The Grey in the Fire

[Xavius Bain]

ooc: Sorry for the delay, short post to keep it going. Back to normal tomorrow.

ic:

For a moment, the Shadow was silent. He considered his options, but in truth it only mattered that the holocron was from an ancient Sith Lord. Revan or Bane would be most ideal, but also likely the harder to pull information from. Also it was unlikely that their holocrons were accessible anyway, though if they were option Xavius would take them in a heartbeat.

“Any holocron will do, though the more ancient the better. Any and all that you have access to.”

Kole looked up towards his master, a weary look sweeping over the boy’s face. The Shadow Lord considered sending the boy back to the Academy, but for now he would remain close to his master. Plus it gave Xavius an extra set of hands for if Blood decided to betray the Shadow Lord. Though, it seemed that Blood had wisely realized Xavius’s value to him, and in a way it was similar to what the Shadow Lord was hoping to achieve.

Learn from those who know more than you do.

That was the plan. Xavius Bain planned to be more versed in the dark side of the force than the most powerful living Sith in existence.

[Slade Xandir]

[Ooc: No big rush; I'm actually in quite a few threads so far, and it's keeping me on my feet. I'll be here, regardless, X. ]



Blood considered the only two he knew of, which was the one on Arkania, while the other was on Sojourn. He had nothing else to offer Xavius, and he figured an entire living boy and a couple of mystic pyramids would suffice for his bargain. He was already committing a form of treason by taking from the Sith and giving to a man who recently bested his own Alpha. Despite his curled snarl at the act, his mind slithered to take him from the blame, the same snake hissing in his head.
Was it really treason if his Master was not here? Did he even serve the man, at this point?

Of course he did. He had to. He was who showed him his path to righteousness as it was, now.
Right?

But he grew on his own...he hasn't seen the Emperor for months.
Silence.

Blood kept his thoughts in check. It was already too late. He had a rope, and he was either going to hang himself with it, or use it to climb out.

"Arkania, and ...Sojourn."

He was hesitant on bringing the Void to his moon, simply for security reasons, but if he had gotten this far and trusted Blood with his own whelp, then he was returning the favor.
As currently, this moon and his own children, were his only cares, currently. Not for emotional reasons, but for prosperity. And for enhancing his own legacy.

"Which do you desire, first."

[Xavius Bain]

His memory flashed to Arkania, and the power he felt there. The real answer to Blood’s question was that Xavius desired both. Any and every avenue to complete force mastery would be taken by the Shadow Lord. Emotional ties and bonds came second to his goal, for better or for worse. Kota had created a child out of Xavius’s DNA, but all he desired for was power. It was likely that the child could eclipse both Xavius and its mother in power eventually, but Xavius Bain would continue his role as the shadow puppet master soon enough. He had always preferred pulling strings in secret, displaying his prowess in battle only when necessary.

“We will travel back to Arkania. It is where I felt the first holocron, so why not go back to where we began?”

Kole looked up towards his master once more. The child knew about holocrons from Xavius’s teachings. The child remained silent though, and made sure that his look could not be misconstrued for protest. It seemed that his master had given him a pass from his failures, and there was no need to test that luck. He would follow his master, to the end if necessary. This was his goal after all; this was why he spend so much time studying and practicing, when all of the other students took time away to have childhoods. This was why it was Kole standing next to Xavius Bain, and the others were likely missing or dead. For a moment he wondered if any had made it back to the Academy. He thought for a moment to ask his master, but again he concluded that silence was the best and only option.

Xavius Bain’s black eyes moved to Blood, surveying the man. He could feel the conflict within him, and felt that it needed to be acknowledged. In truth, the emotionless soldier felt nothing for this man. But, it wasn’t wise to keep the conflict flowing, when it would be so easy to be betrayed.

“Know that I have nothing but respect for Darth Tormentous. We found ourselves on opposite sides, but we were equals in battle.”

'But he had taken something from me, and he needed to feel my wrath.' Words that the Shadow dared not speak out loud. He was not done with Tormentous, and Tormentous was likely not done with Bain. But that was a problem that would unfold in the future. For now, Xavius’s mind was on holocrons.

