The Nihilus Investigation

[Darth Abyss]

Shawken, Elevator of the Shawken Spire

Time was slowly running out for Abyss, death had began to crawl over his body, slow but undeniable. The dark side granted great power, but it always came with a price. Some fell to madness, others had their body's devoured by corruption, unable to contain the power of their passion in their weak flesh and bones. Abyss was one of those unlucky enough to suffer from both, but while he had come to terms with the state his mind was in, the condition of his body only evolved recently. He never desired to become immortal, like so many sith had before him, as all he knew about history pointed at the failures and catastrophes that came with these endeavors. While he not sought to live forever, he wasn't ready to leave this world behind just yet. Many would have searched for a way to extend the live of their body, or a way to posses another, but not Abyss. To long he had suffered from the chains that bound him to this physical plane, chains that had to be broken. He didn't simply seeked to extend his live, he seeked transcendence, a way to truly become one with darkness, as the force had commanded him to. At first he had thought that the strange dreams of detachment and disembodiment pointed towards the path of the light, towards the path of a force ghost.

But Abyss was no jedi, no servant of the light, nor did he desire to become one. He had spend weeks with research, but his collection of books and texts was incomplete. There was one lord of the sith that accomplished what he seeked, a man that became a being beyond humanity, a spirit bound only by the force, composed of dark energy and pure intent. Darth Nihilus, the lord of hunger, but he wasn't exactly a stellar example for what this power could be used for, as he was consumed by the hunger that plagued him after he had been transformed in a wound in the force by what happened on malachor V.

Abyss on the other hand had big plans for his desired state of being. A being beyond live, beyond death, beyond reality. A being composed out of pure intellect, a seeker of the truth unbound by the desires of flesh, unbound of the shackles of humanity.

The shawken spire was a breathtaking monument, a obelisk of the power that came with the advancement of civilizations. It was the first of many places he had considered traveling to in his search for the knowledge about the lord of hunger. He wasn't sure what exactly would find, but this wasn't the time for doubt. He had to trust in the force to guide him in the right direction, he had to trust that his fate was to become more than a human. The time of the one sith was long gone by, but there still could be something left that would bring him closer to his goal, even the smallest bit could bring him one step closer.

The dark figure stood in the elevator, his wide robe and the light durasteel armor around his shoulders and upper body hiding how boney and cadaverous his body looked, his mask doing the same for his face. The doors opened, as the elevator reached the top 50 floors of the enormous skyscaper.

[member="Darth Erebos"]

 

[Shaddi]

Sitting on a large chair with a window overlooking much of the planet bellow as he flipped through some of the pages of the old sith manuscripts he had painstakingly collected over the years. The shawken spire's top fifty floors having been turned into his own private sanctuary, filled with extensive libraries of collected sith lore, philosophy, Alchemical texts. Sorcery grimoire and scrolls as well as some schematics for different artifacts that the sith of old had created. Along with the extensive libraries there were places for training, personal forges and experimental chamber that he sometimes used for his alhcemical bio experiments.

As he flipped through the manuscript he could feel [member="Darth Abyss"]'s force signature enter into the spire sanctuary. "Hmm who's this?" He said aloud as he took control of the skeletal creatures that roamed the spires top floors as his security force that he could simply throw at intruders until the literal flood of these creatures would drown them out. At first a single one of the creatures would approach Abyss slowly and carefully but still in full view of the man, hiding the intelligence controlling the creature like some malevolent puppet master.

 

[Darth Abyss]

Abyss eyes jumped to the cautious movement, his hand already at the hilt of his saber that was hanging from his belt. The strange being moved slow, like it was carefully trying to suggest that it wasn't dangerous, what didn't really lined up with its appearance. He hadn't been sjre what he would find here, but the last thing he would have guessed was some kind of guardian. Chances were high that someone or something still cared for this place, enough to keep creatures around to stop any intruders. Who exactly was beyond him, as it could be almost anyone from someone out of the One sith high command, over sith lords, knights and acolytes to just a random darksider that somehow found and took control of this place. The fact that he didn't had to fight for his live already meant that the current owner either was sloppy or curious about the intruder. The second and more likely option meant that he was watched right now, some way or another. Raising both hands in the air, Abyss stopped after a few steps out the elevator, his voice booming through the room.

"Whoever is in charge here, I did not came to interrupt you. I traveled here in hopes of finding knowledge for my research, and nothing else beyond that."

The creature didn't scared him, but a sith had to know when to pick a fight and when a more diplomatic approach was the way to go. While he wasn't going today in the next few days or months, time was still a factor he had to consider. Wasting time to express his strength and dominance wouldn't get him anywhere. Finding out who the owner of this place was, and figuring out a way to do what he came for undisturbed was more important and a far more elegant solution.

