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Private To Be Weighed and Measured [Varin Mortifer]



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Tag: Varin Mortifer Varin Mortifer


Once upon a time, Revna might have felt uncertainty when punching in coordinates to the Galactic Core, to Coruscant, of all places.

Once upon a time, it had been the center of the Alliance, home to the Jedi. But that was an age that had come and gone - and what had seemed impossible a handful of years ago, had now become reality.

The Sith ruled and owned the Core.

And Revna Marr, as a Sith, had the right to travel anywhere she so pleased within the Core. She stayed away, mostly because her duties kept her occupied elsewhere: on Korriban, or aiding the infamous Prophet of Bogan and the Sith cult, the Order of Wonosa - or on Jutrand, playing politics with Sith who held influence that could benefit her and her ambitions.

But she felt it was high time for her to change that, and pay her only remaining Apprentice a long overdue visit.

She did not inform Varin Mortifer of her coming, for she wanted to pay him a visit without him preparing himself for her arrival. She had heard whispers of his efforts within the rising Sith Covenant, who now ruled the Core of the Galaxy. Her Apprentice had played a direct role in conquering it and bringing it under Sith dominion, enough that even the Empress of the Core knew him by name. She wanted to believe that she had a part to play in that, but she knew the truth: Varin was simply embracing the freedom to be who she knew he was, without the chains attached. He still obeyed her summons, still showed her respect, and still honored her. He still absorbed her lessons, and carried them forward and even improved upon them in his own ways. He had done exactly what she had hoped he would - and sought knowledge and experience and power outside of herself - in order to rise in his own strength and power.

She had done the same with her own Master, albeit without His knowledge. And she had stepped into a new level of experience and power in doing so. And power was the currency that a Sith operated by. Not the power to wave a red, glowing sword around or shout to the masses that they should be feared. A Sith with real power never needed to draw their weapon to bring others to their knees. True power was embracing the truth of one’s self, and walking in it without regret.

She saw that in Varin, the potential he still carried within him.

And now she was hunting him down, to see exactly where her student stood on the spectrum. And if he was ready to accept the mantle that would reshape him.

Her ship dropped out of hyperspace above Coruscant, and she guided her craft towards the metropolitan planet. The Dark Side roiled here, and she used it to conceal her presence. She concentrated for a brief moment, expanding her awareness, sensing the trillions of souls that lived and breathed and died on the planet below her. But only one stood out to her, like a torch in the darkness.

She used that to guide her onward as she made planetfall, and it drew her towards the Sith Temple - what had once been the Jedi Temple, rebuilt into something magnificent. Revna did not announce her presence, did not have an entourage to herald who she was.

Once at the steps, the Sith woman stopped, and allowed her presence to seep forth, her mind searching - hunting. Within, beyond, she could sense the familiar aura of Varin, and her mind would briefly touch his own. He would know instantly that she was there, waiting for him to come to her. It wasn’t a request, and she knew he would comply.

He always did.


 



VARIN MORTIFER



Equipment: Durum Mantle | Black Blade of Chandrila | Eye of The Dragon | Heavy Sith Mace | Cross Guard Broadsaber​

Varin disengaged his saber, the fiery plasma blade hissing as it retracted back to the hilt. Scorch marks scarred into the wall still glowed red from heat, sweat beaded from his shoulders. But around him were several destroyed practice droids set for lethal intent.

The best way for him to train was with consequence.

His breathing began to slow and deepen as he gained control of his air intake, the scent of melted wiring and hot metal circulated the area, and from the doorway, several onlookers watched wide eyed as he slowly turned.

The feeling hit him like a sudden clash of lightning. Without warning and without preparation.

He felt her.

His Master had arrived on Coruscant.

Varin slowly stepped past the onlookers who parted around him like a river avoiding stones. He grabbed his robes and slipped them on and followed back to the steps of the temple.

When his Master called, he always answered.

Always.

Varin clipped the hilt to his belt as he passed each person, most avoiding to look at him after the destruction they had witnessed in the training room and the several combat droids that now laid in heaps of scraps and wires.

