Jharmeen leaned back against the cushions of her seat, toying a bit with the goblet as her son approached her and sent a tendril of respectful inquiry into her mind. Then, as if unsure as to whether he should have entered into the ring of his elders, he left, leaving the link clearly open between them.

Thus it was that she in turn clearly read the message coming in from Elresar concerning...

A being from a higher plane? Curiouser and curiouser....

She sent a whisper along the link into Jharu's mind.

"I shall come to you soon, my child, that you might divulge to me that which has sent you to me this morning. Or perhaps... a question, was it not? I will wait until later in the day for this; there is much happening here in Phrinnchatka which unfortunately at the moment must take full command of my attention. I will contact you later, son."

With that she quieted, leaving that tendril linked silently into her son, and returned her focus to that which the somewhat nervous Panthar was about to reveal. Her calm aspect began to deteriorate somewhat as, very carefully, he began explaining his experience at the site he had uncovered.

A sealed chamber in solid rock. A skeleton... and a crystal. A white flash in response to human touch....

She couldn't help the frown which now came to her face, nor the shudder which coursed through her slender body.

A flash of light....

“What happened after that was like a dream, a very vivid one that I couldn’t wake up from. It was like I was doing all sorts of things, but I had no control over it. And a pair of voices were always there, one babbling all sorts of nonsense and the other always prying me for information. What words to use for different things, how to book passage on a ship, that sort of thing. I figured out eventually that the prying one was in charge of my body, and I couldn’t figure out how to take it back. I resented that and fed it as much false information as I could, but it just reached in and took most of what it needed.”

Panthar leaned back in his chair.

“And eventually we ended up meeting these people and landed here. It seemed to relax a bit, did some discovery, and we came to an understanding of sorts. It even gave me back control. Although, early this morning when it thought I was sleeping, the two of them talked. Oh, and before that he pulled out this Eye of Roose thing... And now it gets even weirder…”

Panthar looked up and stopped. More people were approaching the table, and these were folks he had not seen before.

...and seeing; it had not escaped her keen eyes that something about Panthar's words seemed to chip away at Lady Jharmeen's calmness.

And all this talk about sealed chambers and possession and light...

...glowing, red light?

Shayla frowned, jerking herself into reality. At this point, the Lady had seemed to regain her former coolness...

...yet that strange thing upon her forehead still shone brightly...

...so brightly, in fact, that Shayla couldn't even look directly at it. So instead she turned her gaze towards the newcomers...

...and immediately recognized Jasyn Lancaster, Dash Kelderon, and their other companion.

"Misinformed? What the kriffing hell do you mean, misinformed...?!"

For a long moment he stood stone quiet then, sending a brown-eyed glare in Shayla's direction. Then he looked around a bit and took a look at the other parties in the room...

...including a woman with long red hair...

...which he could barely make out for the brightness of some glowing whatchamacallit on her forehead.

He squinted his eyes reflexively.

Ok, could be a sister of Galen's; she had red hair anyway, and Stargazer sure seemed to have found her and latched on rather quickly. And aside from that, she certainly appeared to be a human in control of an otherwise Sith joint, so...

"I'm Jasyn Lancaster, and I'm here looking for a woman named Galen Danner...

...and since you sure fit the description of a woman named Graysith who was said to be her sister and someone she might have sought out for help after coming here...

...I'd sure love to know how I've been misinformed..."

“Hey, I’m in the middle of a story here? Pleased to meet you, I’m Panthar Dantares. Now, hold your tongues and let me talk… Now where was I…? Ah, nevermind, the mood’s ruined.”

“What does history say of the original Eye of R’lous?” he sent.

The Revealer immediately displayed the reply: The Eye was stolen by the traitor Telanicus and destroyed in a rescue attempt.

“And what of the Sith magick? Did it not dwindle?”
The Magick survived in the blood, strengthened by a new Eye.

“But then, could the original eye not have survived?”
The Magick may channel through one eye only

“Yet the original Eye DID survive,” Phalomir thought to himself. “It is in my possession. What changes then did my father bestow upon the Eye?” He then sent to the Revealer “What accomplishments was Trelanicus known for, before his treachery?”
Research and discovery of possible ways to harness the mythical All force as an eternal source of energy and Magick

“And did he succeed?”
Undocumented

“And what was his treason?”
Trelanicus refused to share his findings with the other Dark Lords and threatened to destroy all traces of his work. He fled with many sorcerers to Blesphmar, now known as Agamar, and was killed by warriors many months later.

Phalomir cut the link. “All history is written by the victors,” he thought. He felt a sudden pull, as if someone was trying to magically link to him. The sword?

“It is time now to return,” he thought. “The sword must wait.”

Phalomir snapped back to Panthar. He opened his eyes and took in his surroundings, and helped himself to some of the meat on the plate set before him. Panthar had been busy, and Phalomir immediately set to discovering the morning’s memories, growing slightly pale as Panthar allowed Phalomir to instantly access the memories related the young day’s events. He glanced up to Lady Jharmeen and regarded the glyph on her forehead.

I shall have to find time alone with this one, to discover the rest, she thought to herself as she now turned to the glowering Jasyn Lancaster, letting her gaze sweep over him and on to where Shayla stood with something of a puzzled look upon her face. She let a small smile grace her features and rose to her feet, spreading her hands out to either side of herself as she did so.

"I am sorry to hear you have been misdirected, good Sir," she now said, directing her words to Jasyn. "Perhaps we can help you in some manner before you must leave us? For indeed, there is no one here by the name of Galen Danner... and...."

She allowed her words to trail off as she now turned to Shayla and Erik. Though she spoke directly to them, it was evident her next statement was meant for other ears.

"I am the Lady Jharmeen Q'utaro," she said simply. "I have no sister... nor do I know who or what this Graysith is."

She paused then, returning to Panthar. By now he seemed to be a bit distant, withdrawn, yet incongruously enough seemed to be contemplating the Glyph on her forehead, his eyes oddly intense. Almost as if....

Almost as if he recognized it somehow.

She drew in an quick breath and just tilted her head to one side, watching him watching her, aware of the growing discomfort of those present, remaining silent as she let a tendril of her essence begin to creep silkily into his mind.

That look....

She had to know.

A ripple coursed through Graysith as Phalomir introduced himself. It was not a reflexive action toward this surprising turn, for Panthar's strange behavior and stranger dissertation had been leading her to believe that something of this nature was the root cause of it. Nor was it surprise at the ease with which she did find Phalomir.

But Trelanicus....

She frowned, the name unknown to her, yet somehow evoking that instinctive ripple.

As does mention of the Eye, she thought to herself, now bringing her focus back to the patiently waiting spirit. In her mind, she bowed her head in greeting.

"I too desire a meeting with you, when the time is right," she thought to him. "Indeed, there is much to learn from this."

With that she withdrew the tendril and turned her attention to the group at large. Shayla remained with her husband, looking somewhat doubtful and Jasyn appeared to be the epitome of a towering stormcloud, his companion somewhat calmer. The blue-skinned Ch'iss was cheerfully helping himself to breakfast... while Panthar looked as if he had seen a ghost.

Graysith's lips flickered into the briefest of smiles.

Indeed, or is hosting one. Or more.

At length she spoke.

"I would be more than compliant with assisting you in your search for this Galen," she began smoothly, now moving to finally select some food for herself. She turned back to the group, plate in hand.

