Private The Caverns of Bad Handwriting

[Calyx Sundrift]

T H E -R E D -L I B R A R Y
D E S E V R O

"They still whispered even as they died. "Final Weave". "The prophecy made flesh". "Her death crowns him". The words hissed around him, crawling like maggots through the air. Some fell to their knees in worship, arms lifted, faces lit with awe even as the blade came down. Others broke first, screams rising when they realized he would not stop. Their reverence dissolved into panic, but it was too late. He was already moving."

- Acier Moonbound​

Before him lay the scattered works of seven generations of Sith archivists. Softly glowing starmaps floated in the air, their constellations shifting in silence. Ghostly apparitions of long-dead Lords flickered to life from ancient disks. Three dust-caked tomes, their pages barely held together by cords, lay open among a tangle of notes, sketches, and cross-references in a chaos only Calyx could still decipher.

And in that labyrinth of knowledge, he'd only found a single footnote mentioning The Final Weave.

He leaned back, the high-backed chair groaning beneath him. A sigh escaped his lips, stirring motes of dust from the open pages. The Red Library had been his answer to the prophetic dream the Force had cursed him with. Something bound him to Acier Moonbound . Something that brought the creeping, invasive out-of-body visions that grew more vivid by the night.

He couldn’t recall all of them. Some vanished in a blink. Others were only sensations, like that sickening sensation of falling when you slept. But the massacre? That one stayed with him. The death rattles of the witches chanting about the Final Weave were etched into his memory.

If only he understood what they meant.

His careful attempts to question the instructors had led nowhere. So, his answer to the dreams was the Red Library. A labyrinth of forbidden knowledge. Except - it was off-limits to acolytes like him, who'd joined the Sith unwillingly. It'd taken him more than just a bribe to get through the door.

And now he would leave with even more questions than he’d arrived with.

Calyx raked a hand through his hair, eyes drifting toward the shelves he knew belonged to Sith Sorceries. Maybe he could at least make the visit worthwhile.

Then another thought surfaced.

The lower levels.

They were inaccessible to any but the Archivists. Marked as dangerous. Even Mustafar's caverns were considered safer. Rumor held that the Lower Levels were the kind of place that swallowed explorers whole.

Despite that, he already knew what he would do. The decision was made the moment curiosity took root.

But there was one problem. Going alone would be suicide. Even the regular library visitors had warned him. If this was going to succeed, he needed reliable company.

But not an archivists. They weren’t supposed to let him in at all. Can't ask the Lords either. They’d use him as a trap springer. Other acolytes? He scoffed under his breath. Right. Because they’re oh-so capable and reliable. Idiot. Silently, Calyx weighed his options, the faint hum of the holodisks filling the almost-empty chamber.


Varin Mortifer

 

[Varin Mortifer]

He hoped he would find some sort of history material on Ignati. Though he was but a mere hollow shell of his god-like being, his power still overflowed and overpowered Varin in his highest emotional states. Like two snakes caught in a coil. Where one loosens the other tightens hoping to get the winning hand. An everlasting struggle and battle. It cost him so many times before. Burned him so many more. He had no choice but to come to The Red Library.

A building with a wealth of knowledge. Knowledge of the common, the rare and the forbidden. It was a place of last resorts, the kind of place where even the dust that settles on tomes would tell ancient history.

He had already spent hours in this building, looking into ancient religions and deities both remembered and forgotten. But not once did The Eater of Suns come up. A being his late family worshipped, a being that brought great prosperity to his people. But also a being that like the name suggested, brought ruin. Already the pile of discs and holocrons were beginning to build, already he had slid a second table to his position. His head pounded with an ache that he felt if taking in one more word would cause it to burst.

Why don’t you talk to the source boy?

Varin sighed in frustration as Ignati broke his concentration.

“Because you could twist the knowledge into any way you wanted, judging by these tomes I’m also starting to think you are not what you say you claimed to be. No mention of Ignati, no mention of The Eater of Suns, nothing!”

He threw the book down with a resounding echo, causing nearby readers to glance in his direction.

There is but another area of the library you could try.

Varin’s curiosity piqued upon hearing those words. He had been dining on the subpar junk food of knowledge he was ready for the quality feast that would soon hopefully come.

“Oh you would know wouldn’t you?”

Varin’s frustration came out with his words almost like venom.

Ever since your meeting with Lord Lechner you have been very….distant?....Perhaps even cold. All i was doing was my duty.

Varin’s fists balled tightly.

“You know what was happening. You cost me. You embarrassed me.”

A stranger approached Varin as he spoke.

“Excuse me sir, must you speak so loud? Some people here went through a lot to get here and you are breaking focus.”

Varin’s eyes glared towards the stranger. He was quiet for a moment, but a rumble could be felt in the air.

“Very well.”

He stood up from his seat, the chair screeching across the floor.