[Slade Xandir]

“We will travel back to Arkania. It is where I felt the first holocron, so why not go back to where we began?”

Well enough. Blood canted his head respectfully of the decision. He couldn't have shied away from either option, as it was only one of two. Either were up for grabs, and he was sure Xavius planned to have both. Hell, if it was up to he, the greedy hunter would have taken both. Who would run from presented blessings of power? Easy pickings, just so easy-

Snapping back to the current situation, Blood hadn't paid attention to the student, preferring to stick to the direct task. Focus was crucial; he needn't any slip ups when making a deal such as thing. Plus the child was the Shadow's. It wasn't his. Thus, attention was to be cast on the only company that required it. It was hard to ignore such youth, his own cravings stirring within him, the greed to simply steal this man's pup and train it in the ways of the Dark Side, elongating the prosperity of the Sith. But one did not reach down the gullet of a serpent, lest they got bitten. He was here to learn how the snake slithered, not how potent its venom could be.

The Sith then felt the gravity shift again, heavier than original weight as the Void brought his empty but full stare back to his own. Though the man lacked pupils, lacked irises, no physical depictions of which Blood could see he was receiving direct eye contact, the Sithian had that hackle-raising feeling the Shadow Lord was giving him more than the usual glance. Something much deeper.

“Know that I have nothing but respect for Darth Tormentous. We found ourselves on opposite sides, but we were equals in battle.”

The whispers moved him, the graveled and phasing murmur of his company's voice in and outing through his ears like some version of the Force, vocalized.
But the movement was not a gentle one.

"An equal does not best the other. This is why I do not come to you bearing violence, Alpha Bain."

It was a testimony he didn't expect himself to release so soon. It wasn't blatant, but knowing Xavius was a better riddler than he himself was, he knew it might have been more classless than what the Shadow Lord offered on a rare basis. Whenever he offered anything vocal, that was. So more than likely, the Ebony Pelt would have caught the spider between the silk of words.
But whether Blood was ready for such a step was beyond his own knowing currently. It was best if he simply stayed on the task at hand.

Turning back to the still extended ramp, Blood contemplated his last visit to Arkania with the Dark One. It was indeed an event, and the Shadow could have easily slaughtered him that day. Especially if he had bested Tormentous.
As he made his way up the ramp and positioned himself next to Valkyr, who pulled up the ramp and engaged the engine and eventually the thrusters, he truly wondered whether it was the Arkanian librarian telling them they had to take their personal matters outside, or whether he had other intentions for the Sith Acolyte at the time, for why he stayed his hand.

Dismissing the thought, he muttered to Valkyr "My base in Arkania," before she confirmed the location and lifted from the forest of Dromund Kaas.

-A trip to Arkania-


The Infiltrator landed in the frigid pasture of snow and ice of the Imperial planet. The whirl of snow splashed around the ship as he landed close to the mountains. Off to the far right, his own base on the planet sat, a castle built within the mountain, fully furnished and such. Kept in working order by droids, he was sure he could have walked in and had a meal presented to him within a matter of seconds, however today was not the day for relaxation. Taking eased steps from the ramp, he walked into the frosty atmosphere fully garbed in his draconic armor. The black scaled bone armor was the reflection of what he had accomplished on this planet, and he knew he would need it for the process of getting this next holocron.

He waited for the arrival of the Shadow Lord, slipping the horned helm over his head and checking to make sure his equipment was properly placed on him.

[Xavius Bain]

An equal does not best the other.

The concept was not entirely accurate, but it was a concept that simplified the intricacies of their battle. If Xavius Bain and Darth Tormentous fought over and over again, on equal plains, it was likely that both would find themselves victorious. Three were other factors besides technical skill in combat to a fight, and while Xavius Bain was one of the best lightsaber duelists in the galaxy, mere skill alone did not always win a battle. But in that moment, Xavius Bain had found himself the victor, and that meant that in that moment, they were not equals. Despite their mutual respect, Xavius knew it was only a matter of time before they found themselves battling again, and next time Tormentous would likely be even more powerful.

But so would Xavius.