"However, it is a rather large galaxy; we have been removed from it here for millennia, and I'm afraid we might be a touch behind in our knowledge of things current. I really feel we would be more of a hindrance than a help to you; you must accept my apologies that I do not see how I can assist you further other than by revealing this person you seek is simply not here."

"It was a trial by error. The original clone had failed..."

"It was disposed of, correct?"

"Y-yes, they've been terminated. Now lets see the Skywalker blood cells..."

Romanus blinked back into reality. For a moment, he thought he was outside...whatever this place is. Then he realized his hand was resting on a window, and that he had been staring out of it before more memories appeared.

But these visions were entirely new. He had never seen them before.

Romanus stepped back from the window and touched his forehead.

This planet's having a weird effect on me... he thought, trying to sense any distinct change in his ability to use the Force.

And there's still the Imperial fleet to take care of.

Romanus had almost forgotten about them during his stay here, and its probably the main reason why he's still alive. He quickly pushed the thought out of his head and began walking down the hallway, heading back to the lounge.

"I do not see how I can assist you further other than by revealing this person you seek is simply not here."

Jasyn scowled, really wishing he could kick something...

...or drink something...

...about then.

Kriffing Hell, what is the matter with the Universe...?

"If you cannot help us any further, then I think it would be best we take our leave now, before more time is wasted."

"My warriors are at your disposal to escort you back to where you ship remains, safe and sound," she purred in a pleasant tone of voice.

"Again, I regret being unable to help you in your search for this woman, and I wish you good fortune in finding her."

"Fire her up, and let's get to the skies."

Without a word Matt nodded, quickly warming up the engines of the ship as everyone else strapped in, Jasyn in the copilot's seat and Jebbua and Dash right behind. After a few minutes of warming the ship properly, Matt turned, quirking a brow at Jasyn.

He merely nodded, and Matt turned, his hands dancing across the navboard as he took them to orbit around the planet of K'eel Doba.

Only then did Jasyn turn back towards Dash, barely paying Jebbua any heed. "Something just doesn't gel here," he said simply. "I don't know where else to go from here, and I just don't see how Aaron could be so wrong. I just can't help but remember how Aaron said Galen and her sister weren't always on good terms...

...and how he mentioned that Terrin--

--who is oh-so-conveniently not with us anymore--

--had a blood oath with her so Galen could be protected. The story is just to gradiose to be fiction..."

For a moment Jasyn trailed, then, "Are you certain you can't sense Galen here?"

But before Dash could answer that question, Matt suddenly cleared his throat, breaking into the discussion with one damning question.

"Ummm...what do the words Imperial blockade mean to you?"

He gave his head a short nod, and flipped open a comm to the officer on deck to let him know that this one wasn't going to get away.

“That was… interesting,” he said.

As are certain things you have been saying about the nature of the Sith’s position in the galaxy. I should certainly like to catch up on my history.

I'd rather be dead.

I finished about the eleventy-millionth circuit about the creepingly cold stone floor and had sunk down on the stone bench, my face in my hands, my fingers coiled in my hair, and was steeling myself to battle off yet another onrush of despair when the dank door opened...

...to reveal a brilliant inburst of light, in the midst of which was framed a familiar tall and slender form.

I blinked, striving to gain my vision against the light. The silhouette swayed and tilted toward me. An impossibly thin arm waved out to one side.

"If you please," the Kaminoan said politely. "You must come with me, this way."

I blinked again against the surreality of it all.

No way. This wasn't happening; it couldn't be happening... could it?

I rose to my feet, marveling at how compliant I had become to a probable hallucination, and followed the ethereal form like a lovesick puppy. We entered into a dirt-smeared hallway, dripping with water....

Cold, SEA water.

...and traversed it for a seeming eternity. My legs started cramping from being so suddenly exercised after the inactivity they had just been subjected to; it was with something close to relief that I greeted the cool metal coiling stairway which rose abruptly to meet us.

The Kaminoan halted at its base, a foot on the bottom rung.

"This way, please," she said, easy as pie, as if she were leading me to a tete-a-tete with the Prime Minister himself. What could I do? I blinked yet again, and let her lead me up those eternal stair, which after a hefty climb spilled us out into a corridor of the pristine white one usually associates with Kamino.

"Where are we--" I attempted, but swallowed the rest when I was led up to a door. My improbable guide merely stepped to one side, indicating the door with a wave of one hand.

"In there, please," she said, still impossibly polite.

I hesitated, wavering between a kind of unthinking obedience, overwhelming curiosity, and plain common sense. But the choice was taken out of my hands as that door opened, revealing two more white-coated Kaminoans, who came forth like a pair of angelic cockroaches and took me by each arm. They didn't say one word as they dragged me into that room, a kind of laboratory.

No. More of a... surgical room.

Fine. If that's the way he wants it, he can continue on his own, she thought a bit disgustedly.

Jerking from these thoughts then, Shayla tilted her head slightly towards Dantares, finally answering his question, her greeny-blue eyes intense. "No, I have nothing further to...

...attend to."

With that she said not another word more, but merely fell silent, her thoughts for a moment straying to the inescapable void in her mind.

Hard to attend to matters which you can't even remember...

“They were of course found, and all were killed. Except for his son, Phalomir, and one squire, Thoran; their spirits were placed inside of a crystal known as the Eye of R’lous, while their bodies turned to stone. The second squire escaped with the bodies to hide, but he too was eventually captured and the bodies taken as statues and thrown into a storage room. The cave where Trelanicus was murdered was accidentally sealed in an explosion and the crystal sat there with its prisoners until Pan… until I stumbled upon it and freed the souls. Regrettably, they are trapped inside me until they find a way to return to their own bodies. And poor Thoran has gone insane from the years of protecting his liege.”

Tractor beam...

Beside him, Jasyn whirled to face the viewport, his brown eyes wide. "Kriffing hell, do something, dammit, and do it now!"

Matt spared a moment to shoot a green-eyed gaze in Jasyn's drection. "Let's see, yacht against a slew of Impy ships...

...you do the math, there's nothing we can do but power down and hope they don't want to make our visit...

...extended."

With that Matt turned to the navboard and worked to shut systems down before they could overload, not missing the dark look in Jasyn's eyes nor the way his hands were suddenly fisted.

"Kriffing hell..." he muttered again.

Suddenly the ship lurched, throwing me 1uickly back to life. "What's going on here?" I queried, before I got a chance to evaluate the situation around me.Here we go again. Another blockade. But here?!? How do they even know about this place.

I reached out with the force again, this time focusing on the inhabitants of the ship we were currently docked in. The ship touched down in the landing bay.

"Reborn! Be on your guard. And don't bother trying to hide anything from them. They can sense if you are hiding something."

I realized that AGAIN we were weaponless. This is becoming rediculous!

"Let's just be co-operative, and be in and out ASAP. We have other more important things to attend to!"

Fascinating, she thought to herself, never once moving her eyes from him as he continued to speak, first to her and then turning to Shayla before finally finishing up, his hazel eyes again directed respectfully toward her. She blinked slowly, returning that gaze with an intensely interested one of her own as she leaned forward.

"Indeed," she breathed, giving her head a short nod. "I am more than willing to entertain the rest of your-- that is, Phalomir's revelations.

"But not here."