Eventually he reached the exit of the temple, looking down the steps towards the smaller woman, smaller in stature, but not smaller in power. His head slowly dipped to greet her.

“Master.”

He started, his voice quiet, but it carried to her.

“I certainly hope the Temple matches the standards you would have set.”

His eyes slowly picked back up to meet hers.

“Welcome to Coruscant.”


 




Revna waited with her arms hidden inside the sleeves of her Sith robes for Varin to make his appearance. People came and went from the Temple, more than a handful casting curious, suspicious or even openly distrusting stares. She was a stranger here, afterall - but she ignored them, treating them as little more than background noise.

She didn’t have to wait long, before she felt the presence of her Apprentice move closer to her location, soon enough he arrived at the very top and looked down at her. He greeted her with his typical respectful dip of his head, his voice quiet but she heard him loud and clear. Revna felt a faint smile tug at the corners of her kohl dabbed lips, as a memory returned her for a moment - where she was picking glass out of his wounds as he recovered within her personal quarters back on Korriban.

“I certainly hope the Temple matches the standards you would have set.” Varin stated after a moment, before lifting his eyes back to hers. “Welcome to Coruscant.”

Revna moved the rest of the way up the steps of the Temple to come and stand alongside Varin, their height difference becoming starkly apparent to all who would see them. She always found it a little comical - Varin being her Apprentice, and towering over her little frame. But height did not matter here - experience did. She did not need to be as tall as he was, in order to bring him low - if she so wished it.

I will make my judgment of this Temple after you have shown me around, Apprentice.” Revna replied after a moment, casting a glance his way.

You look well. Come, show me around and tell me of your exploits. I desire to know what you have accomplished while being within the ranks of the Sith Covenant.

 



VARIN MORTIFER



Equipment: Durum Mantle | Black Blade of Chandrila | Eye of The Dragon | Heavy Sith Mace | Cross Guard Broadsaber

Varin noticed the small tug in the corners of her mouth and waited patiently as she made her way up the steps. The daily people moving around them, giving them a wide berth as she stood with him.

“As you wish.”

He walked beside her, matching her pace towards the temple. He spoke with her in the same tone of voice, not raising nor lowering. He did not need to display power to her, she had seen it, and at this moment he assumed this was not the reason why she came.

“Exploits such as battle and conquest. You know of Coruscant being taken by the Covenant, Hasuras Na-Gerra Hasuras Na-Gerra had supplied me with loyal men and women to help me take an entire ship from the imperials.”

The very same ship that he had forced those very Imperials to dismantle and help build the temple. A Sith monument made from the bones of the conquered.

“Parts of that ship were used to construct this temple, partly. Not only for structure but for meaning. I personally watched over its construction while forcing those same Imperials to dismantle and build this building. Slaves of their own making.”

His gaze flicked to hers, he knew of her master's stance on slavery, but Varin saw things just a bit different. Especially when conquering planets.

“Those Imperials that converted to our ways however, were rewarded. Joined amongst our ranks and free of their bonds…Some however, remained stubborn.”

His gaze then flicked to a single crucifixion cross that stood, the faint shadow of whoever was bound to it had long burned away and into the very wood.

He looked up at the cross for a moment, remembering the work that was put in place here, and the sleepless nights he spent making sure everything kept going the way they were meant to.

“Then there was Humbarine. A mysterious Mandalorian squadron had decided to attempt infiltration and assault on the very planet.”

He looked back at her.

“We crushed them.”

The words echoed from the walls then a quietness fell upon the both of them.

“Those are but a couple of my exploits, Master.”


 




Once she was alongside Varin, the two of them began a measured walk into the Temple proper, others around them giving ground to the Sith pair. She could feel the Dark Side radiating from its walls, the floor, the columns - powerful emotions saturated into the very foundation of the structure: fear, agony, rage, despair. She felt them all acutely, and it made her wonder just what had happened to bring such emotions to bear in this place.

She hoped to learn about that during this meeting with Varin.

