The First Step

[Ariealla Vareldi]

Katarr

There was always a step on the journey, a place where the tide of stagnation began to turn, and what was once an idle dream would become a tangible reality, a possibility. A promise. And Ariealla was taking that step today, the first of her journey..

No.

The first on her return. The once great assassin had lost much of what made her a feared sith lord, and she would have it again. There was no force, not living, not dead, not in the twilight betwixt the two that would stop her. And today's step was the first to herald her growth. As such, it only felt... fitting... for her to share this step with the one who granted her the opportunity to begin this path once more. At least, in some measure, that was.

She had found her way to Katarr, a world once wiped clean of life, to settle herself in to meet with the closest thing she could consider a friend in the galaxy. Fitting, that he should be as she was, freed of the constraint of death, even if their choice of vessel held little similarity. [member="Darth Abyss"].... the Mindeater, the second coming of the Lord of Hunger in many respects, an odd sort of kinship. Odder still was his grasp on who he was, for one who had fallen into addiction of their power, he retained far more personality than that of his predecessor.

Perhaps that's why she could find kinship with him. Their madness's were not so different, you know.

As she brought a, borrowed, transport into orbit, she began to head for one of the stretches of land she could find, and smiled to herself. She had somewhat regained a sense of power, one of her necessary techniques, and she fully intended to demonstrate this to Abyss. So, naturally, as she began to bring herself in for a landing, she did what felt natural. She immediately broadcast her signature to Abyss via a ring he had given her, a way to contact him, before placing it down in the ship, and stepping off. Her regalia and cape fluttered as she walked calmly, and she began to wait not far away.

Of course Abyss would certainly notice a difference this time, normally her signature, repulsively dark and sickeningly overwhelming to the surroundings, would be far more subdued than usual. In fact, on a world such as this, it almost seemed natural. Granted, her grasp on the ability was something she only just began to restore, however if she could maintain it long enough for even Abyss, who knew her well, to take pause, then she would be able to consider today a victory.

Not to mention it would be nice to talk to one such as he. Perhaps he would be so.... generous as to even assist in strengthening this returning power.

 

[Darth Abyss]

Katarr, The Drowned Archives

Deep below Katarr's Black Sea the Mindeater rested in cold, empty solitude, on his broken throne of his broken world, listening to the tides of darkness that never released the dead rock from its grip. There was no place where the husk felt more alive, where his hollow armor devoid of true life, granted him a sense of wholeness. The twisted energy of Katarr was in tune with his own, or rather his own had adjusted to mirror it when the followed into the footsteps of the true lord of hunger and offered his body the dark side in retune for near unlimited power.

Then his mediation was interrupted, a slight wave of strangeness wandering from the ring on his right to the mask that held his spirit encased within. The darkness he felt was subtle, diminished, almost utterly buried below the pain and terror that ruled Katarr itself. In a sudden fit of slight confusion the husk raised his hand. The ring on his finger was a connection to a very small selection of his allies, and yet he was unable to determine who had contacted him through it.

His mind was racing, ready to call his warriors and agents to hunt down the location of anyone wearing it. Either one of them had found death in recent times and someone unworthy had claimed the ring, or one of them had went through a clear change. Only as the millions of possibilities unfolded in his head he found the more likely solution. An enemy that had claimed his artifact would be foolish to reveal their presence, and a changed ally would be unlikely to not just come to him personally instead of sending such a cryptic message.

No, what he had witnessed was a test, a challenge someone had placed upon herself to see her own grow. [member="Ariealla Vareldi"] had come to meet him once more, and the old power of the ancient songstress was on its way to return into her new flesh. The husk rose, making his way out of his sanctum, taking a vessel to bring him closer to the presence. At the same time his eyes and ears swarmed out, trying to locate the ship that had just touched down on Katarr.

With a delay that was a testament to Ariealla's returned power Abyss' own ship landed near to that of his ally. From it emerged the twisted figure of the Mindeater, broken, rusted metal shrouded black, with the fixed, notorious grin still written into his emotionless face. Around his his voice emerged from thin air, the twisted echo the former sith lord had heard countless time.