In one smooth motion she rose to her feet, placing the goblet on the table after taking a final drink from it. In a motion equally as smooth, she sent a private tendril into Panthar's mind. Now that she understood that strange sensation of multiplicity she had received the first time she touched it so, the incongruous intermingling of Sith-and-human no longer alarmed her. The tendril flowed easily into his mind, probing, sorting between the personalities until she found the unmistakable signature of Sith.

"Of course you would have us continue in more... private surroundings?" she thought directly to Phalomir. "I am not one to bandy about; it is clear to me that what you have yet to speak is for no other ears but mine."

She paused a moment, then removed the tendril. After taking a moment to compose herself, she turned to Shayla and Erik.

"It is obvious to me that there are yet questions within you, else you would have taken your leave with the others. But for now... questions enough have been answered.

"We shall continue this meeting at a later time. Please, feel free to explore the Temple; my warriors will clearly mark those places within its halls where you may not gain entry. You are free to move about the city as well, but keep in mind to take a care: the Sith do not mingle well with humans, as a whole."

She pushed back her chair, turned and moved gracefully from the table, leaving a trailing tendril into Panthar's mind in her wake.

"Contact me along this," she directed, taking care to place a block at her end of that tendril that, while allowing an alarm of sorts to trigger, would not allow mental probing of any other into her own thoughts.

"I will then join you, or direct you as to where you might join me."

She paused at the door leading into the Dining Hall, turning halfway back to the people who yet sat at the richly gleaming table.

"Enjoy your day," she said simply, then departed, now reaching forward with another tendril to discover the whereabouts of her son. She found him in a private spot of his own choosing, where he seemed to be meditating.

For a moment she simply stood in silence, watching him quietly. Then she announced her presence there.

"You had something of great importance of which to speak to me, Jharu," she said evenly. "I am quite interested to hear exactly what it is that has sent you to me in so concerned a manner."

Soon they will be forced to open a hatch, or they will suffocate, he mused as he continued watching. And it seemed that no sooner had that idle thought crossed his mind than just that very thing occurred. The little yacht now gave forth every appearance of screaming its outrage at being tractored, the open hatch a darkly yawning mouth in its otherwise brilliant white exterior.

Captain Landarian nodded and set his teacup down with care. He knew exactly what was occurring within that little yacht: the rising trepidation, the shock and disbelief that Imperial forces should be encountered here, the hearts nervously beating as they awaited the march of Reborn troops entering into their craft.

No more, he thought as he rose to his feet. Too risky; no longer will our troops, as elegantly powerful as they are, be threatened with ambush, as improbable as that might seem. Our engineers and designers have come forth with a far better solution.

He smiled, thinking about it. In the exact manner in which the inter-lacing of a blockading fleet's tractor beams were used to form an inpenetrable shield about a planet, such beams were installed within the hangars of Imperial flagships, albeit on a much smaller scale. This was fairly new, and only certain flagships sported this newly developed technology; indeed it would take years for all ships to be so outfitted. But Relentless, as well as Catalytic and Sormontato held this new defensive device; his smile widened as he recalled the demonstration vid he had been shown, not too long ago, which explained how this worked and what would happen to a ship trying to wiggle out of it.

It wasn't pretty.

A powerful electric field was set up around the captive ship, and a magnetic field was induced about it. Beneath that field, no devices -- at least none using electricity as a power source or in its systems -- could operate. Any attempt to use energy weapons simply backlashed to the offending ship, for the simple fact that it just did not have the electrical oomph to short out a Super Star Destroyer. On a good day, every circuit in the captive ship would be destroyed in that back-washing power surge. On a bad day, enough energy could be returned to actually explode the ship.

Landarian stretched luxuriously and headed to the bridge. There he met the officer on deck in an impromptu debriefing, before heading to the communications section. He leaned over the ensign who already had piggybacked an open channel into the yacht.

"State your name, planet of origin, destination... and exactly why you were found in orbit around a planet within this system."

His indifferent finger hit the transmission switch.

A frown flickered across her visage.

"Wait, child," she ordered, turning away from him to sense out with her talents.

Indeed, she had been remiss. There was another matter needing tending to before she would feel free enough to discuss with Jharu whatever it was that had been troubling him.

She nodded to herself, turning back.

"I shall return shortly, son," she whispered, then left as quietly as she had come.

-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --

She came upon him in his own secret spot, where he had retreated to prepare himself for his upcoming battle with Roan. He knelt within, a single candle glowing softly in front of him, lighting the strong planes of his face with its gentle light as he reached deeply within to commune with that part of him that Jharmeen knew well and good existed there.

That essence of fire and strength, over which his warrior's heart held sway... and up until recently, guided by quite another area of that great heart.

She paused in the doorway, leaning against it's frame, simply watching him, all the while aware that even in his meditations he was aware of her there. A logical part of her psyche rose up, presenting her with the oddity that she ought to be running to him instead of just standing; that she should be holding him and bestowing upon him all the love she could to further strengthen him for his upcoming battle. For although that love had been removed, the memories of it were still there.

Yet all she could do was stand there, drawn here to let him know that on the morrow, when he faced Roan, he had her permission to use every bit of strength and wile at his disposal.

Or was that all....

She jerked as his head came up, watched him as he knelt there, his broad back still presented to her. For a moment her mouth worked; then she spoke.

"I have come to grant you that which you requested, Recinis," she said smoothly. A lengthy silence followed; Recinis appeared to nod, then tilted his head back to its former aspect. Jharmeen knew his eyes were beginning to close in meditation once again; she turned in the doorway, prepared to leave, but something stopped her.

"My love for you has not disappeared, Recinis," she whispered, all the time wondering just what it was that prompted her to be saying this.

"It is simply... elsewhere."

Now she continued her turn.

"Go with strength on the morrow, Recinis," she said simply, finally ending with. "Indeed, the best warrior shall emerge victorious."

“As I said, I owe you transportation costs.”

He reached deftly into his pack and pulled out small golden-colored 100,000-credit bar and placed it on the table in front of Erik.

“Do you consider this to be enough? I rarely pay attention to the ‘going rates’ these days and do not wish to offend you.”

Erik stared at the bar, his silence satisfying Panthar into standing.

“I shall take leave of the two of you for now, I must retire back to my chamber and prepare for what I hope will be an informative meeting. If I learn anything of your friend – Galen? – I shall of course inform you. Oh—“

He reached into his pack again and came out immediately with a small figurine. It was the size of a thumb, made of clear crystal, and carved into the shape of a strange bird. He placed it on the table in front of Shayla.

“I will be able to send a message to you through this. Likewise, should you ever wish to contact me, simply hold this and concentrate. I don’t know what the range would be, it’s never actually been tested. But, where there is a will there is a way, no?”

Oh, so you would appreciate being allowed back into "wild space" after coming to this planet "in error," now would you?

In error... which explains, somehow, why you were found in orbit about the planet.

At this thought he lowered his composure enough to actually snort, his disbelief clearly evident. He turned to his second, barking orders to trace the signature of that ship and anyone and anything having anything to do with it since it was first designed.

He then leaned over the ensign's shoulder once more, and spoke smoothly into the comm.

"Might I inquire exactly what it is that has brought you out to this absolutely uncharted region of space, other than my immediate suspicion that you are more than likely pirates and thus deserve to be immediately spaced?"

Once again he hit the transmission switch, raising up to accept a cup of tea from a suddenly hovering recruit.