Revna listened quietly as her Apprentice began to recount his exploits involving battle and conquest, while her burning eyes gazed upon the exterior - and then the interior - of the Sith Temple as they continued forward. He mentioned her own Vahlan kin, Gerra, as being one who had supplied Varin with loyal men and women that helped him take an Imperial ship. He said how parts of that very ship had been used to rebuild the Temple, emplaced for meaning over structure.

Varin told her that he had personally overseen the rebuilding of this Temple, and that brought another small smile to her face. That knowledge pleased her, for it told her that Varin had taken her first command of him very seriously: to corrupt the places where the lightside and the Jedi would gather, and turn them to the Dark Side.

With each place of light turned Dark, the power of the Dark Side would grow. And slowly, through efforts such as this, the galaxy would fall under the hand of Bogan.

Revna’s steps did not falter when Varin confessed to her that the Imperial prisoners that had been forced to rebuild the temple had been turned into slaves. She felt his eyes shift towards her, to see her reaction to that. A brief shadow would cloud her own gaze and pass over her face - slavery was a touchy subject to her, but not nearly as much as it was for her own Father and former Master.

“Those Imperials that converted to our ways however, were rewarded. Joined amongst our ranks and free of their bonds…Some however, remained stubborn.” Varin said in the same quiet voice he’d been speaking in, as his attention - and Revna’s - was brought before a structure of execution: a cross. He did not have to tell her what happened to such stubborn individuals: the cross answered that for him.

Then they continued onward, as did his recounting.
“Then there was Humbarine. A mysterious Mandalorian squadron had decided to attempt infiltration and assault on the very planet.” Varin glanced at her and she met his eyes as he announced that the infiltrators had been crushed.

“Those are but a couple of my exploits, Master.”

Revna allowed silence to envelope them both for some time, taking her time to respond to what her Apprentice had shared. In that silence, she studied him; he had grown immensely, not just physically but in power as well. He was not the naive boy he once was; time and experience had shaped him, hardened him. He was closer now to what a Sith should be, than he had ever been - at least, in her eyes.

You have grown powerful, in body and in the Force. I know that you have taken the knowledge I have passed on to you, and have utilized it for your own benefit. Beyond that, you have stepped from my shadow to become your own person, and you have decided for yourself what kind of Sith you wish to be.

She turned her eyes back to the Temple around them, watching others that passed by from time to time, before another smile crossed her face. “The kind of Sith that I have always seen in you, from the day I found you crashed on Korriban.” There was a longer pause as silence enveloped them both once more, before Revna finally turned her gaze upon Varin. "I am pleased with what I have heard, and what I have seen thus far, Varin. There is still much work to be done, and once upon a time you may not have seen the bigger picture - but I sense that you do, now. Tell me what influence or power you hold amongst the ranks in the Covenant.
"

Revna continued to move forward, indicating that she wished to see more of the Temple, and hear more from Varin. As she did so, she cast him a somewhat sly glance, and said: "Surely you must...even the Empress of the Core knows you by name. Tell me how this came to be."

 



VARIN MORTIFER



Equipment: Durum Mantle | Black Blade of Chandrila | Eye of The Dragon | Heavy Sith Mace | Cross Guard Broadsaber

Varin followed with his master's pace, not slowing her down nor rushing her. The air around them as they traveled deeper into the temple seemed to grow heavier as they ventured forth, the air itself also took up a feeling of chill that just grazed upon the spine.

He took in her words, though his face seemed unmoved inside her was pleased to hear of her satisfaction in who and what he was becoming. Let alone becoming the very Sith she knew he could be. Forging his own path and stepping into no one's shadow.

“I take on the hard jobs that most acolytes would refuse. I make the hard calls and decisions during missions and I always make sure the job is done.”

His brow arched when she mentioned Mercy knowing him by name, not just Mercy but the Empress of The Core. A title that she had no doubt earned. Varin thought back to the start of how it may have happened.