[member="Darth Erebos"]

 

[Shaddi]

The creature seemed to look [member="Darth Abyss"] up and down before it's gnarled hand moved up and with a finger gestured for him to follow it as it began to slowly start making it's way to it's master. Though this creature seemed to not be hostile the series of clicks and hisses coming from all other corridors that this particular creature wasn't going down, suggested that following the being would be the more prudent action for Abyss to follow the creature.

With a slight gesture of his hand T'zanith made the iconic mask, he wore when he was on the dark council, float into his hand which he too apart with the force. Taking it apart until only the face plate remained and nonchalantly placing it over his face as he then chuckled lightly to himself. The mask was all that remained of his armor now as he had disparaged it, for all intents and purposes Darth Erebos had died and he held onto the mask only as a memento.

 

[Shaddi]

(Double post sorry)

 

[Darth Abyss]

Abyss followed the weird creature up the stairs, hearing the same strange clicks and noises that it made from any corner he passed on his way. It seemed that it was a good idea that he didn't cut down the creature as soon as it meet his eyes, as its master seemed to have taken the security of the spire very serious. After a short time of following, he reached another room, entering it right after the creature.

The mans mask didn't allowed for even revealed a hint of what was under it, as even the eyes were covered by the strange plate. He couldn't exactly place it, but something in his mind seemed to recognize the form and color of the mask. Not that he had meet many members of the dark council in person in his time with the one sith, but he heard stories about the powerful sith lords that the highest command had been composed of. It could be [member="Darth Erebos"] based on what he had heard but it could quite as well be another powerful darksider that simply choose a similar styled mask to hide his identity. Either way he could feel the power that surrounded the sith, certainly more than he himself possessed. Abyss made a light bow in front of the man, but he was careful to not leave neither the sith nor the creature out of sight.

"Whoever you are, thank you for not killing me yet. I am Darth Abyss, and I came to the spire to seek the knowledge of the Lords of ancient times."

 

[Shaddi]

"Which one?" Erebos then asked with an amused tone as he stood up from his seat and gently placed the manuscript on a nearby table. "I assume you came here with no one knowing of your entry not only to this planet but into the spire as well?" He asked as he crossed his arms slightly and the creature left the room and closed the door behind it, leaving them alone in the room.

[member="Darth Abyss"]

 

[Darth Abyss]

"I always make an effort to obscure my presence and any trails I could leave behind. My master taught me as much. I assume you heard of Darth Ophidia."

He still couldn't shake of the feeling that he should know who this man was. The sith lord he reminded him of was proclaimed dead, but it wouldn't be the first time a lord took drastic measures to take himself out of anyone equation. All he knew was that the man was dangerous, and that poking in his past to much could be risky. His question and his sanctuary here suggested that he valued his privacy. But Ophidia had been a member of the dark council, and if he was right than her name would ease up the situation a bit. At least to his knowledge there never had been conflict between her and the sphere of ancient knowledge, at least not beyond the rivalry all sith shared with each other.

"I seek the knowledge of Darth nihilus, the lord of hunger, and how he accomplished to transcend the physical realm."

[member="Darth Erebos"]

 

[Shaddi]

He chuckled at hearing the name. "Oh I know of her yes, We shared the station of Dark council members five years ago though I can't say I enjoyed the pleasure of her company too often to consider having known her." He said with a smile under the mask as he moved his hand up to stroke at the chin of his mask lightly. "Hmm Darth Nihilus, you say? You are on the trail of the secrets of the greatest masters of force drain the galaxy has ever seen and you aim to tell me your only interested in how he transcended his physical body in the manner that he did?" He said with a coy remark. "Isn't that a bit like searching for a sarlacc only for a tooth?" He then added as he felt quite amused at [member="Darth Abyss"]'s quest and what it might bring in terms of knowledge and even possible power to be gained.

 

[Darth Abyss]

It was good to hear that the man was who Abyss thought he was, and that his relationship with ophidia had been as unhostile and unimportant to both as he had hoped for. Normally he wasn't one to simply drop the name of his master, but it was fairly hard to convince a sith lord that he wasn't just another weak acolyte stumbling through the galaxy without mentioning another sith he knew and might even respected.

"I see the value in the Nihilus hunger, but from history I know that such power has a price, one that I am not willing to pay."

The sith lord had a point, but Abyss didn't seeked to leave behind everything and become a being only motivated by one primal desire. His research surly would tell him one thing or another about the lord of hungers most notorious ability, but it was neither the power he needed nor the one he desired most. His dieing body couldn't be saved by consuming essence forever, and if he would go down that path he would sooner or later suffer from the same fate as Nihilus did, something he would rather pass up on if possible.

"Many other Lords managed to transfer their essence into another vessel, but he was the only one who truly broke the chains of flesh apart. Sleep, hunger, thirst are all chains that bind me to this meaningless existence, they stop me from truly unleashing what my mind could accomplish."

[member="Darth Erebos"]