His eyes closed slowly as he reached deep within himself, opening a small door of his concious that held a strength he viewed as great and unending... And that was the warmth he felt in his heart for all he cared for...

Jharu, and Jharmeen being the most outstanding of the memories he held there... But also were galen, Darra, Even ShaRhylla... also where his lesser contacts... Aelvedar.. Terrin... Jasyn... Shayla... Those were the people he knew... Those were his friends, his family...

He smiled softly as he thought of the words Jharmeen had just spoken to him. "Thank you Jharmeen..."

Then quietly he drew upon that inner well of strength, the inner fire that was his heart. His eyes opened slowly and he drew forth his sword, examining it quietly he probbed it with his mind.

Maladius... Demon! Your energies are within this blade... I call to you now... You will help me defeat your master... Or your existance will be tormented for eternity by love, and kindness...Should you agree to help me defeat Roan, i will purge your energies from the blade, so your soul might find peace... These are my terms... Agree... Or every ounce of possitive energy within me shall be flooded through this blade...

He then quietly awaited any feedback...whether thought, emotion, or just a reaction of the demons energies, that might be seen as an agreement, or denial...

Finaly he nodded to himself in self comformation of his readiness, taking a deep breath he began to spoke.

"Last night i couldnt sleep... So i went to the library... At first the librarian was kinda hesitant about letting me in because i was only half sith... But anyway, thats not the point... I started asking questions... And eventauly i asked what wars the sith had been in... There havnt been any wars mother... A race known for its warrior strength... Has had no wars.

On the surfice, that seems reasonable enough... Because if there warriors were so great, then no one would dare fight them, they would just follow blindly whatever the sith said... But think about it... How would military strength be proven without at least one? How would there warriors be so legendary if there hadnt been ANY wars...

on top of that... I asked what conflicts the sith had had with the dark jedi..."

he took another slow breath. "the machine just shut down... Mother... I could be wrong, and i might be over reacting... But shouldnt it at least have some file on that? if the dark jedi were the ones that destroyed the sith... Shouldnt there be something on them? The only way that could have happened, was if the dark jedi simply took the sith out in a single moment... But with the sith being such a powerful race, i really dont think thats possible... there would have had to have been resistance... and even if there hadnt been, there should be something... The machine shutting down, rather then saying 'nothing' Proves that theres something that someone doesnt want known... And that you were lied to, or are currently being misled... Something much bigger is happening mom...I dont know how else to put it... and im not sure how to find out more with the machine 'broken' but... Somethings not all right..."

A distant screech filled the room, bouncing from the walls and rebounding until the very atmosphere vibrated with that tormented cry. The sound met itself, gradually coalesced, and high-pitched and gibbering words began to slice the air.

"Freed from torment? To slay the Master??? Only more torment to face.

"Nay, he shall defeat thee... and in that my Master shall come and set me free with the blood of your heart."

The words escalated upward, growing louder and more and more indecipherable until they were once again no more than wailing and drooling gibberish, which gradually descended into the approximation of hell from which the demon had been summoned.

The blackness faded, and the sword became no more than that once again.

Simply a sword.

"Demon...Only I can free you...I am your only salvation... In destroying roan your torment will end... In my death every ounce of energy stored in the blade will live on in eternity, bound to my soul... A soul which will use all the memories of life to torment you... To tease you... Or of course i can slay your lord by other means...And live on to torture you just as greatly... But if that is what you desire, then so be it demon, it makes little difference to me."

Or his interest.

At last he finished, and fell quiet. The room rang with ensuing silence.

Which, at length, she broke.

"There is a darkly suspicious streak in you, son," she finally said. "This must be confronted, and overcome, before you have within you the quality necessary to understand the answers to questions you think you now need to seek."

She quieted, sighed a little. Then she reached out a cool hand, and laid it atop Jharu's head. Her fingers played a bit with his hair.

"Your father battles to the death on the morrow, my son," she said abruptly. "I would devote my energies in prayer to S'slan that he succeeds in that battle. For the Dark Lord is no easy adversary."

With that she bent from the waist and bestowed a cool kiss on the top of Jharu's head. Then she turned to depart, knowing that machines do not aways shut down merely because someone wants them to.

But because, sometimes, there are equations without solution.

"You have already condemned me; there is no surcease! But it shall be lessened; I will find delight in that you will never gain my assistance!

"He will not be slain; YOU shall. Horribly... and in that horror I shall live again!"

"but...Dont you see it mother? If it couldnt answer that question... Then your involvment in the sith... is a lie..."

Again his head shook, before her other words struck him full force.

"to... The death?"
FATHER!

His heart pounded, his eyes snapped open.
no... he cant... If he loses... if he loses then... then...

Tears brimmed on his eyes, but just as quickly as they had formed, in a blink the tears were wiped away, and determination became set in his gaze.
There has to be a way to help him... There has to be a way to make sure he wins, without breaking any rules... but how?

Now the Dark Lady of the Warriors rose to the occasion. She whirled, strode back to Jharu, and gripped him by his shoulders.

"You shall not interfere, son!" she said in a low whisper, a whisper so low in fact it almost came out as a hiss.

"This concerns things pure Sith; you shall not dishonor your father by trying to lend aid to him!

"Is that understood?"

Recinis... What will you do... How can you possibly win this battle? If you take one aggressive move against roan... Then you will be slain... If you do not make an aggressive move towards him... He will slay you anyway... You are sith... You can not die so easily... You must find a way around it... This is your path... But how... In your fathers name you have vowed to fight with your heart... Your love... If that is not strong enough then what can you possibly use to defeat him? Not hatred... Not sorrow... These things are not befiting for one that wields there heart as a weapon...

He rumaged over his thoughts for a moment, attempting to collect himself, whispering quietly. "i was told that once i learned to wield my heart fully... I would be as my father... the greatest warrior... I have known the purest love... Indeed dispite resent changes... That love still burns in my breast... but then... how?"

His eyes opened slowly, examining the blade of his sword intently as though something had just struck him...

A sword has two edges... And sometimes...
A memory flashed itself in his mind... A moment shared with Jharmeen... She had revealed her past to him... revealed her previous love's existance...

And sometimes... The heart is dark... Like the sword... The heart must have two edges...

As the thought came through his mind he reached down and unlatched the darker sides of his emotions, allowing them to flood through him and meet the light, where they swirled against eachother like two wind fronts meating to create a screaming tornado...

With this he reached to the sword once more.
"Demon! Come forth once more... You will serve me in this task...You will serve me or the torture you meet will make you beg for that which Roan would give you should he see you again...Remember, you have failed him... It seems to me that roan is not a forgiving master... Not one that would welcome you back...Your loyalty with him is possible only as a resault of two emtotions... COmplete and undying love... Or total and unending fear... You are not a creature of love... You fear him dont you? You dont want to leave the sword, not because you have faith he with destroy me... but of what would happen should you fail to kill him and he know of your pressence... You dont view this sword as a prison do you... You see it as a sanctuary... What if i were to release you to him? release you powerless and helpless... Give you to him so he might show his views of your failure... What then?"

"Release me to him then, pretender!" he howled in pure hatred and rage. "And I shall then go to HIS assistance against you!

"You know not of that with which you meddle; my Master does, and with that knowledge I remain loyal to him and him only, for all eternity!