“After the slaughter of Tapani, I was called to her throne room along with a few others. Some exchanged questions, some remained silent. I was the only one who took action, instead of standing about and taking insults, I hurled my mace into her skull, crushing it.”

He relished in the feeling that had followed then his body language slightly shifted.

“Only moments afterward did she break a few of my ribs with my own mace.”

He thought.

“I don't think the act itself of me choosing violence called my recognition, it was the fact I refused to lay down in pain. I simply stood back up.”

His gaze shifted back to his master.

“Pain is more temporary than memory of action.”


 





Varin responded to Revna’s comments, saying how he would take on the harder jobs than the other acolytes, make the hard or difficult decisions during missions, and ensure that the job was done right. It was these qualities that would make Varin a leader amongst others, amongst his own people. And that was what the Sith Order as whole needed - young bloods rising up to take the charge and guide the Sith forward.

Revna said nothing further about that; too much praise or compliments would fuel an ego, and she did not desire to see an ego ruin her Apprentice. She gave to him what she felt was due, just like her Master had done with her.

As for her comment about Mercy knowing who he was, Varin answered how that had come to be, and the story he revealed to her made the little Marr arch a silvered black eyebrow, and a grin spread across her face despite her efforts to hold it back.

Varin, the young man she had pulled from the wreckage of his ship, had fought with Mercy of all people. Caved in her face with his mace…and, in true Sith Lord fashion - Mercy had made him pay for it. But she had spared Varin’s life, and Revna had a feeling she knew why.

Varin spoke the reason aloud a moment later, and Revna nodded in quiet agreement:
“I don't think the act itself of me choosing violence called my recognition, it was the fact I refused to lay down in pain. I simply stood back up.”

Varin’s gaze shifted back to her, and he said something that made her steps falter for just a heartbeat, before she continued onward down the central corridor of the Sith Temple:
“Pain is more temporary than memory of action.”

Pain, my Apprentice, is a Crucible. Pain is not something to be avoided, but embraced in full. Pain teaches us more about ourselves, than we would ever know otherwise.

Revna shifted her burning eyes to Varin’s. “I…encourage you to learn who you are, through the eyes of Pain. There is power hidden underneath your skin that you do not even know exists.” There was a pause, deliberate, as she weighed her thoughts. “I cannot give you a taste of that Agony - but I know those who can. Seek the Dark Lords…you know of whom I speak. Though if you do this - you may find yourself hating me for it. Hating those who bring that Pain upon you. Though in the end, you will come to appreciate it.

Revna continued forward then, feeling the chill of the Temple seep into her skin and down into her bones. It was not a discomfort, but an embrace. The Darkness was her first love, even before beings of flesh bore their heart to her.

You may even break another one of your Chains. Another step closer to stepping into the fullness of who you were meant to be.


 



VARIN MORTIFER



Equipment: Durum Mantle | Black Blade of Chandrila | Eye of The Dragon | Heavy Sith Mace | Cross Guard Broadsaber

“I think you misunderstand me, Master. I embrace pain. It brings clarity and it lets you know you are alive. Pain is not only a crucible or something to learn from. Pain is essential.”

His gaze found hers a brow arched in curiosity as she suggested he pursued the Dark Lords. Varin knew who she was speaking of. The more powerful beings of both Sith orders.

He had spent time with Arris and Mercy, but on the Sith Order side he had been neglecting. To learn more of himself and to gain power he needed to be pushed harder than he had been.

His eyes had wandered as he thought but when she mentioned chains his gaze sharpened back to her.

“As you wish, Master.”

He thought for a moment before walking with her.

“Why have you visited today, if I may ask?”


He looked over to her as they passed other sections and rooms of the temple, some still under minor construction.

“It's not often that you give me a surprise visit.”

He offered her a slight smirk.

“And I doubt it only for you to hear me boast.”


 




At least you know the usefulness of Pain. Many in our Order do not.” was Revna’s response to Varin’s statement. “I did not, once upon a time. I avoided it where I could - until I was forced into circumstances where I could no longer run away from it.” She turned her eyes to him once again, searching his face for a moment. “One day, you will have apprentices of your own. Ensure that they learn those lessons too. And if they die…then they were never meant to be a Sith.

