Beast Master of Korriban
Image credit: original art
NAME: Zal Aditi
HOMEWORLD: Korriban
ASSOCIATES:
Darth Caedes
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Kyraj
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Elmindra Xitaar
FACTION: Sith Order
RANK: Sith Knight / Sith Alchemist
SPECIES: Omwati
AGE: 28
SEX: Female
HEIGHT: 6' 4" (5' 11" pre-Thule)
WEIGHT: Willowy and slender
EYES: Bright amber, though the large pupils sometimes dilate enough to turn them fully black. They are round and bird-like, and though rarely seen, a nictating membrane is sometimes visible. The sclera is a deep crimson.
HAIR: Thin, thread-like feathers of a shimmering pale lilac that shines iridescent in bright light. The length is just past her shoulders when worn down and swept back from her face, as it usually is (header picture), but for battle she braids it tightly around spikes made from pelko bug shells.
SKIN: A warm, pale blue that verges on lavender.
FORCE SENSITIVE: Yes
STRENGTHS (+) AND WEAKNESSES (-):
+ / - Omwati - Known for their natural scientific, musical, and engineering talents, these lithe avian humanoids have a higher capacity for learning than most other sentient species. If molded and guided from a young age, they can achieve truly brilliant mastery of whatever field they are directed towards. Not physically imposing, and naturally somewhat naieve, they maintain a youthful appearance even into older age, which starts as soon as their early forties. Few live long past eighty. Their voices are high and flute-like, and their inherent understanding of music is apparent in their native language and technological interfaces.
+ Ancient Knowledge - From a young age, Zal immersed herself in lost Sith secrets and techniques. Without a formal master, she nevertheless trained herself to proficiency, and knows much about the history and old philosophy of Sith ways.
+ Voracious Curiosity - Zal believes that true power lies in knowledge and understanding. Any foe, any obstacle can be overcome if one can only find the right motivation or mechanic to exploit.
+ Vicious Instincts - Thanks to the influence of the monstrous predatory creatures who she considers her true family, Zal has a vicious predatory instinct and an aptitude for violence.
+ Monstrous Affinity - A natural empathy for creatures has developed into a talent for telepathy and dominance over beasts. As her training continues, the complexity of the minds she can influence grows, and even those with true sentience will become easy prey to her dominion. Her natural cunning and her understanding
- Single-Minded Focus - When Zal turns her keen intellect towards a goal, she can sometimes miss other opportunities. Her focus narrows to the task at hand and the approach she has deemed correct; and not until that approach truly fails will she consider other options or tactics. This lack of flexibility may someday be her downfall.
- Craving for Intensity - Zal's curiosity and drive for exploration lead her to constantly seek new experiences and knowledge. When bored, she becomes erratic and chaotic, and may find ways to indulge her need for stimulus and adrenaline that are ultimately destructive to her or her allies.
APPEARANCE:
Zal Aditi has the delicate build and features of her avian race, but her long and early exposure to the dark side of the force has given her a predatory sharpness. Her fingers end in long and dangerous talons. Her eyes are the bright amber of a bird of prey, another gift of dark side corruption, as is the deep crimson of the sclera. Though slender, she stands quite tall, and often enhances this with tall boots. Her hair consists of many fine strands of feathers, which vary in appearance from white to pale lilac to a warmer pink depending on the lighting, and carry a natural iridescence. Her skills with Sith Alchemy mean that her appearance is often somewhat altered depending on the situation - masks and other physical enhancements are a specialty, though not her primary area of focus.
Though her hair usually hangs around her shoulders or pulled back into a high knot with one long section of bangs in front, she also is known to style it in elaborate braids, which often have some sort of weaponry or defense woven in, often organic. Pelko bug shells are a favorite for combat.
Her wardrobe also varies by occasion - practical and durable leathers for day-to-day, but she enjoys and understands the use of showing more flair when appropriate, often choosing garments with an element of scarlet. Her armor and other accoutrement often feature an organic element to them, even if not readily apparent: teeth, barbs, talons, spines, venom, fur, or other useful pieces, especially from beasts and races that carry innate and unique abilities.
BIOGRAPHY:
Zal Aditi was born on Korriban shortly following the Ashlan Crusade's occupation and razing of the ancient world. Her parents were Omwati archaeologists, seeking the ancient knowledge hidden in the ruins of the Sith homeworld, believers in the mission of "cleansing" the dark planet and turning it to a monument of the redemptive power of the light.