The usual comfortable silence was interrupted by a tension in the air as they flew to Blood’s coordinates. Kole shifted uneasily, eyes focused on his master, staring into the void of space without a word. The metal Assassin mimicked Xavius’s movements, but Kole couldn’t keep silent.

“How can you trust a sith?” His voice echoed out in the dark ship, it’s tone making the boy seem smaller than he already felt.
Xavius’s silence was deafening, further dwarfing the boy.

“I am grateful for everything you have done. But what of the Shadows?” Kole asked once more, becoming more and more careful with choosing his words.

Xavius continued looking forward, and didn’t make eye contact with his apprentice as he spoke.

“This is the cycle of the Shadows. If you would like to go back, then go back.” His voice tore through the silence, shredding any comfort in the air by sucking the air out of it. Someone once told Kole that Xavius Bain could make you feel like you were suffocating with only a few words, and he suddenly understood what they meant. He had spend so much time being his master’s star pupil that he had never felt the wrath and icy cold that stemmed from Kole’s own failures.

“I will follow you, master.” He conceded.

Smaller and smaller.

The rest of the trip was set in silence, and the grey ship glided to a halt on the surface of the planet. The doors opened, and the shadowy silhouette of Xavius and Kole emerged from the steam to meet their Sith companion. The assassin remained to guard the ship, and the size of Bain dwarfed his young apprentice. Kole looked up at his master, and saw a drive that he was not used to seeing in the emotionless void that he usually observed. It was a strange sense of eagerness and drive, though subtle. And the three were reunited once more.

[Slade Xandir]

Nothing was said, but he felt the man and his Pup land near him; he didn't need to see them. Blood just felt the Shadow Lord, and that was all it took for him to know he was no longer alone on this mission. Ensuring his fanged sabers were locked directly underneath the flat of his forearms via their mechanical sheathes, the Wolf stepped from vicinity of the cooling ship and began making his route directly opposite of where the famed city of Arkania lay. The holocron was buried deep in a cavern not too far from his own castle he had engraved in the mountain. It was just west of where he had slain the dragon which supplied him his currently worn armor. He had changed before leaving his ship from the garb meant to keep him warm to draconic armor meant to keep him alive. Eclipse black with scales and horns stationed in symmetrical and practical manners crafted him a garb which not only gave him an impressively intimidating appearance, but allowed him a heft protection with little cost to mobility. As many times as he had trained in it, he knew well enough how to handle himself within the personalized casing of felled draconic skin and bone.

Continuing the trek, he moved through the frosted terrain with no words spilled through his helm. Breath came out through nasal holes, puffs of condensation flowing in front and soon past him as he walked through the dual clouds, only adding to his armor's draco-theme through simple well placed science, at work.

Through indefinitely dark eyeholes, Blood scanned everything before him as he followed that memory. He knew the thread he felt was exactly where it should have been, but he knew that thread alone belonged to the holocron. The Sith Lord was confused because there was once a dragon that resided in the cave with the holocron; he counld no longer feel it. Where had the dragon gone? Was it dead?

It was a good halved hour before they neared the site, the abandoned cave jutting open a mouth that seemed tilted more to being a hole in the ground as opposed to conclave against a mound of mountain. It was something a beast once crawled out of, called home. The den however, was desolate now.

"Ready?" he asked, turning to the pair. The breeze seemed to stall around this cave, a stagnant air holding his attention hostage. There was definitely something vile in this cave, and it purred temptingly against his mind. Rubbing and caressing his heart, he felt it's devious seduction. Though he resisted the influence, he indulged in the 'feel good' that came with it. He took from the Dark Side what he wanted. Not the other way around.

[Xavius Bain]

The trek to the holocron was spent mostly in silence, the three trudging through the icy territory. The Shadow lord’s senses were on high alert, the allure of the dark side pulsing through the environment. The force’s relationship with Xavius Bain always had an elemental quality to it, and he could feel the ripples in the force, as if water was streaming through the terrain. Sometimes he would manipulate it, but for now he simply followed where it lead.

‘Ready?’