When she mentioned him seeking out the Dark Lords, Varin arched an eyebrow at her - but seemed to pick up or at least understand what she was suggesting. His gaze wandered once more - until she mentioned the breaking of Chains.

That caught his attention - as she suspected it would - before readily agreeing to follow her suggestion.

They continued to walk on a little further, before she saw him glance at her from the corner of her eye.

“Why have you visited today, if I may ask?” Varin asked, his question somewhat catching her by surprise. It wasn’t said with malice or coldness, more with genuine curiosity. “It's not often that you give me a surprise visit. And I doubt it only for you to hear me boast.” He finished with a small smirk.

Revna turned her gaze back to him as they passed by various rooms and sections of the Temple. For a moment, Varin would see a crack in her mask - a glimpse of the same woman who had pulled shards of glass from his skin in her personal quarters back on Korriban. It wasn’t the expression of a Master but something else entirely.

Hard for me to visit you as much as I’d like to when you no longer reside on Korriban, Varin.” She said softly as she turned her focus back ahead of them and where they were walking. “My duties keep me away from you more than I would like. I have not been as involved in your teachings as I perhaps should have been, as much as I would have liked to have been. Both you and Lysander…and now only you remain as my Apprentice because of that.

There was a long pause, then a soft confession: “I am surprised you have kept me as your Master for as long as you have.

Revna turned her eyes back to the tall young man, and gave him a small half smile in response to his smirk. “But to answer you - why not? And maybe I do want to hear your boasting. The chance to feel proud of you, and how far you’ve come since crashing into that ball of sand called Korriban.

 



VARIN MORTIFER



Equipment: Durum Mantle | Black Blade of Chandrila | Eye of The Dragon | Heavy Sith Mace | Cross Guard Broadsaber

“Many in our order…”

He spoke quietly before chewing on his words.

“Are weak unfortunately. Especially those that cower from pain.”

He let Lady Revna speak, listening to her words and the painful truth behind them. No, she was not there for the majority of his acolyte life, yes she was away quite often on other duties.

But her surprise of Varin staying surprised him.

“You know my loyalty, Master.”

He spoke quietly.

“You were there at some of my lowest points. The crash, the prison. You were not a constant by any means. But you did show up when it mattered.”

His gaze flicked over to her.

“I would prefer that over a Master who constantly plagues my every waking moment.”

He offered her a soft subtle smile.

“I have been through many situations that would have killed most. I have had trials that would have broken more. Yet…I persist. Because I must.”

He paused before he continued.

“And I am honored that you have such interest in my accomplishments.”


 




Revna chuckled at Varin’s response about those within the Order being weak; it certainly was an opinionated statement, and she did not entirely disagree with him on it.

As they continued walking onward, Varin listened in silence as she spoke and shared what was on her mind at the time. She was acutely aware that the things that she had to say certainly were odd, coming from a Master to their apprentice. She knew of many Sith who would sneer in disgust at what she had said, what she was doing.

Being open and honest with a fellow Sith, a student.

Truth was - Varin was her student, but he was also akin to a son to her.

Varin seemed somewhat…surprised…by her statement.
“You know my loyalty, Master.” He said to her in a quiet voice. “You were there at some of my lowest points. The crash, the prison. You were not a constant by any means. But you did show up when it mattered.”

He shifted his eyes to her for a moment, before he continued.
“I would prefer that over a Master who constantly plagues my every waking moment.” He smiled at her then, a subtle thing, but genuine. He went on to say with raw honesty that he had been through, and survived things that would have destroyed most others. Trials that would have broken others, but he persisted…because he had to.

After a brief pause, he said that he was honored that she had such an interest in his accomplishments. For a moment, the two just continued through the Temple in silence. Revna let his words sink in over her, the honesty of them. The recognition that no, she wasn’t there all the time, but she was there when he needed her to be.