"Songstress, welcome on my world. I sense that a part of your power has returned to your flesh."

 

[Ariealla Vareldi]

Ariealla seemed to finish something as Abyss finally arrived, and she turned to the being. She offered him, [member="Darth Abyss"], a deep bow, like a pianist finishing a performance, before her presence would swell for a moment, like the beat of a heart. "And what a mind welcome from a gracious host this is indeed. And might I say your smile is as dashing as ever."

She gave off her little, melodious laugh as she straightened herself out, smoothing down her Regalia somewhat. How different it all delt, her body, her power, the planet, so much changed in so.. well she supposed it was not 'so little time' anymore. "Indeed, a fraction of my power returns anew. A small piece, but as it is no doubt evident, it is a potent piece. I only believed it fitting for you to be the first to witness this new crescendo, he who first forced me to reveal my name."

Her finished presence would waver every so often, it was obvious her connection to her old liabilities, while growing strong, was still to some degree disjointed with the potential of this new flesh. Still, she was growing once more all the same.

 

[Darth Abyss]

Abyss joined into her laugh, one of actual amusement about her comment about his fixed grin. Normally he had to make such comments himself, but Ariealla clearly was on the path to return to her true self, that seemingly shared his twisted sense of humor.

It was easy to guess by her words that [member="Ariealla Vareldi"] once had been a true lord of the sith. Not because their actual content but in their stylistic choices. There were grave differences between different lords, but something almost all of them had in common was a tendency for a certain degree of theatrics, even if the exact fashion of these theatrics could be a different as the lords themselves.

"I appreciate that you sought me out, but I assume your visit serves another propose."

There was no sign of an accusation in his voice. In fact the Mindeater would've been far more wary of her visit if he didn't assumed that she had come for a reason besides meeting him. The sith were pragmatists above all else, so anything else was a clear hint that something was wrong.

"Tell me, what truly brought you here?"

 

[Ariealla Vareldi]

"Cannot a Sith have one she finds relations to friendly enough for a polite visit?" Faux pain in her voice as she mimicked being hurt by his words, before turning into that sickeningly kind smile she was known to have when amused. "Ah, though you are right to realize my visit is more than that, if anything your choice of new home is quite perfect for me, I had intended to visit Katarr once more and your presence was a delightful surprise. Do you know what this place once was like, before your predecessor devoured its people?" It was a rhetorical question, of course he had likely read of it, and you could see the remnants of great cities even as people repopulated the great world. Scars like these were not so easily washed away.

That wasn't even counting the planet's sickening darkness.

"It was a beautiful place, and its people even more so. The few I could not fully hide myself from came to knew me well, as I would spend hours meditating on the Force surrounded by them. Friends, they called us. I don't remember if that was true for me, but the planet always held a peace to it. When that, wound, devoured this place, twisted it into a dark, dead remnant of what it was, he became quite a threat. More tragically, even his loss would not save the wisdom and knowledge lost to the oceans and the flow of the Force. I have returned before, to pay my respects in a manner, to those who would share hours of growth and contemplation with one who would not cry a tear should their lives be cut short. An oddly strong people, in their own way..."

"But I'd never returned to see what knowledge was still left behind. With my new form weakened, I was unable to do so, until I would be certain in growth, and now I have begun to return. So, as I always have, I came to see what knowledge these former 'friends' had left for me to learn, and to find strength in a darkness suitable for one such as I. Does that answer your question?" Never one for short mincing of the words, [member="Darth Abyss"] today would be the one subjected to her long-form of speak.

 

[Darth Abyss]

The husk remained quite as [member="Ariealla Vareldi"] began her explanation of her visit, and her tale of Katarr's past. The words she had to offer were nothing new to him, like her he had seen it. Not at the time it happened but in visions and dreams, some when the hunger within him forced him to hunt down Nihilus' last secrets to unravel his path to hollow immortality, and some when he made the dead world his new home and fully succumbed himself in the wretched darkness created by his predecessor. The rest had pieced together by the ancient books and texts left of the near extinct race, the Miraluka, from which he had inherited his new realm and his sunken throne to go along with it.