The Shadow lord shifted in his cloak for a moment, feeling the weight of his mimetic armor underneath. It wasn’t heavy, as he preferred to remain as mobile and agile as possible during combat. He relied on his skill over a piece of armor to defend himself, and as he taught his students, each weapon was an extension of himself. His whip sat by his back, underneath his black cloak. His lightsaber was in plain view, hanging from his belt. Xavius’s hood cast a shadow over his face, his black eyes hidden beneath.

The Shadow nodded to their Sith companion. Kole was visibly nervous, but he still mimicked the calm demeanor of his master. Xavius noticed Kole’s anxiety, but was intensely focused on the task at hand.

[Slade Xandir]

Just as he took in notice his pack's current standings, Xavius' ready and untainted posture of calm and his ward's attempt in the same unmovable illusion, Blood took his first setoff steps into the feral cave. Snow did indeed crunch, as it was slightly harder, cracks forming from the less frozen bits underneath as it didn't support his weight so readily. The thing that stopped him was the lack of echo.
There was none in this cave.

This made his hairs automatically raise up, something tipping off the Wolf on the unnatural alignment within the anomaly. Cave echoed. That's just what they did. However, his danger sense was a crescendo if 'Don't go in there' and he immediately scanned every possible reason for what could have been happening. Last he visited this cave, it was natural, empty, and though it harbored a dragon, it wasn't present when he visited. He had chosen his time properly, and found himself alone with the crimson and white gold pyramid that lay atop a shrine of diamonds and bones. He remembered it crisply, fresh, and right on the tip of his brain. His footsteps then crackled and shook almost endlessly through the cavern then, and though it was shallow it still bounced around the frozen walls.

Today, there was no echo. So his only deduction led him to something absorbing sound. New snow could have been the culprit, but in all, it did not snow in the cave, itself. He took another step, regardless of his churning stomach, finding himself enveloped within a tar of darkness that screamed unnatural essence. This was not proper, this was not normal, this inky mess of shadow.
What absorbed the sound was this vile and malicious presence in this cave. The holocron grew, and either whatever was caged in it fed off of something, or something ritualistic happened here...
Maybe this spot had not been as dormant as what he had thought it was...
Something wicked happened in this cave, and that was what made it so perpetually evil. Perhaps the Sith that made this holocron had not died yet, or someone was attempting to craft a ritual here which meant multiple changes had made this excursion more dangerous than he originally anticipated. This made him tread more lightly, and with his crouch, he took more steps further into the unreadable gloom.

Rising on 7 successful steps, the 8th was when he discovered a distinguished rotting smell. It hit him in a manner that made him pause. Not for disguist, that passed within seconds. No, it was because it was so immense, and within the stench, something else loomed. Moving air. Breath, and though it stank, it was freelanced. Some living sat amongst the dead within this cave.

Blood moved forward, his Senses desperately searching to fill his gaps between the dots he connected.

'Do not believe in imitations
We have to crave a masterpiece beneath the ink
We're falling for the fiction
There's more than meets the eye'

Just before him, something massive stirred.
And amist the abyssmal void, a single scarlet eye opened, glowing and captivating in this hellish place. The air heated more, an inferno that they stood just on the fringe of, but it seemed the air remained if not increased it's frigid hand.

"EXACTLY what do you believe you are doing here, niekinika."

Well, if the whatever this was spoke Sith, then it obviously had something to do with the holocron. Hot breath washed across his face, rancid air covering his face in a wave of decayed cologne. Would it help to speak back in the smidge of Sith language that he knew? Only a fractured second passed before the air grew heavier, something gigantuous righting itself up.

"You, in the rearward reach of the mortal, what aim does this party of your's crave in my domain?"

Indignation flurried in his chest at being passed over by whatever the damndest of hells this creature was, being seen as incapable of words or coherent thought by a second of silence. But it was an oppertunity to figure out what was happening. If Xavius was to speak to this whatever it was, he would busy himself finding the holocron.