"Bring on your tortures, your torments, your proud and prepossessing words! They shall not sway the dark to do bidding of the light! I await my Master's victory, for indeed he shall slay you! This is something you must indeed fear, else you would not be seeking my assistance so persistently, and with such determination!

"Hah! We have won already, puny one! My Master is victor, and I shall be freed!"

"And just who was it who said they'd know if we were hiding anything?! If you were going to make up a lie, you should have at least made up a good one!" he growled, his eyes still focused on Dash Kelderon, who had taken it upon himself to take over the comm controls. "Now you've made things worse. They'll never let us go at this rate..."

Unconsciously, he pulled at the neck of his flight suit.

"Will you just shut up a minute?" Matt suddenly butted in. "They'll trace this ship, and might figure out something about us. We might as well be straight. And after all, we really know very little about the planet down there."

Jasyn closed his mouth, and settled into a scowl, watching Matt as he then assumed control of the comm unit. "This is Matt Stanza," he started, "We have not come upon this planet in error, yet we know little of the planet other than of its coordinates and a very vague knowledge of its inhabitants. We traveled here because a friend of ours might have crashed on planet; even so we have yet to find her and were discussing our next move in determining her location when we were caught up by your tractor beam."

Matt paused, praying that the New Empire would be understanding. "It is urgent that we continue our search for our missing friend; we are willing to be entirely compliant in any questions you may have so that we can be on our way."

He opened his mouth to speak... when the officer on deck glided quietly to his side and whispered something at length into his ear. His other brow rose to meet the first, and he turned to his second.

"That's an Eagle Enterprises yacht, and according to the latest data from Sullust, two of their top men are aboard her. Matt Stanza has already identified himself; I'm certain the second one is Jasyn Lancaster."

His Second Officer blinked, and cast his captain a knowing look. That look was returned whole-heartedly before Captain Landarian turned back to the officer on deck.

"Has every bit of information we can dredge up from that yacht been recorded?" he asked, pursing his lips at the affirmative reply. He followed this with a command to hack into their computer logs, and upload every speck of info they might have gleaned while on the planet. This was done in minimal time, and quickly but thoroughly scrutinized. Time ticked by... and then the log officer reported in.

"Nothing specific, Sir," the report crackled over the intra-ship speakers.

"Just some generalized geomorphological and meteorological data, and notation of cities and inhabitants. No mention of who those inhabitants are, nothing but information one could glean from any planet in any system.

"Sir."

Captain Landarian turned back to his Second Officer. A waggle of a finger invited him into his private ready room. He turned upon reaching his desk, leveling a heavy gaze into his second's equally concerned one.

"Thoughts, Number Two. Do we risk it?"

His second paused a long moment. Finally-- "It is EE, Sir, with two of its top men aboard. There are risks either way we go with this. I say--"

He paused for a final consideration, swallowed, then straightened to ramrod stiffness.

"I say release them under oath to keep their mouths shut. After we delete their data and navigational coordinate banks. Sir."

Landarian allowed a bit of light to come into his eyes. His lips quirked.

"Agreed," he said succinctly. Then he opened a channel to the bridge of the Relentless, and issued the orders to make it so.

She pursed her lips grimly, letting her grasp on his shoulders soften.

"Son, it is a matter of honor, you know that," she began, trying to make him understand, her hands now unconsciously beginning to knead into his muscles as though to bring warmth to them, and thereby into his heart. She couldn't help but blink a bit in surprise at the sudden rush of responding warmth that rose up in her own being.

Indeed, she might have encapsulated all her love for Recinis to maintain the life of their unborn who yet floated in the Elseness... but she had done nothing in regard to the love she yet felt for her son.

Other than force it deeply into hiding, as other... concerns had risen to take precedence as of late.

But now....

She swallowed, tightening her hands upon her boy, and in a sudden movement gripped him with a strength only death could break, and drew him to her. She held him then, motionless, not saying a word, remaining in that position for a long while, thoughts of ShaRhylla whirling in a wild collage in her mind before finally drawing gently away from Jharu and releasing him with a final squeeze.

Frowning, Jasyn eyed the navboard suspiciously, as though expecting it to up and blow in their faces. "What the kriffing hell...?" he started when he was interrupted by:

"You have been given clearance to depart, and are strongly advised not to speak of these planets with anyone, nor return to them."

Jasyn's jaw fell so far and so fast he was certain it was going to hit the deck of the little yacht's cabin.

"They're letting us go...?" he muttered in utter disbelief.

But beside him, Matt didn't miss a beat. "Thank you," he replied simply to what was probably just a mere comm officer...

...and then got immediately to the business of warming the ship up for departure. It was as if he was thinking that they should scram while the scramming was good; in no time he had the little yacht completely ready, and in only a few minutes more had her headed for the skies. Once clearing the collective gravity wells emitted by the mass of Imperial ships, Matt then made calculations for a random hyperspace jump, dialed them into the navcomputer, and took the little yacht into the realms of hyperspace...

...and away from the Khar Delban system altogether.

(((OCC: Follow Jasyn, Matt, Jebbua, and Dash to A Needle in a Haystack in the CSWU, thank you.)))

"You think it's something Sith?" she queried then to Erik, finally tearing her eyes from the bird and looking to him.

He was staring at the gold bar in his hand wide-eyed.

"Ummm...yeah, could be," he said moving his eyes from the bar with an effort of his own. Then, "Shayla, what are we doing here? Lady Jharmeen says..."

Shayla put a finger to his lips before he could finish. "Not everything we do has to have an immediate plan or purpose. It will gain its purpose in time. For now we're here because I'm curious about the obvious misperceptions the Jedi...

...and the Universe as a whole...

...have concerning the Sith. I want to know more."

"And?" Erik queried, arching an eyebrow.

"Because, whether I've been here before or not, it just seems this is where the Force is guiding me."

She quieted for a moment, searching his eyes for understanding. She wasn't quite certain she saw it just yet...

...but she knew Erik would stick by her. So she then turned to one of the Sith warriors, curiosity and geniune interest showing in her eyes. "Is there somewhere you can take my husband and I to learn more of the Sith...

...of your ways, of your lifestyle, anything? There is such an apparent contradiction between what the Universe believes concerning the Sith and what is; I would like to know as much of the truth as I can..."

"You may wander the Temple, and observe what you might see within it in those places allowed," he growled in a deep voice. "But anything more than that is forbidden to all who are not Sith."

He pulled back a bit further, as though to not sully his short robes by contact with non-Sith flesh, but never moved his intense gaze from Shayla's face. His cheek quivered as a muscle jumped beneath his flesh, as he finally finished with,

"Our history and knowledge is not something to be given freely away."

When they parted, that supercilious smile was still upon his lips.

"I battle the Pretender on the morrow," he announced as easily as if he were announcing a planned outing with his love. "He once fled in cowardice, and was fool to return. But--"

He paused, staring deeply into Kreesha's wide eyes, drinking in their glory.

"But after tomorrow he will exist no longer, and my love, we shall be one step closer...."

The rest of that statement was cut off as once again he descended upon Kreesha with a long kiss, one born of power and assurance and knowing that after tomorrow his love was but a day closer to regaining her full freedom of not only Phrinnchatka, but of the Diamond of the Sith as well.

And more....

His lips quirked at the look she returned to him, fangs peeping out to lay sharp and gleaming against his sensuous lips. Then he nodded his head.