"It does indeed. In fact I already begun to collect the remains of the old world a long while ago. Come and see them for yourself."

Without waiting for the other sith to agree to his offer, the hollow being already turned around to his ship. It was out of question that she wanted what he had. Like all sith the promise of knowledge, and the power that came from it, was a driving motivation engraved in all their minds, in their quest to life up to the code the creators of their order had gifted to all future generations.

The ship was nothing special, but at least it was outfitted to submerge below the surface of the ocean without being fully flooded by the toxic waters of Katarr's now Black Sea. In the Cockpit Abyss programmed the autopilot to bring them down on the ground of the lost ocean, where the Drowned Archives would await them.

 

[Ariealla Vareldi]

Man of few words.

Ah but what beautiful words they were. If she could she would bottle [member="Darth Abyss"]'s sweet voice to cherish in the late hours of the night, the way it clawed and scratched at the back of her mind, whispered of dark secrets, unnatural lifetimes.. She hugged her arms to herself beneath the regal cape as she followed behind the man. Oh such sweet thoughts, she would consider them another day, when such delightful things were reasonable. For now, she was being offered the chance to see that which she had came for, the remnants of a dead world. Perhaps she was foolish for trusting Abyss not to betray her the moment she entered his domain, but from her perspective there was naught for him to gain.

After all, what would he earn? An angry, yet again reborn sith lord, except one potentially far more powerful than she was now. It was simply pragmatic to behave in at least an outwardly trustworthy manner, for now. So her heels clicked gently as she stepped onto the ship, smiling as it would begin its descent. "As expected, the ideal place to hide upon this dead world. You do our kind proud, Lord Abyss."

 

[Darth Abyss]

"I have my moments."

The Husk chuckled, or at least made the only sound his mechanical jaw could, as the ship descended deeper and deeper below the surface, until no light of Katarr's faded sun was able to reach them. Soon there was nothing to see anymore, only the pure darkness of the black sea. It took a considerable while until a new source of light came into sight, a ghostly green that was emitted by a small undersea station near to their actual target.

The Drowned Archives were encased in an energy shield that kept the ocean at bay, but the structure was still little more then a sunken ruin. When the ship entered into the shield, Abyss made his way from the cockpit to the ramp, waiting for it to open and release the two sith in front of his new home. As it descended down he stepped outside, his black robe dancing and drifting around him despite the lack of wind so far below the sea.

Then the husk was suddenly gone, all that remained of him was an hollow laugh, bouncing of the broken wall before [member="Ariealla Vareldi"]. It was followed by the strange voice of the Mindeater, that seemed to be all around her, and nowhere at the same time.

"All you desire waits in front of you, but first you need to prove that you are worthy of it once again. Return as the Songstress, or die as a nobody."

Many had left their lives within the walls of the Archive in one Abyss' deranged tests. The paths were ever shifting, leading those without a strong, pure darkness in their very essence to drown buried below collapsing corridors and broken dead ends.

 

[Ariealla Vareldi]

"Always with the dramatics! Cannot we be civilized folk for once before our entropic end?" She smiled and laughed once more, lifting her hand to her lips to cover it as she stepped off the ship and into the maze that was the drowned archives. Her footsteps did not carry the same weight Abyss's had, before his rather sudden flight from his guest, but the darkness she was slowly restraining within herself once more made each light click of her heels echo like a turn upon the rack in a dungeon. Click... click... even paced steps began to lead her on through what she felt the appropriate path.

She hoped [member="Darth Abyss"] had more than the parlor trick of shifting paths to keep her at bay! Such a test was hardly fit for acolytes, fresh for the slaughterhouse of academy life. If he was questioning the darkness within her soul he was a fool, for he knew well enough that had not changed within her heart. Alas, Abyss was not a fool, and Ariealla was certain he would have some trick, a task, a trial of some manner beyond simply this. So, even as each infinitely confident would lead her down the path she chose, her hand slowly wrapped around her saberstaff's hilt, under the lengthy coat, and she began to observe the area around her calmly.

