Training on Mustafar (Darth Ferus)

[Lord Ajihad]

Vi'kas stepped off of a shuttle, and was blasted by a wave of sheer heat. He stumbled backwards, taken aback by the heat of Mustafar. He knew the planet was pretty much entirely made of lava but still... wow. And he had though the infinite deserts of Tatooine were hot.

His master, [member="Darth Ferus"] , had summoned him to the hellish planet. He had no idea why, only that it was rather important. Though still, he would have preferred they meet somewhere a bit cooler, perhaps in an oven, or in the center of star. He took off his outer cloak, deeming it totally unnecessary for his current environment.

 

[Darth Ferus]

Dressed as ever in his usual armor, Ferus waited in no other place than the center of a volcano. Heat meant nothing to the Red Man, as he could literally walk around on fire if he so chose to. But that wasn't why he wanted [member="Vi'kas Mirtis"] here. In fact, it had nothing to do with training, or anything of the sort. Waiting within the basin of flame, the Darth was going to seal Vi'kas's loyalty to the Sith once and for all.

 

[Lord Ajihad]

Vi'kas hiked his way up what he thought to be a mountain. After seeing a stream of lava flow down the "mountain's" side, he realized it was, in fact, a volcano. He rolled his eyes. He hated this planet.

After climbing for what seemed like days, he finally reached the edge of the basin. He carefully crawled down basin's gradual slope, knowing that if he slipped, it would pretty much be the end of him. He eventually made his way to the Zabrak, who didn't seem to be bothered at all by the heat. Vi'kas stood there, covered in a mixture of ashes and sweat. "So, why have you summoned me, master?"

[member="Darth Ferus"]​

 

[Darth Ferus]

"Simple. You are either going to die here, or pledge yourself willingly to the Sith." With a rather placid face Ferus would stare down [member="Vi'kas Mirtis"]. This was no idle threat, and a purple flame began to engulf the red mans form. Channeling the flame down to his fist, the red man would begin to walk towards the Fist of the Demon, contempt in his eyes. "I shall brand you in the name of the Dark Lord, and you will become an equal. Or, you will die."

 

[Lord Ajihad]

Vi'kas's expression changed from inquisitive to angry. He did not like to pledge himself, and he did not like to be branded. "I cannot and will not pledge myself to any entity besides my God. Allegiances are limits, and limits mean less power. I refuse to bind myself to any being, group, or ideal. Do ask this if me." The young assassin knew very well this would displease the Zabrak, but he could simply not do what was asked of him.

[member="Darth Ferus"]

 

[Darth Ferus]

"Then you are nothing but a bomb waiting to explode. You hold no allegiances, and that will only make you an enemy of the Sith [member="Vi'kas Mirtis"]. You do not have to bind yourself to one interpretation of the Sith Code, but you will have to take it. Either that, or you will not be welcome in Sith Space any longer. You are not Jedi, but none will trust one outside of the Sith." This came more as a warning. Here in the middle of the volcano the two could talk away from prying ears and eyes. For now, they would see a master and a student, possibly training about fire manipulation.

 

[Lord Ajihad]

Vi'kas shook his head. "I don't believe you entirely understand my position on this matter. I will abide by the Sith code. I will follow the rules laid out by the Dark Lord. I will stand with the Sith in battle. I, however, will not be a pawn in a greater game. I will slaughter innocents at the whim of the Dark Lord. I will not be a tool to be used at the Sith's every whim. I won't pledge myself and become a servant. Because at the end of the day, that's what I'll be. The Sith serve the Dark Lord, they are his minions. I am my own person. I won't religiously follow the Sith like some cultist. I see the Dark Side as a tool and weapon, not as some sort of being to be worshipped like the Sith seem to think of it as. I will be a member of the One Sith, but will not mindlessly carry out actions at the whim of the Dark Lord."

[member="Darth Ferus"]

 

[Darth Ferus]

"You are not mindless beneath the Dark Lord. You only have to answer to him. You serve me, and by extension you serve his will. Of that, you have no choice if you wish to stay my apprentice. You will not be a thrall, do I look like one to you?" The fire around the Sith Lord only grew, and the anger was leaching into the flames themselves. "Do you think of me nothing but a pawn? I want to bring this galaxy under one ruler, but this one ruler does not dictate what I do. I have one goal, to destroy his enemies, but it is my choice how I go about doing it. Do you insult me [member="Vi'kas Mirtis"]?"