Expanding his Senses, his mind's eye crawled up, not across the object in the dark, and it seemed this lurking beast before them, the this ingested in this darkness, was indeed an Arkanian dragon. It had no life Force, which made it a catalyst in his analysis, and it was clear the body had been dead for some days. Frigid temperatures had kept the majority of it preserved, but the dragon had begun to rot in other heated places. But what truly struck Blood as strange, was the sole fact that this very decomposing corpse was actually what was talking to them. Necromancy?

Beyond the dragon, a meter or two behind the tip of the semi-bloated tail, the holocron sat encased in a force shield, one strong an impenetrable; must have been freshly risen.
What the hell was going on in this cave?

[Xavius Bain]

Though Xavius’s body remained ready to strike at whatever moment necessary, the stony calm demeanor never broke. His black eyes flickered with an unnatural flame, a small hint of black fire escaping and then dissipating into the air. The Shadow lord could understand language, and he searched through the force to comprehend the beast that stood between him and his goal, though his focus was on the shielded holocron in the background.

Often there were tests to open Sith holocrons, to ensure that not just anyone that happened upon one could unlock the secrets inside. Perhaps this rotting creature was the first test? Or simply some type of sorcery used to protect the contents inside.

The Shadow Lord’s unnatural voice tore through the void, and while it paled in comparison to the undead creature that seemed to speak directly to the group, Xavius met it with a fearsome stature of his own. He noted the rotting parts of the body in case of attack, definitely softer than the scaled portions of the dragon’s body. Though if it were in fact dead, killing it would likely prove redundant and difficult.

“I have come to take the knowledge I require. Will you stand in my way?”

The Shadow Lord’s voice at full volume was no less eerie then when it seemed a whisper. It was as if he was projecting a whispered voice through a speaker at full volume. The Shadow Lord’s fingers brushed the hilts of his saber and whip, though he was still analyzing whether or not they would even be useful if the dragon were to strike. But the grey soldier still stood prepared. Kole stood in silence, awe, and hesitation, taking the queues entirely from his master.

[Slade Xandir]

Blood came to the conclusion just as the tension rose within the exchange; this undead dragon was possessed by whatever vile thing performed a necromancy ritual in this cave, and if this was what they were to be tested with before the actual taking of the holocron itself, then it was inevitable. He had never taken part in the act of relieving a holocron of it's resting place; he merely knew where some were. Taking them seemed too high-risk for his own taste he let them stay where they were. But it seemed it was time for him to learn now.

"Arlonsake apata,, this knowledge is not for you. Convince me, otherwise."

Blood refrained from covering his ears as a reality-defying horror of a roar initiated the battle. That single crimson eye narrowed as several things began to fall from the roof of the cave near them. Rocks and hard permasnow fell upon the group in a chaotic hailstorm of ice and half-man sized boulders. The dragon stood, an overwhelming wave of rotted air splurging towards them along with a hacking sound. Blood hadn't had the opportunity to pull his sabers free before he was showered in a tar-like substance. His hands were stuck to his sides as his feet too were rendered ensnared by this fast-acting gel. It seemed instead of fire, this undead dragon spewed some kind of adhesive rather than the fire it most likely had when it was living. Whatever demonous thing held this dragon twisted every ounce of natural out of it.

The dragon turned a bone and scale spined glare to Xavius and Kole, another spew of sludge erupting from its mouth. Almost unanimously it turned in a swift spiral and launched a thick sweeping tail across their vicinity. Blood was stuck in the congealing liquid, thus couldn't move. He was caught in the attack and sent flying across the den, landing against a dense wall of the cave with such force that surely caused some sense of internal bleeding. A dribble of blood slipped from the crease of his mouth as he shook his head to regain what was happening. The dragon now was solely engaging the Shadow Lord and his whelp.

And like the unseen properties of the Force itself, the Void Master struck, his speed too swift for Blood to see where his blows landed.

Blood was in the process of attempting to free himself from the adhesive, and then decided to tap into the Force. With his favored element, Blood began to heat his hands up, clenching and wringing his fists in an effort to create heat. From what energy he could pull from his body, he directed it immediately to his hands, igniting the stuck appendages enough for him to wriggle his hands from the thick and fast freezing liquid.

As he was trying to free himself, the dragon continued it's relentless attempts to bring Xavius to his knees.