How would he attempt to take her life today? She licked her lips, and anticipated the opening notes to his first movement.

 

[Darth Abyss]

Abyss neither doubted [member="Ariealla Vareldi"]'s dedication to the darkness, nor had he planned her death for today. His test served another purpose. The Drowned Archives held more then just the knowledge of Katarr's gone natives, but a wide collection of ancient wisdom that the Mindeater had gathered over the years. As such he saw it as his uppermost duty to not only collect but guard what he had already found, as the knowledge of the sith was always earned and not simply given.

The Archives had more in store then just shifting paths, over time it grown from a home to almost an extension of Abyss himself. Every stone, every pool of toxic water, every minor imperfection upon the endless corridors was etched into his mind, and it required merely a twitch of his hand to unleash the weight of age and the ocean upon the ruin.

While the Songstress had just entered inside the Archives, Abyss had already made his way into the inner sanctuary within his inner sanctuary, observing her way forward closely. Finding the way was no issue for those blessed by pure darkness, but surviving it was an entirely different thing. The metal left of the husk was lifted, and the wall behind the Songstress suddenly broke apart, the narrow corridor rapidly flooding with the decaying water of the black sea.

 

[Ariealla Vareldi]

There was a slight shift, before the wall fractured and the toxic waters of the sea began to surge after the ancient assassin. More than enough time for her to begin the motions necessary to start her flight away. She swiftly made a short leap, using the time to pull her heels off of her feet, landing in her stockings before sprinting ahead full speed. Had she not done so, she'd have assuredly tripped within moments, as running in heels is not an effective tactic, and would be swallowing decayed, toxic water rather than taking in breaths of stale air.

If [member="Darth Abyss"] was paying attention, he'd easily see how delighted Ariealla, the Songstress, was to be in her position. Centuries ago, she'd have simply countered this with her own abilities, but here she was forced to resort to a much faster chase. Of course, she was using the Force behind her, to help push back the waters that approached her, not enough to prevent them from overwhelming her if she took a wrong turn, but enough to at least keep her feet dry a little longer. That said, she was still looking for something, a way to stop the water flowing behind her. It would be an exhausting thing to do, and likely take her a minute to succeed at, but it would be possible if she just had a minute.

It was no doubt amusing to watch, an ancient and normally powerful being running for their life from water like a scared cat. But it was what was visible for Abyss, as she approached an inclined section of the maze. She knew it was the path to take, instinctively, but knew as well that she'd have to be swift or she would die. So, she went down the slope, quick as she could, to the bottom of the 'valley', and ran straight ahead. The incline up would be slower, and she could almost feel the water nipping at her heels as she scrambled up to the top. Of course, the water didn't actually reach her, and upon reaching the top she focused heavily, and pulled one of walls over the incline to act much like a seal for the toxic water.

She got up and continued quickly, in case her makeshift seal didn't hold.

 

[Darth Abyss]

In recent times, since his return, Abyss had put many of his old allies through maze to test them. It was fascinating to see how each of them had solved the problem at hand differently with the powers that were most natural to them. His first former apprentice had brute forced her way, crushing through stone walls until she reached safety. His second former apprentice had called upon his talent for the arcane and used spells and magic to keep the waters at bay to calmly walk through his deadly labyrinth. As their talents and abilities different, so did the challenge Abyss placed in their way. Maybe it was time for something more creative to counter the speed and grace of the Songstress.

Once more the husk raised his left, but no walls broke apart, and no water rose behind the [member="Ariealla Vareldi"]. Instead the path in front of her began to shatter, erratically leaving either wide holes leading into dark pools of water untouched by any light or high reaching stone pillars within the corridor. Speed wouldn't help her here, nor would grace. Only by calmly overseeing the seemingly random movements of the obstacles she would find that they weren't a trap, but a puzzle, the pillars actually paths that could help her leap over the pools safely.

Patience and timing were key to this next little section of his test, as running in head first would lead to a long fall into the black water, or even if a bit more unlikely to be crushed by a heavy pillar.

