(OOC: The Vast Empire's first look at the Dark Jedi Order's idea of writing. This is the first part of my 25 pages Dark Jedi Master journey. Enjoy.)
"Why does this look a lot like Cepany, Tal?" asked Japheth as he leaned over the back of the pilot's chair. "I could have sworn that safety was the other direction."
Talon glanced to his right and the holographic display shifted to stay within his sight. A quick tap of a button to his left brought up a zoomed image of a freighter heading away from Cepany to clear for hyperspace. Visual confirmation was needed because of the cloaking shield blocking their sensor abilities. Without taking his eyes off of his flying, Talon replied, "Kadann wants us back. It was all a test, he said." Talon glanced down at display for the cloak and quadruple checked that it was functional.
Japheth looked down at the top of Talon's head and asked, "You trust him?"
Talon smirked and zoomed in on another ship. "Not entirely, but it's not as if he could stop us from doing what we did back on Lopen if we had to. Stretch out with the Force. The closest thing to another Dark Jedi on the surface is my next target for recruitment. I sense raw talent and nothing more." he replied with confidence.
Japheth closed his eyes and expanded his senses. The globe in front of him glowed brightly by the mass of life forms. The plant life had a glow of its own, but it had a different presence. As Talon said, he could feel Kadann was the only trained Force user on the planet.
The
Shadow streaked on toward Cepany cloaked. The entire planet, save for one person, was unaware of its existence.
* * *
Japheth adjusted his belt and straitened his tunic. He turned to Talon who was likewise preparing himself to be seen in public. They had enough time earlier to clean themselves up with the miniature refresher on the
Shadow and more importantly, they were ready for battle. Talon had his Sith sword on his back and both lightsabers on his belt. Japheth, as always, was ready to use his own lightsaber.
Talon punched a key on the wall and waited as the entrance ramp opened upward. He walked softly on the ceiling of his ship and gently hopped out. He could hear Japheth's footsteps behind him as he had done the same. Talon looked up and saw the closing door. The inverted ship was waiting on standby and cloaked, ready at a moment's notice from a double click on the comm-link Talon held in his hand.
Exchanging nods, the two Griffen Sect members made their way to the Vast Empire's base on Cepany. The streets were crowded, as the populous had just gotten off of work. Yet somehow, Talon and Japheth had enough room to walk side-by-side with room to spare. It wasn't until Japheth looked over at Talon that he knew why. The Krath Pontifex's eyes were glowing, as they did often when he was angry. A quick look without his eyes told Japheth that Talon was not angry, but cautious. The glowing eyes were just to get people to keep their distance, giving him enough room to see his surroundings.
Japheth could feel the concern growing within Talon as he kept himself open to the Force. Both of them continued to scan the crowd and their surroundings with their eyes and the Force as they advanced to the base. The presence of Kadann grew the closer they got, as did the knot in the back of Talon's throat.
* * *
One Stormtrooper on either side of the grand doorway to the Vast Empire High Council's meeting chambers. It was always the same. Upon approaching, they were required to show identification. Were it not for the recent past, Talon would be bored during the engagement. He was ready at any moment to kill the two guards if they attacked. His hands rested almost casually on the lightsabers on his belt. Out of the corner of his eye, Talon could see that Japheth was doing the same.
The Stormtrooper on the left snapped to attention and saluted. "Welcome, General Talon. Grand Moff Kadann is expecting you." the trooper said as he waited for Talon to return the salute. The other guard pressed a button on a small remote he held. With a loud thud, the large locks disengaged and the door opened wide. Within was the greatest room in all of Cepany. Expensive tapestries lined the walls, tastefully spread out with a soft glow lamp from all sides to illuminate them. The stone floor's reflection was as clear as crystal, much to the dismay of visiting dignitaries wearing dresses. Talon spotted Kadann sitting at the meeting table in the center of the room. Like every High Council and ambassador's meeting table, the one in this room was a grand circle. The idea was to have everyone able to see each other with as little effort as possible and to give everyone the feeling that their voice counted as much as the person's that would sit at the head of the table. It was a comfortable lie.