These libraries usually have a more secure section. Mainly for those with…much higher clearance. Perhaps that will suffice?

Varin stopped mid stride as he came across the doorway of another room, the table filling with holodisks. He peered in seeing another stranger. No, not a stranger. He recognized him from the acolyte bootcamp, not too long ago. A very capable fighter. And one who loves to study it seems.

Varin spoke quietly before he would make any other movement.

“Mind if I come in?”

Calyx Sundrift​

 

[Calyx Sundrift]

Calyx sat hunched over a pile of papers, eyes fixed on the crudely drawn maps at the top. The ink of the map was smudged, the lines uneven. It was an archivist’s crude draft of the Dathomirian records stored in the library’s lower levels.

He shouldn’t have been able to get it, but when the archivist had turned away, he’d taken his chance.

At the time, it had seemed like a pointless risk. Now, he was grateful he had.

Still, mounting an expedition below couldn’t be done with silence and secrets alone. They’d need equipment. Keys, torches, rations. The essentials. Fortunately, weapons weren’t on that list. When Kasir had caught him, he'd not had his lightsaber with him. But on his request the Covenant had transferred some of his old apartment's stuff. Among it, the saber he'd stolen from Drystan Creed at the Dark Court's refinery. It still didn't feel like his, but a lightsaber was a lightsaber. You didn't complain about having one.

“Mind if I come in?”

Calyx’s head snapped up, hand instinctively moving to cover the map. His eyes narrowed as he recognized the scarred, broad-shouldered figure standing there.

He knew that face. Well, knew was a strong word.

"You’re Varin, right?" Calyx turned slightly in his chair, a grin tugging at his mouth. "From that deathtrap the instructors called ‘a lesson’?" He gestured toward the scattered papers. "Calyx. And yeah, come in."

With Varin’s arrival, the odds tilted in his favor. Convincing a stranger to go exploring the forbidden levels would’ve been a lost cause. But someone familiar? Someone capable? That was different.

He just needed to find out whether Varin had any interest in what lay below.

"What’re you digging into?" he asked, motioning toward the man’s side of the room. "Anything good? I’m getting nowhere here. Could use a distraction."

Varin Mortifer

 

[Varin Mortifer]

Varin gave Calyx a nod after he spoke. Slowly stepping into the room he looked around at the pile he too was leaving on his table, noting the man’s hand that covered a parchment he was looking into.

“Ah, you’re the one that sent me back my weapon. A very impressive feat. She’s definitely not the lightest weapon. Though I never got to properly thank you for that. It saved me.”

As he approached the table he noticed a slight view of some paper. A paper with what seemed to be markings though he could not get a good look without outwardly looking at it.

“I was looking into an ancient religion you could call it. Tell me, have you ever heard of The Eater of Suns? Or perhaps where one might go to learn of ancient forgotten worships?”

His hand slowly swiped along the table as he made his way around, The hums and slight tickings of the disks filled the air with its soft sound. He could tell that this one was hungry for certain knowledge. Not very often does anyone leave such a collection laying around just for fun. Well maybe some would, but in the end that was also because they were hungry.

“I see you are also looking into some sources as well. Anything interesting? Or is this just an extra hobby of yours?”

He stopped at the end of the table looking over the shelves that held other sources of knowledge, skimming his finger over them, browsing what may include what Varin was looking for, though he doubted it would.

“That hunger of knowledge could certainly get you into trouble.”

He looked back with a slight smirk.

“But life would certainly be boring without risks, wouldn’t you say?”

Calyx Sundrift​

 

[Calyx Sundrift]

Calyx made an exaggerated bow. “You’re welcome.” The mace had been absurdly heavy, but anger and the Dark Side made for good leverage. “Honestly, I’m surprised I got it that far. They do say Sith are supposed to be powerful, no? Would’ve been embarrassing to be written off for that, had it not gone up.” Calyx grinned.

Varin’s answer rewarded the prodding. Calyx studied the man’s earnest face. Varin seemed to be someone who’d fallen down a similar rabbit hole and kept digging. “The Eater of Suns…” Calyx repeated, brow knitting. “Never heard of it.” He spun back to the desk. “I’ve been combing the directories on old folklore, cults, Sith religion. No clear traces of an Eater of Suns. If it’s an ancient, forgotten worship, though..." he paused, tasting the idea, “Well, you could try the Lower Levels. I’ve been meaning to go there anyway.” He suspected the Final Weave might point the same way.

When Varin returned the question, Calyx hesitated. It was easy to give half-truths and scattered information, but he tended to keep his reasons and motivations veiled and close. But Varin had been straightforward, and honesty deserved honesty. “The Prophecy of the Final Weave,” he said at last. “A Dathomirian myth, as far as I can tell. But I've only encountered vague references so far.” He shrugged. “So, yes. I was planning a trip to the Lower Levels. Myself. Secretly, of course.”