Two Sith guards approached him, talking quietly to each other. He tensed in preparation of the verbal and, most likely, physical abuse he would surely take. The two guards paid him no mind and walked past, turning a corner.

Phalomir detected a soft warmth in his abdomen, and understanding crept slowly into him. Without realizing it as he traveled the hallways, the Eye of R’lous had supplied his thoughts with the Sith magick needed to travel undetected. Indeed, this was a mystery revealing itself in small portions.

He decided to not press the matter and turned around to find his way back to familiar areas and his room. As he turned a corner a deep voice reverberated softly through the hall.

“I go to prepare, my love.”

Phalomir stopped and waited, watching as a giant of a Sith turned into the hallway and walked – no, glided – away. Just for a moment the giant paused and turned his head slightly in Phalomir’s direction, not looking at him but acting as if he were searching. Phalomir concentrated harder on his concealment, the Eye giving off a somewhat warmer feel. The giant staggered very slightly, catching himself quickly by throwing arm to the wall. He grunted, shook his head and muttered something quietly, turned once again and proceeded away down the hall.

Phalomir let out his breath softly.

Here she had a geniune curiosity, and hopes to set the record straight, and to no avail.

Then, as quickly as the frown graced her features, it disappeared altogether, and she merely nodded at the Sith guard, still showing the utmost respect.

Then she turned, placing the bird-like figurine in her pocket and then wrapping her hand about her husband's. "Come, let's have a look at what we can."

Then, with her husband at her side, Shayla began traipsing the hallways of the Grand Warrior Temple of the Sith...

...from the exquisite and beautiful tapastries and materials to the fresh and well-kept greenery and flowers. Her keen eyes even took note of the wall scones which lit the Temple in a warm glow; they were intricately carved with curved lines and various shapes. Shayla could hardly take everything in, there was so much to see...

A deep sigh escaped from his lips and his head shook in deniale...

I know i cant interfer... I know its wrong... But what honor is there in being slain by a vicious demon, that's probably going to cheat in order to win... I may not know much about him... But from that time he talked to me i could tell... he'll do anything to get what he wants... Father i hope you'll be alright...

Then silent as death he grasped the sheath once more, drawing the blade effortlessly from the confining metal.

His eyes took in the flawless design the sword had, examining the smoothly etched runes, the perfectly forged edge...

And then in a blink he had slid the blade through half of a near by piller, stopping it before it could do any true damage to the structur, but nodding in the success of the swing.

"Roan had better not try to cheat... Once the rules are broken, they are broken... No point in trying to use what is broken afterall..." He nodded quietly and once again put the blade of the sword into the hiding security of its sheath.
But dont worry father... I wont disshoner you... I wont do anything to aid you... But no one better try to stop me if roan try's to cheat... I may not be a warrior... But i dont like cheaters...

Her eyes narrowed dangeriously as her senses tingled.

"who's there?" her hand went quickly into her cloak, her head turning about cautiusly.

"you can't hide from me... If you dont come forth now... I will find and slay you"

Phalomir spent a brief second in silence, then the loud bellow from down the hall prompted his feet into action as he turned the other way and ran.

her head shoke slowly, eyes narrowing further, however she smiled softly and began moving after stealthily...

This one... This one was tricky... What good prey after having been away for so long...

He snarled again at the image of Panthar's retreating back which played across his inner eye...

And those eyes then slit with the knowledge that he could now act in defense of his love....

His lip curled in a sneer of disdain then as, raising a great clawed hand in the direction in which Panthar had fled, he drew in a great breath. Then he let that breath out as with the All he stretched his fingers outward, grasping, holding... and dividing.

And down a far corridor the molecules of the stone beneath Panthar's running feet roiled and loosened, becoming more and more energetic until they had enough energy to undergo a phase change. Quite suddenly those cold stones were simply liquified.

Panthar let out a reflexive yelp as he started sinking into the burning hot liquid stone... which then, at the command of Roan's curling hand, reverted to their former state, crystallizing back to their original flagstone, which neatly trapped Panthar at his lower chest.

His arms and hands laid upon stone... and the remainder of his body was utterly encapsulated.

Roan spat, his eyes all black pupil, as he sensed the man beginning to struggle for breath. Then he turned to Kreesha, swooping her into his arms, and with no further ado took her to her chambers. Depositing her therein, he bowed to her, then set out for his own privae rooms to prepare for his upcoming battle on the morn.

Almost immediately the warmth of the Eye within him flared to a hot point. His breathing returned slowly, one breath at a time. He was not sure what was happening, but his breath had indeed returned, even though the stone still constricted his chest, as if the breath was borrowed from a life-giving source.

Kreesha snarled as Roan left the room, ready to find this vermin who dared attack her and end its life. As she rose, her breath came up short. Each passing breath came harder, and as she struggled for air she fell back on the bed, her claws rending the sheets in desperation. The room swirled around her, and each frantic breath sucked in less and less air, until finally her raspy gasp brought forth nothing… and she lay still, eyes wide and staring.

A vivid red glow came forth from Phalomir’s chest. Slowly the rock around Phalomir glowed also, and soon gave way to a sluggish dough-like substance. He scrambled out of the hole and onto solid rock, bunching himself into a ball.

Now her musings were completely overrun, squelched into obscurity as a great, raging burst of pure bewilderment struck her hard enough that she almost fell. Only the fact that in her musings she had placed one slender hand against the mantel of the fireplace kept her upright; even so, her reflexive grip upon that mantel was so strong that all the nails of the hand promptly snapped, embedded deeply into the wood.

Blinking, she threw back her head, the motion bringing herself upright, and gradually she became aware of just where that blow had come from.

It had come along the link she had opened with Phalomir.

The Glyph on her forehead exploded into ferocious life, as if it too were responding to something attacking from out of the blue. Its brilliance bathed the stone in front of her, the light so blinding that the dancing flames in the hearth were all but invisible in comparison.

She stood frozen in the spot for only a moment more... then turned and instinctively fled from her chambers. Her prior reflections had come on the heels of her daily martial routine; thus her feet were bare, slapping lightly upon the stones of the corridors she fled along, her body wrapped only in her form-fitting practice doba. Like a black ghost she flew through one corridor and the next, her eyes now nearly falling closed as she let the link lead her to the spot, the Glyph lighting the way in front of her like a tiny sun.

She came upon him curled into a ball, shuddering.

And there she paused, shocked into immobility, something about his aspect warning her, incongruously enough, to remain far, far away.

He saw a figure of someone standing in the distance, a strange light around her. As his eyes cleared, recognition flared and he identified the Lady Jharmeen, the light shining from the glyph on her forehead. A sudden jolt from his midsection caused Phalomir to wince in pain, and he could feel a blast of heat suddenly swell within him.

“No, no, NO!!!!!” he yelled, clenching his eyes. Phalomir concentrated on keeping down the force within him, not knowing how save to tighten every muscle of his body into a wall of will. A soft, whispering voice came wafting through his thoughts.

warriors must not possess the knowledge of all…

“What?!” he cried through clenched teeth. “What knowledge? What all?”

The heat inside of him swelled higher. He struggled to his feet and leaned against the wall. “Whatever grudges you hold against the warriors, THIS ONE YOU SHALL NOT HAVE!”

No. Not air that he needed.

Kreesha.

Gods....