Talon looked through the glass table and saw no weapon at Kadann's side. No surprise, as Kadann's lightsaber was nothing but a trophy on his wall now. Why should a man that has the Force at his disposal need a weapon? Why, indeed. Talon's thoughts were interrupted as Kadann looked up from his paperwork. A disarming smile formed on his face as he stood. "I was wondering if I would have to break you out myself." he said with a slight chuckle. Kadann stood and stretched. A quiet groan escaped as he did. "I have brought you here for more than one reason, Talon. First off, Japheth, you will be reinstated as Headmaster. Very little has happened while you were gone. You should find it easy to slip back into the position." he said with obvious confidence. After receiving a guarded bow, Kadann turned back to Talon and said, "As I said, you are to be the Grand Master, effective immediately. As your final test, you will find your source of power and expand it." He paused before adding, "The next time we meet, I expect you to have completed your path to the rank of Dark Jedi Master."
Talon swept an arm in front of himself to catch his robes as he bowed low. While his face and body showed no emotions, his mind was spinning. He knew the importance of the task given him. He also had no clue on how to accomplish it. There were no set instructions like the times before when he was given a chance to advance. There would seem to be no wrong way to achieve the end result. Talon stood from his bow and looked over to find Japheth gone. A quick check with his mind found Japheth already down the hall and heading back to the ship.
Kadann's tone and face became very serious as he added, "I know you don't trust me fully yet, but I want you to know that everything was under control. I had no intentions of letting Spartacus kill you. If it were not for me, you would have killed him during your duel." His seriousness dropped and he smiled. "You always find a way to raise my blood pressure, don't you?"
As always, Talon remained emotionless on the outside. He was still boiling from being betrayed, but it was dissipating. One part of him was amused at hearing that Kadann had stepped in to help Spartacus in the duel. The smallest part could understand Kadann's reasons... almost. "I will do as commanded, Master." Talon said finally. He bowed once more, turned on his heel, and walked briskly out of the High Council's chambers.
* * *
Lopen's barren sphere filled the main view port of the
Shadow as Talon and Japheth prepared for landing. Soon they would return to their jobs as if nothing happened. Ignorance would be bliss for those that had no first hand experience in the matter. Talon's main focus would be the task given to him by Kadann, but he would have many distractions. On his way out of the Rheagent system, Talon had been provided an update on the current situation for the Dark Jedi Order. The one trapped under the rock had actually been Darkhawk. He and Riel had broken into the Grand Master's chambers and were defeated by Spartacus. Riel fought his way out of the medical wing when he came to, and Darkhawk remained in treatment. Seido Joll had been captured some time ago and was being held until Talon could interrogate him. Vire D'sok still required training. Kadann had informed Talon of the slacking in the training since both the master and the Headmaster were absent. No matter how many distractions Talon added to the list, he always found himself going back to Darkhawk. The mental conditions formed in the young man as the result of implanted memories worried and fascinated Talon. He pushed those thoughts away and focused on landing, as the ground was approaching rather quickly. Talon shook his head and wondered when he entered the atmosphere. Almost the entire landing cycle had been done by reflex as he was lost in thought. Talon brought the nose of the
Shadow around to aim for the Dark Council's landing pad. On it was one of Japheth's TIE Defenders and Riel's TIE Phantom. With ample room to maneuver, Talon touched the
Shadow down and opened the hatch.
Talon and Japheth stepped out of the ship and walked calmly down the ramp. The hiss of escaping gasses from the underside of the ship almost masked the sound of the approaching group. Reflexively, Talon and Japheth's hands went for their lightsabers before they stretched out with the Force to examine the possible threat. With a sigh, they relaxed as the remaining Dark Jedi Order rounded the corner. With relieved looks on their faces, they greeted their returning Dark Council. Cutting the greetings short, Talon excused himself and disappeared into the Citadel. Japheth watched the newly appointed Grand Master round the corner and returned his attention to the trainees and Knights that had an endless stream of questions. When asked where he and Talon had been, Japheth answered that Kadann has deemed it classified and not to ask. He faked a smile and went on. With a sweeping gesture, he signaled the trainees to follow him, and Japheth the Headmaster of the Vast Empire's Dark Jedi Order went back to work as usual.