But Korriban's true nature is not so easily transmuted. For aeons the Dark Force has flowed through the land, suffusing its very essence, altering all life that walks on its earth, burrows through its depths, and soars through its amber skies. The native creatures of Korriban suffered under the Ashla suppression of the dark side, driven underground and weakened by the profane light side ritual that suppressed the dark energies that were inherent to their very nature. The Tuk'ata, starving as the source of their nourishment was poisoned; pelko bug swarming patterns and hive structures thrown into disarray; terentateks forced deeper beneath the surface, pushed out of their homes and dens; Hssiss driven to frenzy, their colonies collapsing and destructing from within. Beyond the destruction and suppression of the ancient, sacred tombs and the building of profane monuments to the light, the Ashlan "cleansing" of Korriban was in many ways an act of ecological terrorism.
From a young age, Zal's force sensitivity gave her an empathic bond with both the land of her birth and its creatures. At four years old, she went wandering, following a feeling of need and suffering into a crevice that led deep through ancient, half-collapsed tunnels into the ruins of a Sith temple that had become the last refuge of a mated tuk'ata pair. The enormous predators, robbed of their access to the dark side of the force they drew nourishment from, were too weak to taken advantage of even such easy prey. Though she could sense their dangerous nature, Zal returned to the cave with meat and began to spend time both caring for the beasts and exploring the hidden maze of ancient knowledge, her journeys over the years taking her ever deeper. Her efforts to help the tuk'ata kept them from death, but were too feeble to restore them to strength... until her explorations uncovered a holocron that held teachings of Sith magics and philosophy, including techniques of healing and mental domination.
This holocron was the start of her training in the ways of the force, and ignited a passion for learning and knowledge which drew her to spend more and more time in the deep ruins. The techniques she learned were tested on the tuk'ata, their natural telepathy and Zal's affinity for beasts making them susceptible to her mind magic and influence. As she influenced them, they too influenced her, instilling a viciousness and predatory instinct in the young girl. These instincts made her relentless in the search for new knowledge, and she came to hate the Ashlan Crusaders and all they stood for. Her parents' attempts to discipline and control her, and teach her the values of that crusade, made them targets of that hate as well. As the years went on it was the pockets of dark energy, the creatures who thrived in them, and the ancient Sith teachings that shaped Zal, not the guidance and preachings of her well-intentioned mother and father; and in time, their troubled little 'Diti hunted them down as prey, enacting vengeance for the beasts who she considered her true family, who had suffered so deeply under the Ashlan oppression.
After this coming of age, she spent little time outside the ruins and caverns of the planet's depths, abandoning any remaining pretense to or remnants of her surface world identity. Though the occasional pockets and wells of dark force energy she encountered probably emanated from powerful artifacts of the Sith, her focus always was the pursuit for knowledge: holocrons, texts, ancient carvings and riddles were the dearest treasures and the true source of power for her. As she grew older her curiosity drew her to explore more of the planet, and in time she came to know the many varied regions and inhabitants of Korriban, attempting to use her Sith magics to undo the light side influence and restore the natural darkness of the planet as she traveled.
Eventually it became clear that to truly grow her power and gain new knowledge, she would need to leave the planet and explore the galaxy, to seek others who understood the importance of the Sith teachings. Fortunately, the location of such peoples was common knowledge, and conveniently nearby. She commandeered a ship, making it something of an ark as many of her loyal monsters came with her, and set out for the darker reaches of the galaxy.
Her mission was fruitful; the Sith holocrons and texts she brought with her held value, and helped buy allies, while her viciousness and predatory instincts earned her respect and showed her potential. She was trained in Sith combat techniques, and it was during these years of training that she encountered Sith Alchemy. This, for her, was a chance to more deeply understand the creatures she was so fascinated by and why and how they worked, and she took to it like a k'lor'slug to flesh.
Her strongest ally in this learning became one
Darth Caedes
, who encouraged - and certainly profited by - the potential of the skilled young alchemist, and provided a wealth of resources and equipment for her experimentation.SHIP:
TBD
KILLS:
None yet
BOUNTIES COLLECTED:
None yet
ROLE-PLAYS:
Reclamation: The Scouring of Korriban
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