A bellow of rage pulled him upright and he turned on the spot. His feet pounded upon the flagstones, his heart pounded in his chest as he raced back to the chambers in which he had just deposited the one and only thing he held dear to him in the entire universe.

He arrived in time to see the light of life fade in her eyes.

"NO-OO-OOO!!"

The bellow erupted like the explosion of a volcano, bursting its way from his chest and spilling hot and fiery between his lips. He rushed to her, took up her still-warm body, cradled her to him, holding her tight, oh so tight.

The chill rising up in her neatly counterbalanced his own growing heat. He blinked in the face of denial, knowing denial would prove naught.

He raised a hand that actually trembled for the first time in his memory, ran it along her luxurious hair, down the smooth skin of her face, down her trailing arm, now as limp as her white mane.

"Kreesha...."

His head suddenly jerked up as inspiration struck.

The All. He could use its immense power to go back, to bring her back to him.

He threw back his head, reached out with his clawed hand, sought that connection he had with those universal powers....

Only for this, it would not come.

He waited... tried again, waited longer. Then, succumbing to rare defeat, he laid her gently upon her bed, sat beside her, stroking her. And at last bent to bestow a final kiss upon her.

When he raised himself from that kiss, his eyes were as red as the blood now pooling in her veins. His brows lowered thunderously then as, pulling his sword from its belt he headed to the door, out into the hall, following the connection he felt in his every cell which he knew would take him to that which had slain her. Nothing existed for him but a red haze and the blood now surging into his muscles, expanding his lungs to take in more air, strengthening his body, firming his resolve, fueling his hatred and desire for revenge.

He came upon him, sneered to see the pitiful ball he was wrapped up as. Something glowed from his body, red and viscous; he seemed to be trying to hold it in. Or to warm himself from that red glow, for he curled about it like a gleeberfly larva curling up to spin its cocoon. Standing somewhat in the distance, obviously wavering was... her.

His eyes slitted into twin pools if oil, and he gripped his sword.

One at a time I shall deal with these pitiful beings, he snarled to himself, shifting his grip a bit to settle his weapon better in his hand.

First this... being; then... her... and lastly that pitiful excuse of a warrior lord. Then all shall be mine.

One at a time.

He stepped forward, his sword raised but even so his off hand raised as well in preparation of using the All if need be.

no grudges, only protection

Phalomir screamed as the power surged from his body, his back arching and arms flying outward, face in an unnatural contortion. A red tendril of electricity flew from Phalomir’s right hand to the glyph on Lady Jharmeen’s head, freezing her in an expression of surprise. A pulse of white light instantly traced from her back to Phalomir. Phalomir’s left hand extended behind him, shooting a bright red and white streaked arc of energy to a location he could not see. A startled and angry bellow let loose from the location, followed by a heavy crash. The energy abated, allowing Phalomir to sink to his knees. Lady Jharmeen collapsed where she stood.

Phalomir crawled quickly to her side. She was breathing, but unconscious and incredibly pale. He tried to lift her, but the strength was not there. Muffled sounds of shifting rock came from the area behind him, and he felt a soft warmth in his midsection.

in time she will understand her legacy, protect her, my son

With a sudden burst his strength returned, and he gathered up the Lady and sped quickly down the hall, looking for a place to hide.

Perhaps it was not totally Panthar who ran with the Lady in his arms. Perhaps there was another, urged on by the senseless whispers of one gone mad, who now may or may not be chortling at the pretty flowers and slugs they were streaming in their wake. Such things more than likely were not of concern to Panthar, whose only reaction was quite obviously to get the hell as far away from whatever had just happened before other Sith arrived to investigate the ruckus, or the Dark Lord came back to consciousness.

Only he never would.

He lay half supine against the wall, his head propped crookedly, one horn broken by the impact with that wall as a result of the tremendous energies flung out so unexpectedly from the human. His brilliant turquoise eyes stared out unseeing, accusing, and for the first time filled with complete and utter shock that such an effrontery dare take place, to coagulate his very blood in his veins, to thicken the very air in his lungs.

Phalomir closed his eyes. Much had just happened, he needed time to reflect and comprehend it all. The Eye had spoken to him, this he was sure. But the feelings it gave, not of revenge but of protection. And to protect the Lady? From what? He considered this as he fell into a deep sleep.

Panthar opened his eyes immediately.

“He may be sleepy, but I’m sure as hell not!” he said. He looked around at his tight surroundings. “Where am I? What the hell just happened? Who is this on my lap… buh?”

Panthar froze as recognition of the Lady Jharmeen came to him. He regarded her slender, sleeping form in the tight doba, her feet bare, his shirt wrapped loosely around her.

“Oh, Phalomir, you little devil. What have you been up to?”

Time passed. He didn't know how much. But finally a sympathetic hand laid upon his shoulder.

"The Dark Lady too is gone," a quiet voice revealed that which he feared most. He closed his wonderful aquamarine eyes against new pain; when they flickered open they were filled with nothing but resolve.

"All was well until the newcomers came... the humans," he snarled, gripping his sword even tighter.

"Find them. Find them all... and bring them to me in the Receiving Hall."

This answer was not what she expected.

The whirling swirls of color and shadow and light gradually slowed, coalesced. The shadow became that shed softly upon her by a great tree, whose leaves rustled in the freshing breeze as if they had nothing better at the moment to do. The color became a palette of greens and browns and from somewhere a fading red... and the light...

Became something she was so suddenly aware of, coming out of a pair of hazel eyes which were entirely too close to her.

Twin recognition flashed heatedly into her body: She was laying beneath a tree with her head in Mr. Dantares' lap... and the familiar warmth of her talents were entirely too lengthy a time in coming to her call.

She froze, considering. Then her eyes slitted. Indeed, the All might be the majority of who and what she now was, but even when it was so mysteriously lessened...

Lessened? How could this be so?? She would determine this later.

...it did not leave her completely defenseless. Darth Wicked had taught her well; the dark jedi use more than the dark side of the force in battle, and Wicked was the most powerful of the dark jedi she had ever run across.

She leapt to her feet, the Tooth of S'slan in her hand, crouched and ready. Her eyes stared dangerously into Panthar's rapidly widening ones.

"What did you do, and how have I come to be here?" she hissed, crouching more loosely on the balls of her feet, her grip on the Tooth tightening, the other reaching out to block whatever move he might make toward her.

He slumped deeper into his sitting position, hands going to his lap.

“If you wanted to kill me, I couldn’t stop you,” he sighed. “But before I die, I think something big just happened with Phalomir, he sort of just passed out and left me here without explaining anything. I remember getting lost in the halls, then something about seeing a mountain of a Sith guy leaving a big horned woman to go fight some pretender and then she saying something about knowing I was there, except it wasn’t me you see, and then the crystal thing in my belly taking over and blasting her, and I don’t remember much else after that, until just now.”

...but somehow... inappropriate at this time.

She remained in that stance a moment longer before finally letting out a breath of air. The Tooth made a liquid swishing sound as she slid it into its sheath on her thrimm, moving up to stand more closely in front of him as she did so. She came to a halt and stared intensely down upon him.

"I will not slay you, Mr. Dantares," she began quietly, surprisingly quietly. "For somehow I--"

A heartbeat.

"I... somehow feel there has already been too much unnecessary death."

Unnecessary....

Somewhere deep within her psyche, the Beast perked its ears, slitted its own eyes, and licked its lips.