* * *
Talon stood at ease in front of one of the greatest mysteries of the Dark Jedi Order. Before him was a pedestal with the Krath holocron perched on top. Years before, Atrus had tamed the keeper of the Sith Holocron. He had learned the secrets that it withheld from anyone it deemed unfit to wield the power. While Talon did not know Kadann's, Spartacus', or Majere's path to the rank of Master; he guessed that it was much the same. Breathing in deeply, Talon extended his left hand, palm down, and hovered it an inch above the pointed top of the holocron. He closed his eyes and a blinding white light spread from the tip of the archaic databank. Through closed eyelids, Talon could see the light fading. His eyelids parted and a great mass of nothing greeted him. Before him stood an ancient looking man with an oddly shaped mustache. The thin strands of hair came together in two small bunches going down either side of his mouth. One end was being idly rolled between his thumb and forefinger. A strong presence in the Force emanated from the old man.
The holocron keeper slowly opened his eyes and solid white spheres stared at Talon. A smile formed on his face, revealing finely pointed teeth. A horse croak came from the man's mouth as he spoke, "I know why you are here, Sierra Taurus. It has been some time since you were last searching for information in my kingdom. Know this: you will only advance if you are willing to lose all to gain all. You will die if you fail. You will be given power beyond your comprehension if you advance. Does your resolve stand?"
Talon internally set himself firmly in place and replied, "I am not afraid. I know I will prevail. My hunger for knowledge will not go unquenched." He firmly set his jaw and squared his shoulders. There was no second chance. One false move or word and the holocron keeper could banish him from the world of information that he had gathered.
The old man grinned and cited the ever-popular saying among the Krath: "There is no knowledge that is not power." His blind stare drifted off as the holocron keeper recalled a memory from many years ago. When his attention returned, the old man asked, "Does this make you power hungry, Taurus?"
A moment's hesitation hung on Talon's lips before he asked, "How can someone with power be hungry for it?" His resolve faltered momentarily before being reinforced again. He stood as strong as he had before the questioning and finally answered, "I am content with my role in the Dark Jedi Order, but I yearn for personal ability. I wish to see the extent of what I am capable. I wish only to have my maximum potential."
"You answer truthfully. Many Dark Jedi can not see past their own ego to grab hold of what they already have. This is why the Golden Age of the Sith fell. A grab for power is common among the Dark Jedi. Galactic domination does not seem to appeal to you. Why do you think that is, Taurus?" the old man said softly. Although his words flowed calmly, there was no mistaking the underlying threat of destruction, or worse yet banishment from the holocron.
Talon thought quietly for a moment. Nodding inwardly, he said, "The way of the Krath is to gather knowledge. To us, information is valued over worlds full of slaves and entire armies at our disposal. Unlike the majority of the Dark Jedi, we are more content to build a society than a kingdom."
The old man stroked his mustache for a moment before finally saying, "Perhaps." He turned away and walked on the nothingness until he had doubled his distance from Talon. With a rich, deep voice the holocron keeper roared, "Phase one: Lightsaber combat." With a whirl, he was gone. The blinding light surged back and when it faded, Talon found himself inside the Citadel's combat training arena. The almost gasping voice of the holocron keeper returned as it reverberated off of the walls, coming from nowhere, "My holocron is built on a multi-leveled structure. When someone has proven themselves, they proceed to the next level. I have simulated your own combat arena and will present you with an opponent. You will succeed or die." The voice faded off and the arena was quiet once again. Talon could hear his own breathing and the thudding of his heart as it fought to escape the confines of his chest.
The double transparasteel doors opened wide and a blue lightsaber blade parted the darkness. "Who would you desire to fight the least, Taurus?" the old man said with a chuckle, and then faded away again. Out of the darkness stepped a short robe. With a gloved hand, the owner pulled back the hood to reveal a young, feminine face. A feeling of dread crept through Talon and worked its way down to his stomach. The deceased Dark Jedi Knight Aeris stood before him with a strong look of hatred. She brought her lightsaber up to a hasso position and set herself into a neutral stance.