Varin’s offhand comment made it clear he’d been thinking along the same lines.

“Think we'd stand a better chance sneaking in together?” Calyx asked, then listing aloud as he spoke. “We’d need gear. Lanterns, rations, a few decent coats. Proper keys, if we can find them. And a good distraction. Can’t do it without one.”

Varin Mortifer

 

[Varin Mortifer]

Varin chuckled slightly.

“Yes, I can see how that would be embarrassing at the least.”

He listened to Calyx as he tried to think on, The Eater of Suns, but to no real surprise, he didn’t know either. His next statement did catch Varin’s attention.

“...The Lower Levels…”

He paused for a moment thinking as well as listening to what Calyx would suggest. From the sounds of it The Lower Levels was no small area. Not to mention its dangers. And this Prophecy of the Final weave. The name itself brought a mysterious element behind it.

“Dathomirians tend to remain secretive. Yet also tend to be afraid of their own creations. Perhaps it isn’t a myth, but something you are not expecting. Something that they would have had no choice but to hide away.”

Varin smirked as he listed the essentials.

“I hope you can pick things off of guards really well, because you will find no better distraction than me. How much of this place do you want to remain intact?”

He leaned over the table resting his hands on its surface as he stared him in the eyes.

“I will do what I can to not erase everything here.”

He fell quiet for a moment as he heard voices in the hallway. His head snapped into its direction, then slowly back at Calyx and spoke in a hushed voice.

“I’m in. Do not double cross me. The last person who did is now resting in ash deep in the desert.”

Calyx Sundrift​

 

[Calyx Sundrift]

Thoughtful, Calyx fixed his eyes on Varin. “Something they’d have no choice but to hide away…” he echoed. It made sense. Nightsister secrets were buried deep. Buried because generations of Sith had tried to pry them open and failed, unless bloodlines or miracle favored them. But Varin’s angle, looking for what they hid, not what they shared - that was a new. And useful.

Still, philosophy could wait. The practical problem, getting into the lower levels, still loomed in the room. Calyx listed the essentials aloud, only to catch the smirk tugging at Varin’s mouth. At the latter's remark, he shot him a grin back, wicked and bright.

“I prefer to call it trading,” Calyx said. “Their most valuable tools in exchange for my undying gratitude, or whatever’s closest at hand.” He rolled one shoulder. “And if you’re wondering about skill, I could steal a Star Destroyer from under an Imperial garrison’s nose.” He waited, then added “So I s’pose we’re good.”

He rose from the chair, sweeping up papers and charts with practiced chaos as Varin idly threatened the Library’s foundations. “They’ll kill you if you burn the scrolls,” Calyx warned, stuffing notes into the folds of his robe. “So maybe stick to structural damage only?”

Varin’s final caution was like a vibroblade set gently on the table. A promise, very "Cross me and die."

Calyx laughed in return. “Don't worry. I haven’t bought into the whole ‘use and be used’ doctrine of our little cult yet.” He strode toward the shadowed corner, shaking his head. “And I’m in a tight spot here. I could use allies. Or pacts.” He glanced back over his shoulder. “Or neutrality, when it matters.”

He crouched, inhaled, and seized the Force. The Dark side rippled, then quieted under his command. Shadows gathered, thickening around him, blurring his outline. It was not invisibility, nothing that clean. More like a trick of the eye, a slip of presence. A ghost in a room full of ghosts.

Even in the Force, his signature dwindled to a faint ember.
It would fool archivists. Hopefully.

“Ready.”

Varin Mortifer

 

[Varin Mortifer]

“Structural damage it is then, I suppose.”

He watched Calyx sweep up his papers as he made his vow to not cross him. If all goes well with Calyx it is possible he could have some very practical uses in the future. Someone to keep an eye on for sure if he is as good as he says so.

Varin walked to the doorway just past Calyx to give him some cover. As he eyed what he could use as a distraction he made his response.

“Just about.”

His eyes landed on a shelf of holodisks ahead and a dark smile cracked his face.

“Ready.”

He stated as he walked towards the large shelf, watched over by two attendants of the library. Their face lit up as Varin approached nonchalantly.

“Can we help you with something?”

One of them inquired as Varin stopped just in front of them.

“I believe someone had left a mess, I hear at least one person is trapped under it too.”

They looked at each other in confusion, even if this was a ruse they would have to check it out, not because people were trapped but because precious knowledge could be scattered about and disorganized.

“Show us where, immediately.”

Varin led them so that he was just past the heavy shelving unit. Almost immediately he swung around gripping the shelf and with a harsh growl he ripped part of it out of the floor causing it to fall over the attendees as they let out a sharp yell.

Varin quickly looked over to Calyx.

“Let them follow me. I will lead most of them away and meet you at the destination.”

He then turned back around stepping onto the collapsed shelves as the attendees groaned in pain.

Calyx Sundrift​