Witnessing the necessary compliance with his claim for leadership the Sovereign sealed the domain to his greater power as he poised to move forward with his plans. Turning to the Sa’ato the Dark Lord began, “You may depart for the keep and I will inform the chief foreman of your change in status. As sorcery and the occult seem unfitting I am sure it will need to be refitted to your liking. Additionally, we may need to revisit your secondary title.” The Sovereign did not get the opportunity to address the dower Iridonian as they skirted away. In fact the manner to Emic’s departure gave Silas pause. However, there was too little time to spend on such things as the two that most needed direction remained.
With a wry grin on his countenance the Sovereign addressed his most adamant detractor, “Silvanius, I’ll attempt to assuage your contempt at least in part. I will not be taking the moniker of Darth. For your sake I will play my part as an outsider. As such it would behoove you to truly drown yourself in darkness, study without respite, and seek every battlefield. Harness your hatred of me, temper yourself with that loathing. If all of that is insufficient then I will grant a final incentive.” Silas granted emphasis on his words as he narrowed his eyes upon the apprentice. “Win a single set with the blade, score a single hit with your fist, or breach my defense of the Force, and I will entrust to you Tormentous’s holocron.”
Looking upon her furious countenance the Sovereign added, “I doubt there is much to gain with my possession of the artifact but I cannot simply hand it to you now. You have been handed far too much already. In fact, every Sith that has ever graced Moraband during Tormentous’s reign has held far greater advantages that he or I ever held. The mere fact you’ve had him as a teacher is almost insulting.” Finally the Sovereign turned to the wayward acolyte. “For one crept from Kenobi’s side you hold an instinctual understanding of this Order’s ways. Though Silvanius remains as apprentice it is to you that I shall be donating the majority of my time. We have much to discuss and while I’ll not grant you leave yet to depart on your own accord expect such freedom as early as the morrow.”
Taking a moment to collect his self Silas finished, “There is far too much to accomplish now to allow ourselves to idle. Consider yourselves dismissed for now.” Silas waited for the group to disperse before contacting the chief foreman charged with construction and slave allocation. “Retrieved the following items I have transmitted to you and have them brought here to the palace. Begin construction of a tomb for the wayward Darth Tormentous. The Valley of Kings has for too long sat idle without being further adorned. In so doing I want every single skull, artifact, and tome belonging to the former lord transported to this new resting ground. I want the throne set behind his sarcophagus with the skulls arranged exactly as they currently rest. If the Lord of Torment truly is gone then the monument to his rule must reflect the prestige of his successor.”
In the long hours that followed amidst the fulfillment of Silas’s request, albeit the completion of the tomb would take time the relics were moved to a secure holding facility within the valley, this ended in the waning of the night with the newly appointed Dark Lord sitting at the threshold before the palace balcony in utter silence. Holding Tormentous’s holocron a disparate voice was uttered from the Sovereign, lacking any of the venom he was known for. “Are you truly gone Jacobi? If so what does this mean for me? Is there truly no means of returning us to how we lived before the fall?” Though Nil had left to monitor security for the palace this oddity did not go unnoticed. “S…Silas? What is going on here?” Idaan rushed in a controlled panic from the stairs leading from the lower floor. “It’s true then. The partition you inflicted upon yourself is weakening!” Silas did not stir or turn to face his wife. “No, it simply was never tested on a practitioner of the Force. It is imperfect as a result, but rejoice not. This late hour is all that remains for in a few minutes the alignment will recommence and my ego remade as I was in darkness, the entity known as Sovereign will be all that remains. For the Sovereign is not a divergent existence it is only myself, cleaved from the trauma and failure of my youth and given over to the dark side.”
Idaan grasped hold of Silas and lifted up in an embrace. “Then grant me these few moments as it is likely true that nothing can undo what has been done in our lives.” Silas kissed her cheek before turning away from Idaan. “What you seek is lost and I’m doubtful it could ever be found anew. However, we will live far beyond the cycles of those that wronged us. Perhaps in time this other side of myself will discover that which will fulfill us all outside of the endless flow.” The pair remained together in silence until the dawn upon which time the Sovereign sent Idaan away to attend some menial chores of little importance. Exiting out the threshold to the balcony the Dark Lord surveyed his holdings. “Time to slay an old acquaintance, how fortuitous the Tormentous would grant me such a coronation gift.”