'This isn't real. She's dead. That lightsaber is on the Shadow
right now.' thought Talon as he called his lightsabers to his hands and activated both black blades with a thought. There was no confidence in the voice of his own thoughts. Even he could see that there was doubt. With the eyes of his mind, Talon sought out the mind of the woman before him and almost stumbled backwards as he found the strangely familiar presence of Aeris.
Upon telepathic contact, Aeris spoke to Talon through the Force,
'You let me die, Sierra. I thought we had the potential to be something special. You betrayed me.'
'No!' Talon thought.
'I did everything I could. Spartacus.. Paan.. they are responsible.' he finished. His mind was spinning. There was no way it could be real. Yet if it was not real, the Force was lying. Or was it?
* * *
A white robed apprentice stepped out from behind a shelf full of ancient tomes. Vire D'sok looked over his Master with visible concern. Many had seen the newly appointed Grand Master enter the grand library and activate the holocron. Practically all of the Dark Jedi Order was present in the room, watching and waiting. They could all feel the buzz of the Force being used constantly. Many Dark Jedi looked in awe as they thought of how exhausted they would be with that much exposure to the Force. Vire glanced around the room and saw that no one was looking directly at Talon for more than a moment. They did not want to seem like they were watching him, but it was obvious to everyone why they were there.
Vire turned back to his Master and peered into his thoughts. Breathing out slowly, Vire let his consciousness flow on the tail of his expelled breath. By the time his mind reached Talon's, Vire was completely open to the thoughts of others. Channeling out others, Vire focused on Talon as he opened himself up.
'..did she get the saber why does she want to kill me I love you please don't do this damn you Spartacus what should I do I am not ready for thi..' Vire staggered back and gasped for air as he quickly drew himself back into his body. The mass of thoughts flowing through Talon's mind was a great overload. Whatever was going on, it was tearing him apart. Signs of stress and fatigue were showing on Talon, though he remained expressionless.
Yanking his hood up and over his head, Vire turned away to find a place to sit. Three steps later, a scream almost made him jump out of his robe. He spun around with lightsaber in hand and scanned the room with sharp eyes. He saw at once, Talon was in a pile on the floor. The heels of his hands were driving into his eye sockets and his face was twisted in horror. A mighty roar rolled out of his mouth as he fought to drive out whatever vision he saw. Before Vire could make it to his Master's side, Talon stopped. He sat up and looked around. The powerful man now had a look of weakness and fear. The entire Order was now watching as Talon sat, breathing deeply. A moment later, Talon was gone. He stood and calmly walked out of the room, for once not enjoying the looks of surprise on everyone's faces. His disappearing act was nothing more than the Force acting as a mirror and making him impossible to see. Those present in the library would feel his presence getting farther away, but they would not be able to tell exactly where he was.
Without noticing, Talon was suddenly at the foot of the ramp to his ship. The events within the holocron infested his mind and would not go away, even with the aid of the numerous techniques he had learned over the years to clear his thoughts. Taking a deep breath, Talon ascended the ramp and entered the
Shadow. Within minutes, the ship was in the air and streaking off toward space. As soon as jumping to hyperspace was possible, Talon threw the levers and the ship winked out of view.
* * *
The quiet hum of hyperspace normally lulled Talon into a daze and eventually sleep. This would have been no exception were it not for his mind racing. Within the trap of the holocron, Talon stood once again with his lightsabers drawn. The old man forced him to defend himself against what every sense told him was Aeris. He knew for a fact that she was dead and the only reason the old man knew of her existence was because she was somewhere deep inside Talon's mind. Without knowing it, he had allowed the holocron keeper to enter his mind and pull any memory that he wished. As his vivid memory replayed the past, Talon fought to change it within his own memories. Without knowing it, he gripped the armrests of his chair and firmly set his jaw as he fought to move out of the way of Aeris' blue lightsaber blade. Instead, Talon blocked with his left and slammed the blade away with his right. Aeris used the momentum to continue the spin and end up slicing at Talon's hips. In a flash, Talon ducked under the blade and a piece of his cloak dropped to the ground, burned cleanly off by the blue blade. He brought his elbow up and knocked Aeris in the base of her skull. As expected, Aeris went down quickly, but somehow she was not knocked out. She followed through with a roll back to her feet and she assumed a crouching defensive stance before pouncing again.