 

[Lord Ajihad]

Vi'kas shrugged. "Do I insult you? I do not try to, but if I do, that is your choice. I won't bow down to anyone. I will assist the Dark Lord in his endeavors, but I won't slaughter innocents, or do do what I feel is injust. I will maintain my free will at all costs. I'm not a servant to the Dark Lord, only one who will assist by his own choice. Though I will make it clear I'm not an enemy of the Sith, if that's what you believe."

[member="Darth Ferus"]

 

[Darth Ferus]

"You don't seem to understand what it is to serve the Dark Lord. You do not have to kill innocents. You don't have to practically do anything. You live by the Sith Code, and you treat the rest of the Sith as a family. There will never be a case you have to do something against your will. Serving the Dark Lord does not make you a puppet." It was a rather plain answer for [member="Vi'kas Mirtis"]. With a frown the red man would begin to lower his flame. The boy didn't seem to understand the actual meaning to serve the Dark Lord. It wasn't slavery, just working towards a common goal.

 

[Lord Ajihad]

Vi'kas sighed. "Then perhaps it was my misunderstanding. I apologize for my hostility on the matter, I just hold my personal freedom close to my heart. Very well, I will pledge myself to the Sith. However, I stand by my previous statement. I won't do anything unless I am personally willing to do it."

[member="Darth Ferus"]

 

[Darth Ferus]

"So long as you don't let a Jedi kill another member of the Sith, I'm sure you will be fine." This time a smile formed over the red mans face. But there was still something else to be done. Pulling free a small needle, he would let the thing float in his hand. "As you are an assassin, your mark will be different from the rest of the Sith. Only your anger will make it show, thus hiding you from the publics eye."

[member="Vi'kas Mirtis"]

 

[Lord Ajihad]

Vi'kas cocked his head, intrigued with the notion. He examined the needle, trying figure out what exactly it was. After trying and failing, he said, "An interesting idea, to say the least. And what exactly would this mark be?" He couldn't help but feel excited, he was about to move up in the Sith hierarchy.

[member="Darth Ferus"]

 

[Darth Ferus]

"The Dark Mark. What it looks like is up to you. As you grow, it will slowly take it's own shape." Tossing the needle to [member="Vi'kas Mirtis"], Ferus would once more cross his arms over his chest. "This will be painful by the way. Think of it as a final test before I knight you." That would be the first indication on what Ferus had actually called the Fist to the planet to do. Watching expectantly, blue eyes would narrow as the time went on.

 

[Lord Ajihad]

He suppressed a grin, happy about his upcoming promotion. However, now was not the time for that, but for the task at hand. Vi'kas thought it over long and hard. He was an assassin. He would become a personification of Death itself. He would be feared by all, and would strike from the shadows. He closed his eyes, picturing what it was he wanted. He then took the needle, and began to work.

The area he chose was his right forearm. He rolled up his sleeve, and inserted the needle. He used to force to guide the substance on its path. After several minutes, it took it's final shape: as the Grim Reaper.

He looked at the tatoo for a second, before it disappeared into his skin. He then remembered what [member="Darth Ferus"] had said about the pain. He frowned, having not felt anything. As he looked to his master with an inquisitive glance, the pain hit him like a freight train.

The pain was bad. It hurt an incredible amount. The only reason he didn't pass out was because he and pain had come to an undetstanding some time ago, when a Vong shaper had inserted Yuuzham Vong fighting claws into his arms. The pain of the creature tearing through his arms, tunneling through his body, that was the definition of pain. However, it didn't lessen the pain of his current predicament. He was on the ground, thrashing in pain. He was rolling dangerously close to the lava, and it took everything he had in him not to burn himself.

After a few continued minutes of agony, the pain finally began to subside. His clothes were ruined from a mixture of ash and sweat, as well as a little blood from where he cut himself on a lava rock. He managed to get to his feet, barely catching himself before he fell into the lake of molten rock. Giving his master a slightly pained look, he asked, "So, what now?" His voice crackled, as his throat was totally dry. He grimaced, needing a drink.

 

[Darth Ferus]

Ferus had crouched down beside [member="Vi'kas Mirtis"] as the boy went through his torturous staining. As he lifted himself up, Ferus waved a hand dismissively, letting his blue gaze wander around the area of the molten cavern. "Now you join the ranks of the Sith truly. You're an assassin. Now you go to kill those who oppose the Dark Lord." `With a slight grin, Ferus turned his head back to Mirtis.

"Welcome to being a Sith Knight."

 

[Lord Ajihad]

Vi'kas managed to push out a halfhearted smile. He was pretty sure he had somehow managed to rupture his spleen in the process. "Thank you, I will not disappoint in your descision, Master." He stood there, waiting to see if he would be given any further instructions.

[member="Darth Ferus"]