 

[Ariealla Vareldi]

The same speed and grace that would no longer be a useful guide offered the Songstress one last saving grace. She leaped back from the breaking walls instinctively, completely halting her forward momentum, and preventing her from tumbling over into the waters. She breathed deeply, standing herself upright and dusting her regalia clean as the pillars continued to move before her. She hummed quietly, drawing her sword from her hip and scratching off the corner of one of the wide holes that had been made. A small piece of rock broke off, and she counted the seconds to the impact on water. It didn't take too long, but enough that she couldn't see what happened. Damnit, [member="Darth Abyss"] chose the perfect section. Too far to see a solution should she make a mistake, too short to react even if she could. The blade whistled as she sheathed it, and she began to look around.

Mmmm... That there... that... a pillar over there... the path was definitively the correct one. Further, the path itself wasn't destroyed completely. She ran a thumb over her lips slowly, lips curling into a smile as it reached the corner. Clever child. She slowly stepped back, angled her approach, and moved to follow a path left to her. She moved with what slow grace she could, keeping count with each step as she used the pillars as a path to leap across the wide holes. It went rather well, for the most part, save one of the jumps as she neared the end. Her foot's stocking had grown slick, and she lost her footing at the final stretch. Reacting swiftly, she drew her sword and plunged it into the top of the pillar.

She used the sword to regain her composure, before making the last couple of leaps, and landed to where she thought the last leap had been. Her breathing had grown heavier than before, after the near slip, and she slowly stood up. "A lovely bridge, onto the next verse then dear Lord?" She said aloud in sweet tones, whether or not he would hear.

 

[Darth Abyss]

As an answer to here words, the strange laugh of the Mindeater echoed through the sunken paths, bouncing of the stone walls until it seemed like it came from every angle at once. [member="Ariealla Vareldi"] hadn't just done well, she had offered him a opportunity to feel entertained, which was rare curtsey these days. Apprentices were always so soft, so easily broken and intimidated by his tests. The thrill of watching them suffer and die in elaborate ways had been lost after the first few times, no matter with what crude way of killing he came up.

Still their skeletons and corpses littered throughout the maze made a perfect last round for this little game. Not as much of a challenge as it was an reward, a chance for the songstress to play out her skill and grace. Like his laugh his voice suddenly resounded within the ruin, and faint, ghostly green clouds began to fill the rooms around here.

"I think it is time for the last act, a final glorious crescendo. The stage is yours, Songstress."

All around the sith woman skeletons and corpses began to rise, lifeless husk like their puppeteer. They neither had speed nor strength, and the intelligence was limited by the fact that Abyss had command them all once, but they were many, creeping towards the Songstress with the intend to rip her flesh apart.

 

[Ariealla Vareldi]

The smile curling on her lips betrayed the sick delight she felt being given this opportunity to let loose once more. She stood up straight, and offered a deep bow, spending many of the precious first seconds in the grand gesture. "And what a beauteous stage you have set, Lord Abyss. It must be my birthday for such a gift." She stood up, adjusted the cape, and flicked her sword Obbligato up in a formal challenge to the mindless corpses. No need to be a crude, sadistic woman at all times, sometimes the theatrics amused her greatly. She continued to wait patiently for the corpses to reach her... one... two.. three...

She picked up the beat, and the sword sung violently as it embedded itself in one of the corpse's eye sockets, before she stepped inside and brought the blade through bone with some small difficulty. It was meant to be a thrusting sword after all, but against decayed bone even it felt like butter. She grabbed one of the others, throwing it behind her shoulder into the pit, and flowing from one strike into the next. The corpses were easier to handle, in the sense that the flesh could be manipulated still, and offered some leverage if she could get her weapon into it. The skelletons were a bit more, difficult. These things no longer had flesh yes, but that meant they could quite potentially be reassembled. That wouldn't do, so naturally the Force was the main method to blast them apart, granting her time to continue toying with the corpses.