"Aeris, please stop." he pleaded as his two sabers met her one near their chests. Their lightsabers crackled as they rubbed together and fought to eat through each others' field. Aeris did not answer, but only shoved harder into Talon's blades. Talon set one foot back to brace for the shoving as he was starting to slide backwards.
'This isn't Aeris. thought Talon as he looked into her eyes.
'She wasn't this physically strong. There's no way she would attack me either. And yet the Force told me that it's her... didn't it?' Talon eased up as Aeris drew back for another attack. She feigned low and came in at chest level. Again, Talon blocked with both blades. Before he could shove her blade back, Aeris drew back and attacked low. Talon brought one blade in to block and the other around to trap the blue blade. Talon leaned forward and shoved his shoulder into Aeris' chest, tossing her away from her lightsaber. The simple cylinder clattered to the ground and extinguished after leaving a few stripes of superheated metal behind. Talon snuffed out his right lightsaber and clipped it to his belt. With a thought, he summoned Aeris' lightsaber to his hand. "The game's over, old man. I've won." he shouted at the ceiling.
The thunderous voice returned, saying, "Either you die or she does, Taurus." The old man's strong voice echoed in the arena for a few seconds before going silent. Talon looked over at Aeris, who was just now standing up. She brought her lightsaber up and activated it. Talon looked down at his right hand in surprise, as it was now empty. He had not felt Aeris pull it back. Talon returned his attention to the fight and brought his other saber up from his belt. The black blade leapt from the emitter and again Talon blocked a series of well timed attacks, aimed at leaving Talon in a heap or two on the ground. Again, he stretched out with the Force and searched Aeris' mind. An odd taint filled her thoughts, as if they were not her own. There was something deeply rooted within her mind that reminded Talon of the old man who guarded the holocron's secrets. Talon growled, "I see your tricks, old fool." and blocked one final blow before plunging his left lightsaber through Aeris' chest. She tried to gasp, but her breath was cut short. Her lightsaber clattered to the ground again and her body soon followed. Aeris let loose a sickening cough and looked into Talon's eyes. "Sierra," she called faintly, "why?"
Talon extinguished his lightsabers and looked down at Aeris. "You are not real." he said coldly. "You are a puppet of a sick man. Aeris was dead some time ago. I watched her die, just as I would have you... if you were real."
Aeris reached up with a blood-coated hand. "Sierra... please." she said even more softly. "I love you." she whispered at last before collapsing back in a heap. A single tear dropped onto her bloodstained cloak. The ghost of Dark Jedi Knight Aeris once again passed from her body and Talon could again feel the touch of her mind.
He panicked as he felt the horrible past again. Talon's head flew back and the scream of a tortured beast escaped his lips. He clutched his stomach as he sunk to his knees. His gloved hand reached out to find Aeris, to comfort her dead body. His hand found only air before coming in contact with the hard metal floor. His mind broke and all went blank until he woke up on the floor of the Citadel's library.
Back on the
Shadow, Talon clutched the real lightsaber that he retrieved back on Bluepoint 5. It had not been activated since the burial ceremony on Dxun, but he knew for a fact that it would ignite if it had pressure on the activation plate. He could see the creativity and care that was needed to create the lightsaber and his fingers followed the edges as it traced the outline of the hilt. It was a sign of power and it demanded respect of its owner. The mere sight of it would strike fear in the majority of the people who would know what it was.
