place, of whose existence only legends or the ink on yellowed leaflets in the offices of the old imperial governors remained. With her whole body Naivia scoured for any signals of living intelligent life,
which unfortunately was the case. The girl immediately tried to be more cautious and therefore took the faster and more secret route so that the chance of an encounter was reduced to a minimum of 5 percent, which was also not insignificant for such a small military complex.


Darth Strosius

 

[Darth Strosius]

The outpost was even more desolate and old than he had first expected.

He knew that it wasn't a brand new place to begin with of course, but even after taking his first few steps inside he could hardly recognize some of the things left lying around. All of the dust alone would qualify renaming this to a museum or historical archive, let alone everything else in here. Alisteri idly thought as he made his way through one of the many long halls.

The absence of light in the building didn't bother him much at all, but it did constantly remind him that this building was a bit of a challenge in and of itself. His search for the Sith Scroll had been less than fruitful thus far. Between the mostly deactivated or depowered doors and plenty of strange and clunky piles of this or that, even navigating the place had been a hassle.

He would not be deterred so easily of course, but the search was proving to only frustrate him. Especially when he thought that kept hearing something or someone else in the building.

Small noises here and there, nothing definitive or obvious but just enough to make him nervous and keep him on edge.

Whether it was just his imagination or not, it unnerved him and made him hasten his searching. Gradually he had been making his way towards the center of the building, pushing his way through doors and stacks of objects as he pursued his goal. Hopefully it would be there, more than likely in a safe place to keep it from being tampered with easily.

Naivia Neryn

 

[Naivia Neryn]

Neryn ended up in the most central part of the complex, where the girl was looking for according to the latest information.
As the ceilings and walls were ancient, the girl tried to walk carefully around with her body so as not to get caught in the sharp corners or weak
walls that might break through, though she hoped that would not happen. At the end of the dark tunnel the girl detected a faint reddish-brown light that
was emitting the very artifact the girl was looking for. She quickened her pace and at the end she emerged into a small room, with walls filled with interesting symbols and signs with a pedestal in the middle.
Naivia Neryn cautiously approached and began to use her powers to free the artifact from the special material case that protected it, as the girl had once received training from the Sith with the hope of
that she would join them, but in the end her force was pure from any darkness, but had a versatile attachment. Gradually the case opened and at this point the girl tried to take the thing, but began to feel that now
possible attack from behind and prepared to return the precious object to avoid being hit.

Darth Strosius

 

[Darth Strosius]

It seemed like the building got older the closer he got to the center, the walls gradually turning into ancient yet solid rather than simply being old. He idly wondered if there was some original vault or temple that was built onto later, it would make sense in some respects. That thought warranted some later research, once he had made it back off of the planet of course.

Alisteri could feel that he was getting closer to the artifact that he desired, the familiar cold and sinister feeling of the Dark Side grew more and more prominent with each step that he took. It was nothing unusual for a place of the Sith really. Whether Sith simply built where the Dark was already present or if the Dark Side coalesced around where Sith had built, he could never tell. In the end it hardly mattered, because his thoughts stalled the moment he stepped into the final chamber and saw someone else standing between him and the scroll.

Evidently he wasn't the only one here after all, and what a sour truth that was. He scowled and his hand reactively flew down to grab the lightsaber from his hip and ignite the blade. "Hey! What do you think you're doing?!"

Naivia Neryn

 

[Naivia Neryn]

Neryn took a couple of steps away from the artifact in a flash, ready to ask the same question of the person standing in front of her with the lightsaber ready to attack. But finding a follower of the lukewarm side in front of her, she decided not to act that way and replied in a less stiff manner

"I came for the artifact for the sake of analysis and data collection . That is the only reason I came for this interesting object. I do not wish any conflict. "

She raised her hands, making it clear that she was unarmed from the word go, not even any throwing knives with her, which was thus meant to confirm the girl's thoughts that she was not yet 100% facing a battle where she could only use her strength, agility, speed and savvy.

"And you tell me, why do you visit such ancient ruins? What drives you? What goals? What payment? What is in the depths of your rage? "

And began to expect an objective answer.

Darth Strosius

 

[Darth Strosius]

His gaze narrowed at the other as she spoke, glancing at the artifact in question behind her as if to check and see if it were damaged. It appeared intact, from what little that he could see of it, so at the very least she didn't intend to destroy it. Maybe she could be spared then. Alisteri didn't drop his guard as he took a couple steps forward, but nor did he make a move to attack yet.

He wasn't about to deactivate and put away his weapon so easily, but inviting conflict wasn't his style. The questions unnerved him though and it took a moment or two before he responded. "I believe your questions have clear answers. I'm here for the scroll, by a desire for knowledge and revenge. It can grant me what I need, so here I am." The last question he didn't bother to answer. A small part of him wondered if he even knew how to answer it in the first place, but he quieted that thought.

"Who are you? You don't seem like the usual ruin explorers I've encountered before."

Naivia Neryn

 

[Naivia Neryn]

Neryn tried not to worry, and gathering all her thoughts into one sentence she blurted out in a slightly nervous voice

"I...I am Naivia Neryn, traveling the galaxy in search of interesting artifacts, the study of which will benefit others in the form of new technologies, designs and philosophical systems."