Which, given the crimson dancing through the horde, was something with little difficulty for her. Corpse after corpse was returned to death, torn apart by blade and scattered about. At some point, she switched from her sith blade to the saberstaff, which found no difficulty cutting whatsoever, and only accelerated the dance. The musical term accellerando represented the steady increase of tempo, of the pace, and often would be used at the last, final climax of a song. [member="Darth Abyss"] had been generous in referring to this task as the last act, it meant she no longer had to hold just a little bit more than usual back.

She knocked off the head of one of the last skelletons she could see, catching the head with her foot before kicking it, colliding into the last one blocking her path. She huffed, young body thoroughly exhausted as she turned off her weapon, and continued what she expected to be an uneventful walk. She was reaching her body's limit of Force expenditure, and though she wouldn't let herself be stopped she would start to suffer aftereffects eventually if she kept the pace of use. Though, somewhat to even her surprise, she'd managed not to tear her dress or cape. Though her feet were revealed, the stockings torn about the soles.

 

[Darth Abyss]

When the last skeleton shattered apart came a moment of pure silence. Then the path in front of [member="Ariealla Vareldi"] lit up, green flames to guide her on her last steps emerging from the ichor smoke that was slowly retreating back into the heart of the archives. It wasn't far now, a few steps, a few turns and the Songstress would find herself in front of a large metal door. Behind it awaited her the place Abyss had dubbed the Halls of lost Knowledge. Bookshelves reached high into the air, so far that the rows on top were not reached by the light below. The presence of the Library left little doubt about her nature, every inch of it was as vibrant with the dark side as the structure as a whole.

"Impressive. It was a pleasure to watch your progress."

Out of the shadows of one of the bookshelves formed the husk that remained of Darth Abyss, the metal construct slowly clapping his claws together to greet the Songstress in his realm. The few that had made it here before her could attest that the Halls of lost Knowledge were a place of incredible wisdom, with books and texts not only taken from Katarr's forerunners, but from every order across history that the Mindeater had able to gather.

"I welcome you into my home Songstress. My knowledge is yours."

The husk lifted his right, and carried by invisible hands a collection of books danced down to a nearby table. It wasn't everything he had discovered from the old world, but everything of importance. Abyss felt quite comfortable doing so, while a warrior, criminal and assassin, he always had been a scholar and librarian at heart.

 

[Ariealla Vareldi]

Ariealla was delighted to see she would not be tested further, quite frankly she wished nothing more than to sit down and have a glass of wine. After, of course, reading a good book, or two, or twenty. And with [member="Darth Abyss"] being so welcoming, his scholarly inclination showing, she couldn't imagine a more delightful place to do so. She offered yet another bow, slowly, carefully, so as not to falter, before she stood upright. "It was a pleasure to unwind so thoroughly. Even before reaching the library, I dare say I've learned quite a deal more than I could've hoped for. I thank you, my dear. I'm sure the rest of tonight's lessons will be no less enlightening."

She bent down and put her heels on once more, feeling the shoe against her bare soles, as she readjusted to them with the next few steps forward. She didn't lose the sickly sweet smile that had become plastered to her lips for a moment, as she made her way to the books beyond Abyss. "Shall I presume the librarian would prefer silence? It's how it usually is, though this is hardly a public library. So perhaps the house rules are different?"

 

[Darth Abyss]

"If you have questions, then ask. If not then I would advice you to grant these ancient words the focus they deserve."

It wasn't like Abyss needed silence to keep his mind focused, but in his opinion books were worth the same, if not more, respect then a person. He would freely answer any question [member="Ariealla Vareldi"] could have about them, but he hadn't lead her here to have a friendly discourse. At least not until he gave her time to search through the books and texts to find what she came looking for when she set course to Katarr.

Like earlier the husk simply faded from sight, but if the Songstress would look closely she would be able to see books rearrange, floating from high and low into different places, and green flames ignite, die or flicker. Every once in a while one opened, sometimes even words were added by a ghostly hand before they returned to their new place. His library was ever growing, ever shifting like the Archives themselves, with its master always obsessively optimizing the sanctum of his collected knowledge, always one step away from true perfection.