Talon stood and placed the lightsaber gently in the custom made display case and closed the lid. Giving it a final look, he turned on his heel and moved to the trunk of spare clothes he kept near the hatch. With a heave, Talon pulled the large box out and opened it up. Many different outfits for different occasions were neatly folded and stored within. Lifting up his Imperial officer's uniform, Talon pulled out one of his favorite outfits from back when he was a hired gun. The scratched and dusty leather jacket with its many hidden pockets, the plain grey shirt, and loose cargo pants. Off to one side was the pair of boots he used to wear with them. The toes were made out of a light metal inside the leather, but other than that they resembled the lightweight footwear of a tracker. Talon smiled as he looked down at the cloths on the floor. It had been some time since he had dressed like that, and it would feel odd to not either be in robes or a uniform. He shrugged out of his black robe and noticed the burned off corner as it fluttered to the ground. Forcing himself to ignore it, Talon removed his tunic, boots, and pants as well. He slipped into his old clothes and carefully packed up his robes and stowed the boots in a locker next to where the trunk slid in and locked in place. Talon removed his lightsabers from his belt and hooked them together to form his Darkstaff. He slipped the long hilt into the jacket and grabbed another belt that held a blaster inside of a quickdraw holster. With a smirk, Talon strapped the gun to his hip and tied lowest point of the holster to his right leg.
"My name is Kel. Kel Rhone." Talon said to himself. Chuckling lightly, he returned to the pilot seat and glanced at the hyperspace timer. "Three minutes." muttered Talon as he sat back and waited.
* * *
"My name is Kel. Kel Rhone." Talon said to the stranger next to him. The woman had been looking Talon up and down for some time now, something she did not know she could not hide from him. His ability to sense thoughts had made him take notice of her glances and supposedly secret thoughts of what she would do if given the chance. Talon had to hide a smile behind the edge of his glass as he slowly drank his Savareen Brandy. The woman had walked up and mentioned how she had never seen him around here before, but he looked familiar.
'No small wonder. I haven't even left Vast Empire space and you're saying you recognize the Operations Officer?' Talon thought. What he said was, "I pass through now and then. It has been a while since I've been on Tadath, but I make it a habit to swing by whenever I can. Beautiful place, here." He was telling the truth, it had been some time since he was on the Army's headquarters. He did come by when possible because he enjoyed the sunsets and the buildings were all works of art.
"Oh," she said, "well, my name's Skylla." She shifted closer in her chair. "Since you're not here much, what do you say we go see some sights? It's either that or we both get very drunk and not remember whatever we do." she said with smile. She pulled a few strands of hair out of her face and tucked it behind her ear as she kept eye contact, waiting for a reply.
Talon took note of the non-verbal cue and replied, "Sounds good. I wasn't in the mood for a hangover anyway." As he stood, his glance fell to the drink that was cupped in Skylla's hands. The dark red liquid inside was still at what bartenders normally considered full and there were no marks on the rim of the glass to suggest she had not even taken a sip from it. Talon leaned in close as he passed by the woman and smelled no alcohol on her. He let a slight smile form as he waited for her to catch up.
Outside the bar, the majority of the small section of Tadath was quiet. Riding along the outskirts of the main Stormtrooper Corps base, this small town saw its fair share of Imperials, but the ones who lived in this district had done so for many generations before the Vast Empire had arrived in their system. The old-fashioned cobblestone road was wet from a late night rain earlier and small trails of rainwater collected in the valleys of the stone, but now the sky was clear and many bright stars were visible. Taking up a large portion of the sky was Nodriss, the planet that Tadath orbited. The gas giant reflected some soft light, illuminating the night with a slight orange tinge. Just past Nodriss was a speck of rock simply named Nodriss D. The farthest out of the four moons of Nodriss was a frozen planet with no mining capability. It was of little use to the Vast Empire. Talon's position as Operations Officer had forced him to learn the facts of all of the planets within the systems controlled by the Vast Empire and be able to recall statistics such as population, import/export, and military presence.
Forcing himself to stop thinking like a General, Talon looked over at Skylla as she gracefully flowed down the street next to him. The woman was obviously not intoxicated in the slightest and there was an air of superiority in her posture. A few steps later, Skylla looked over and noticed Talon looking at her. Instead of looking away, Talon held eye contact for a moment. He saw something behind her eyes. It was almost as if she was looking for something. Skylla was trying to find in Talon something that she had been searching for, for a long time. Quite suddenly, Skylla's eyes seemed to refocus and see Talon externally. He gave a slight smile, which she returned before looking ahead again. They continued on in silence down the damp road.