And he preferred that over a Sith Master who hovered over his shoulder every moment of his existence. She did know what that was like, and that partially why she gave Varin the space she did. She just feared that she gave too much space, but it seemed that her fears were unfounded.

A hovering Master is annoying, I can attest to that…” Revna murmured after her moment of silence. “But with mine it was because He cared what became of me. Cared for my well being, and I am forever thankful for that concern and care. It is exceedingly rare where the Sith are concerned. Many would say it is a weakness but…” Revna pursed her lips in thought for a moment. “I found that caring for those beneath you allows for greater loyalty and devotion to bloom. And those that are loyal are those that will do almost anything for you.

Revna cast Varin a grin, before she returned her focus to the pathway ahead of them. “I do miss our gardening ventures. When you find time in your schedule, stop by Korriban for a spell, hmm? We can tend to your Blood Roses, and perhaps you can take a few back for your …significant other.

 



VARIN MORTIFER



Equipment: Durum Mantle | Black Blade of Chandrila | Eye of The Dragon | Heavy Sith Mace | Cross Guard Broadsaber​

Varin was quiet for a long moment after she spoke, her words repeating within his head as they ventured further into the temple.

“My mother and father had the exact same thought while ruling. It kept our people loyal and devoted. It strengthened the bonds in case another possible war had broken out. Not only would they willingly join the cause but they would fight ferociously for them.”

At the mention of gardening and tending to his Blood Roses a small smile appeared on his lips. Then she mentioned bringing a few back to his significant other. His gaze flicked over to her, not threatening or anger, but an acknowledgement of her words.

“I’m sure she would love that. And I would love to return and spend some quality time with you. Force knows that with the size of your garden you need the extra hands.”

A slight smirk appeared on his face before he looked ahead towards where they were heading.

“How has the academy been faring? Any trouble makers I need to put into place for you?”

He remembered his time at the academy, no he was not a model student. He was volatile and destructive. So much had changed for him that he almost missed it. The direct call for violence at almost any confrontation. War and battles had changed him. Surviving through conflicts and even taking up leadership roles, it had altered much and tempered that bloodlust. It was not dull, it was sharper, more precise. And it now always had a target.

“Perhaps they could learn new things from your apprentice. If they are truly willing to learn.”


 




Your mother and father were good rulers, then.” Revna commented in return as Varin shared how his parents had carried the same views about rulers who cared for those beneath them. Their people would willingly fight any battle that came their way, because of the care given to them by their superiors.

At the mention of the Blood Roses and gardening with her, she saw a small smile cross his face. His face turned to her when she mentioned his significant other - not in anger or embarrassment but simple acknowledgement.

“I’m sure she would love that. And I would love to return and spend some quality time with you. Force knows that with the size of your garden you need the extra hands.” He said with a small smirk and Revna scoffed softly.

Oh, always. Why do the work anyway when I can just have my Apprentice do it for me? That’s what I pay you for right?” her voice held a touch of humor, of sarcasm, so he knew that she wasn’t being serious. She then snorted and laughed and shook her head after a moment, a show of rare but genuine mirth and letting down her guard.

“How has the academy been faring? Any trouble makers I need to put into place for you? Perhaps they could learn new things from your apprentice. If they are truly willing to learn.”

Some of her mirth slipped away when Varin mentioned the Academy, and any trouble makers. Not too long ago, news had reached her that one of the students had been an undercover agent, and had fed vital information back to their enemies. Her dear Soul-Sister had been beyond enraged; it had been quite the scandal.

It is…fairing. About the same as it was when you were there. And there are always trouble makers, Varin.” She said with a chuckle as she cast her gaze towards Varin for a moment, weighing on if she should tell him about what had happened, or keep it silent for now. She decided to say what she knew, but keep the details vague and keep names out of the topic, at least for the time being.

There was an…incident, within the Academy. A security breach with one of the students. It caused quite the headache, but the situation has been taken care of. Now…as for the students at the Academy learning a thing or two from you? Absolutely - you are a senior Apprentice, and the door is open for you to come back and even teach from time to time, if you so wish.

 

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