After the girl tried to move away to give the Sith to understand that she in no case will attack him, and he has the right to take the artifact. The girl herself was trying to remember ways to run fast as she had
doubted whether this wonderful spy would let her go freely, for she now knew that there was someone here besides her, and she could use this information, together with the money, to send the
bounty hunter after the creature in question, which would put his own life and all other plans for survival in such a cold and strange galaxy at risk. The next thought was to say that she would do nothing against him in the future
Nothing against him in the future, but that might not have the best consequences in the form of threats or even surveillance of her travels and flights through the galaxy, which she had thought out to the smallest detail herself. In the end, Naivia decided, she would just have to wait for the Sith to leave
In the end Naivia decided to wait for the Sith to leave and then she would make her way in one known tunnel that would take her to her personal ship.

Darth Strosius

 

[Darth Strosius]

His gaze never left the other intruder as she moved, slowly moving forward himself to approach the scroll. Alisteri paused for a moment as he listened to her explanation. A moment of confusion took place in his mind and he unconsciously lowered his blade slightly. "You're studying artifacts for the betterment of the galaxy...and you chose to study a Sith one?" Now that caught his attention.

Given that the Sith had earned a reputation, both in recent times and in the many thousands of years prior, as heartless and cruel warriors and sorcerers it intrigued him that someone would want to learn more about the Sith. Especially with the recent demonization of the Dark Side as a whole by the various major powers of the galaxy. "I find that hard to believe."

Finally he placed himself between Naivia and the artifact, content to have it obscured from her view. "Why choose a Sith artifact? What exactly do you hope to gain here?"

Naivia Neryn

 

[Naivia Neryn]

"One day two teachers came to me, one was a Jedi, a believer in the balance of power, the pure and true path, and the other was a Sith, seeing the force as a way to release his potential and turn personal ambition into reality. Each of them trained me in their art, philosophy and faith for a couple of months. I learned to think like them, to see the world like them through the lens of my personal sense of reality. But in the end they both got rejected. So why are the Sith interested in me? Flesh and metal, mind and power, fire and ice, blood and bond, future and past, eyes of one colour and eyes of different colours, desire to live and desire to kill, desire for revenge and desire to hurt, desire to dominate and win, desire to understand and to cut, absolute evil as the absolute path of Sith genius. I want to understand the root of the thought, it will help improve my own point of view . Such are my thoughts on the matter ."

Neryn smiled and clouded herself against the walls of the temple, relaxing a little

Darth Strosius

 

[Darth Strosius]

Alisteri listened to the story, noticeably still and tense as if he expected an attack in the middle of her speaking. His posture didn't relax very much when she finished speaking either. "Well then. You're already behind if you seek understanding." He gestured to the scroll behind him, stepping aside to allow her to see it without him being in the way.

"The great lie of the Jedi is the inherent evil of the Dark Side. A lie so great that even many Sith believe it. There is nothing inherently evil in the Sith except for the dark desires that many Lords give into. And each time they subvert the Force for their own benefit, the rest of us have to suffer for it. Suffering breeds resentment and revenge, such desire leads the ones that give in to them to great heights if they are worthy. Emotion, freedom, power, these are inherent in our order. Evil merely follows due to how..."

He idly thought of his own eyes, how they now glowed a proud yet sinister yellow rather than their original color. "...corrupting and intoxicating the Dark Side can be."

Naivia Neryn

 

[Naivia Neryn]

"I wouldn't call myself a beginner or a latecomer to the subject, I just like the way your pretty eyes shimmer in their own way, and the colour of your soul colours your appointments and ways. There is nothing new, all are mutations from the same beginning, just even for a kindergarten child. In any case I do not mind if you take it, for me it is much more valuable to talk to a living soul, for which I thank you in advance and hope that magically we will see each other again one day. It's a formal speech, not an official one, it's great here! It's so quiet and sleepy at the same time. I'd sleep like that, but you probably flew in with the hope of a quick pick up and run? I wish you good luck... I'll find something else interesting in other systems, I have money, interest, why not try myself? That's how it is."

Neryn replied, clapping her hands and rejoicing in her thoughts

Darth Strosius

 

[Darth Strosius]

He tensed up almost moved to draw his lightsaber at her words, fixing her with a glare as he reluctantly kept his hand still. There was little point in lashing out from one comment after all. "To give up a prize so easily, how fortunate I must be to run into you instead of someone more persistent I suppose." Alisteri was hardly one to turn away from an opportunity, regardless of how unlikely it seemed. He was quick to turn and extract the scroll, handling it with care and reverence as he secured it away into his coat and turned back.

"So that's it then? You simply intend to walk away and find some other relic to chase?" He spread his arms out almost as if he invited a challenge. "Not even going to try to take me down and steal the scroll for yourself?"

Naivia Neryn

 

[Naivia Neryn]

Neryn looked at Alisteri with a little doubt at his words and shook her head in an attempt to explain her point of view without any abrupt movements, which was really the most common language she used when contact was not otherwise possible or when she was a second away from a possible confrontation that she did not want to be a part of. She wondered how long she could be neutral and at the same time friendly and 'cool' so as not to cause an extra percentage of resentment and anger on the part of the potential duelist.

"Yeah, no problem. Especially since I don't have a lightsaber and have absolutely no desire to inflict any, much less a physical lesson on you. Just understand, I'm a womab of that mindset, all the more reason for your ego to be at peace when you find a real interesting opponent on or just a friend in some cafe where you'll hang out all night, telling how some fool just let you have an artifact. Just say I let you have it. That's it, do what you want, make your life and stay out of mine. That's the deal! Or are you still interested in me? "

Asked Neryn, already preparing to head back to her ship and continue her journey across the galaxy.

Darth Strosius

 

[Naivia Neryn]

Darth Strosius / reminding to check the post