* * *
High atop a large hill, Talon sat on a stone bench next to Skylla. They both were sitting back and propping themselves up with their hands. Almost as if they saw it for the first time, they were gazing into the expansive sky. Talon glanced over at Skylla without moving his head and smiled when he saw the beauty. Her face was at a perfect profiling angle and the planet above them gave her skin a soft glow. Her brown hair flowed freely, almost touching her hands on the edge of the bench. He allowed his gaze to follow down the length of her body, admiring the curves that made the female body a work of art. Despite her short stature, her legs seemed long through the dress she wore and her well toned calves shone the reflection of Nodriss, as they had gotten their legs wet in the tall grass. Talon snapped back awake as Skylla opened her mouth to ask, "Why are you here, Taurus?"
"Because I..." he paused and turned to look at her, but Skylla continued to gaze at the stars. "How do you know that name?" he asked. His hand drifted down side where his old blaster was holstered and out of sight.
Skylla laughed softly and replied, "You're on an Imperial world, General. How would you expect people to not recognize you?" She finally looked over at Talon and smiled as she continued, "I thought you looked familiar, but it wasn't until we left the bar that I matched the face with a name."
Talon sat up and looked down, nodding. He had thought of changing his face slightly, but a partial mask was not something he wanted to bother with. He saw Skylla sit up out of the corner of his eye and he looked back over to her. "Does this mean that our sightseeing will be cut short?" he asked.
"Not unless you feel uncomfortable with me knowing who you are. I'm rather interested in finding out what one of you notorious Dark Jedi are like." she said with a giggle.
The sound of metal against leather followed by the click of a safety switch was too quick for Skylla to interpret before her right arm was seized and the barrel of Talon's blaster was to her temple. "How do you know about us?" Talon growled. He pressed harder at the frightened squeak she made, letting her know that it would be unwise to scream.
"W-w-well, umm, I.." she fumbled for what seemed like an eternity for both of them. Skylla swallowed hard and finally found the courage to say, "I know so much about you because my father is Moff Gael. I've read reports that I know I shouldn't have. My curiosity gets the best of me sometimes, but I know when to keep my mouth shut." When she finished giving her answer, her strength returned and she looked Talon in the eyes expressionless, waiting.
Talon hesitated for a moment before lowering the blaster. He reactivated the safety and slid the pistol back into its holster. Taking a deep breath, Talon forced himself to calm down and accept the girl's words. He could tell that there was no deception in her words and sensed no danger from her. "I'm sorry to have frightened you like that," he said, "but I think that you scared me worse than I did you. The Dark Jedi Order is very secretive. If word gets out about us, we could have serious problems on our hands. The majority of the people around here know that the Dark Jedi exist and there are some around, but they do not know who specifically." He let out a sigh and turned to look back at the city that they had just left. While on a smaller scale than the buildings of the Vast Empire, they had more character and better represented the people inside them. Each house had something about it that made it unique.
Skylla finally spoke in a shaky voice, saying, "I go to that town to get away from the boring Imperial decor and atmosphere. The egos are so thick in every room I go in I almost choke." She cleared her throat and continued on a bit stronger, "I'm guessing you have much the same reasons. Don't worry. Your secrets are safe with me. I've always been too afraid to say what I've read about the Dark Jedi because I've always heard the fairy tales about the evil men coming to kill and destroy. Your type became the boogiemen who would come for you if you ever mentioned them." She looked over and Talon and giggled softly. "You're not what I expected, General." she said with a smile.
"I am very much the man you heard about in your childhood. I have killed many men and think nothing of it. My life is one of pain and suffering and I thrive on it." he replied in a serious tone. Talon stood and pulled his Darkstaff out of his jacket. With a mental flick, the two lightsabers released and Talon brought them to bear. With two quick thoughts, both blades leapt from their hilts and Talon stood in his normal dual-sabered stance with one saber on defense and the other on offense. The eerie black blades hummed louder as they cut through the air in large arcs. Talon went through a familiar kata as he fought his mock enemy. As he finished, Talon deactivated the lightsabers and returned them to his jacket as they were before.
Skylla looked at Talon in amazement as he finished. She had never seen a lightsaber before, much less the grace that he displayed while wielding an unheard of two lightsabers at once. While she had not seen a lightsaber, she knew the general idea. She knew that either one of the black blades could have cut her clean in half before she could blink. Even with the terror she felt at the sight of such a danger, she remained fascinated.
Talon silently admitted that he put on the show to scare her, but that was actually a small fraction of his ability. He returned to his spot next to Skylla on the bench and looked over at the Stormtrooper Corps' base. The majority of the buildings had boring flat edges. Each building was shaped to be as practical as possible. Not a single inch was wasted. It would have been too expensive and drawn out to make the buildings fit in with the surrounding cities, and in most cases the stiff upper officers preferred to have something as square as them to look at.
Skylla leaned forward to come into Talon's vision and stared through his eyes. Talon felt as if she was reading beyond the shell he normally had in place. "What makes you evil?" she asked quietly.
With a smile, Talon replied, "Sometimes I wonder that myself." He held eye contact as he said, "Most of what you have heard about is the Sith. They are the type to go around destroying entire villages for no reason and taking over the galaxy such as Palpatine. The difference between myself and someone of the legends is that I learned from their mistakes. I have no desire to rule over galaxies or destroy just for the sake of destroying. I am not afraid to do so if I must, but I try to avoid such permanent and obvious things as that. I am not a weapon of destruction like you may have heard. I have been gifted in the Force and wish to expand my knowledge until I learn everything. I know that there is no way to learn everything, so I know that I always have a purpose."
'You're not finished, Taurus. I don't like waiting on kids like you.'
Talon calmly turned to the direction he could feel Lopen was many miles away. He shot the old man an icy glare that he knew would meet its mark. He stood slowly and offered his hand to Skylla. "I think it's about time you were home. It's getting late." he said with a hint of persuasion through the Force.
Skylla accepted his hand and allowed him to help her up. "Yes," she said, "I should be getting back home."
* * *
"What do you want, old man?" growled Talon as he walked briskly to the holocron. He thrust his hand over top of the ancient pyramid and waited for the world inside to let him in. When he opened his eyes, Talon was on Tadath during the daytime on the same hill that he had sat with Skylla. Once again, the spot was perfect for viewing the beauty of the land and at the very edge of the horizon to his left was the planet Nodriss. Because of the atmosphere's magnifying effect, Nodriss seemed closer as it neared the horizon. Were it not for the old man sitting on the stone bench, Talon would have been at ease.
"I apologize. I haven't properly introduced myself." he said without turning. "My name is Tura en' Nomin. You may call me Tura." The old man swept one more look across the landscape that his mind created from the memories of Talon and disappeared. "You have another stage to pass, Taurus. I am skipping the easy ones, as you have already completed them some time ago." The view of Tadath faded as quickly as the old man had and soon all was black around Talon. Small dots of light grew until finally the entire galaxy was spinning before Talon. On the other side of the galaxy, Tura stood, watching the sweeping curls spin. He stared intently at one spot and the entire galaxy seemed to zoom in. Now on a much larger scale, Talon and Tura were looking at the Shykar system. Talon noticed a spot on Lopen no bigger than a pinhead, but saw without his eyes the great cluster of Force sensitive people.
[TRANSMISSION INTERRUPTED - MATERIAL CLASSIFIED]
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OO/GN Sierra "Talon" Taurus/HC-3/VEHC/VE[BC][IOC][LoC][SoS][BM][CDS][MSM]
GM-SL/DJM "Nightblades"/DC-1/Elite Griffen Sect/VSD-II Griffen/VEDJ/VE[IOC][OQD][WoS 2nd Class]
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SCAP/COM Vincent "Claw" Taurus/ISD Nemesis/Offensive Fleet/VEN[=A=][LoM][IOC][IC2]
CEO Vincent "Claw" Taurus/ECHC-1/Endoven/Dome 8473/VEEC/VE