She quieted, then hunkered down on the balls of her feet, her hands hanging loosely between her knees. Then one hand shot out to grasp Panthar's chin, forcing him to look her straight in the eye.

"Phalomir," she called out suddenly. "Can you hear me? For as you said to me not long ago, there is indeed much of which we need speak."

“Oh no, not again… at least give me back my shirt later, OK?”

Panthar’s pupils flared and his facial expressions grew lighter.

She shook her head, clearing the errant but quite natural reaction from herself, and steadied her gaze once more.

"What have you done to me, Phalomir?" For as quickly as the events had dominoed, they had not erupted so quickly that she was unable to recall that last searing memory, one of a brilliant red arc lancing into her from Dantare's hand, upon whose heels there came groggy wakefulness beneath this tree, her head in an unfamiliar lap.

“I spent the last few moments drifting, not in sleep but in a more literal sense. I have discovered the ability to let my spirit roam free, move through walls, and interact through what I can only assume is the Sith magick running through my spirit. The temple is experiencing pockets of activity, my lady, your warriors searching in every corner, and Sith of high rank gathering in a dark room. I only heard a small portion of their conversation before you called me back, but I fear that perhaps the Dark Lord is in peril… perhaps worse.

There is a death for certain, a wild-eyed Sith lady caught me as I wandered the hallways earlier, threatened me. I know the Eye stole her life to give mine back to me. She was with a large, mountainous Sith – in the robes of the Dark Lord – oh dear…

“And there is more… the Eye said you would understand your legacy in time, but for now you need my protection.”

Celebration.

She jerked back to awareness then, even as the pounding of feet came to her ears, as cries shattered the mid-morning calm, as the ring of steel heralded the ring of blades which came from nowhere to surround them where they sat.

Great clawed hands reached daringly to her, took her by the shoulders, raised her to her feet. As if from a distance Salandaar's voice came to her ears, worriedly inquiring as to her well-being, then going on in a rush to inform her of the deaths of the Dark Lord and the One-Who-Would-Not-Be-Named, she who had been defeated in battle once, and now for a second and final time as she appeared to creep a traitor's path through the darkened hallways of the Temple.

Jharmeen Jhin'Dar opened her mouth to scream at it all... Graysith blinked her violet eyes as new apprehension rose up in them at Phalomir's words....

But it was the Dark Lady Q'utaro who finally rose from her own jumble of personae to reply to the strapping warrior.

"Take... her body and feed it to the tuk'ata," she commanded regally. "And as for His...."

She trailed momentarily as something dark flashed deeply into her eyes.

"Go and prepare it for the funerary rites his station deserves."

Salandaar nodded, waving to his warriors to imprison the still sitting Panthar when Graysith intervened.

"This one has caused no harm," she said smoothly. "Indeed, if it weren't for him that which has slain the Dark Lord might have killed me as well. Instead, I was brought here in safety; for that honor, he may walk with us back to the Temple, a guest, not a prisoner."

Her eyes deepened further.

"There are those yet among us who do wield some sort of power; jedi they call themselves. Perhaps they might have words to explain the deaths of the Dark Lord and... and the Unmentionable One."

With that she turned regally to lead the way back to the Temple, pausing but for a moment to send a particular look into Panthar's hazel eyes... hazel eyes which seemed to have the ghostly image of a color more brilliant floating deeply within their depths.

We shall discuss at greater length, you and I, she slid the thought smoothly into Phalomir's consciousness.

Indeed, you can rely upon it.

But when the sound of those booted footsteps became increasingly greater...

Shayla froze in her tracks, bringing Erik to a forced halt behind her. Frowning, she immediately stretched out in the Force, sensing waves of palpable despair...

...and was suddenly blinded by a vision of red so great that it drove her to her knees, quite nearly knocking her senseless. She gasped, and could feel Erik's supportive hands go about her and pull her up.

He turned her to face him, shaking her. "Shayla?" he queried worriedly, looking into her eyes as she strove to gain composure once more. "What's wrong...?"

"Something, something terrible has happened...

...I can feel it..."

Even as Shayla spoke the words, those booted footsteps she'd be hearing matched themselves with a group of Sith warriors who immediately began to surround them.

Shayla turned her greeny-blue eyes up into a pair of brightly colored Sith ones...

...and she was struck again by that overwhelming despair. "What has happened...?" she asked worriedly...

The Sith warrior did not reply to her question, but rather answered instead with, "Your presence has been requested in the Receiving Hall."

Shayla nodded, her eyes both worried and confused. As she did so, the group of Sith warriors surrounded them...

Especially the stress which bubbled out of Shayla in an overwhelming fount. Some vision about something red....

She frowned a bit at that, not recognizing that vision, wondering if it had something to do with her latest encounter with energies of that color... and could not help but glance down to her hand. While her abilities were back to their full use, she had chosen to not restore her broken nails, but rather let them remain as they were as a...

Reminder.

She yanked her head back up, and tucked her hands inside the sleeves of her doba. Nodding briefly to Salandaar then, she glided forward and stopped in front of Shayla and Erik.

Her eyes were like violet rocks in her head as with no warning she lanced out with the All, probing into their minds, their beings, their very essences... and found therein that of which she had spoken. Her eyes slitted then as she pulled back, and a thin smile came to her features.

"The Dark Lord is dead," she intoned without preamble. "He was a powerful Dark Warrior and Lord, and bestowed with certain... strengths which would assure that no simple interplay of swords would lay him low. Indeed, there was no sign--"

She trailed, cutting her eyes back to Salandaar, who merely lowered his lids and bowed in affirmation.

"--to indicate his death was a result of battle, or by any other natural means."

Again she paused, her tongue peeping out to wet her lips, and she began pacing back and forth in front of them, measuring them, like a Myrkrian vornksyr gauging the distance to its prey before it leaps. At length she paused in her step, cocking her head to one side, wetting her lips yet again.

"There is a... a power I sense within you; indeed, it is within you both. It is something strange to the Sith; perhaps it is something with the ability to overcome a Dark Lord in his prime?

"For more than coincidental do I find it indeed that we have had no problems here on K'eel Doba... until your arrival, that is. Not to mention the fact that, while the others who came on your heels chose to leave when the opportunity was presented...."

Another pause. A sugary sweet smile.

"You did not."

...but aside from that I use it for nothing else. I am deeply sorry to hear of the Dark Lord's untimely death; I did not know that anything had occurred til moments ago when you sent your guards for my husband and I, and when I stretched out in the Force to sense overwhelming despair...

...and to see the vision of something blindingly red. And it was only just now when I knew the reason for the despair was the death of the Dark Lord."

Shayla paused for a moment then, letting these words sink in and hoping that everyone here would believe what was nothing more than the truth. Then, "And the reason my husband and I remained was due to the fact that there is such an overwhelming discrepancy surrounding the true nature of the Sith. Indeed; most in the Universe believe the Sith to be anyone who uses the Darkside, and are not even aware that instead the Sith are a race of peoples.

"My interest here was to set the record straight, for myself if not for anyone else."

With nothing more than that Shayla fell silent, and waited, hoping her words would be seen as truth...

The Revealer! He recalled the oddly prophetic message the Revealer supplied him concerning the progeny of Mir. Perhaps it could shed some light on this mystery.

He left his body for a moment, thrusting Panthar back into the lead, but with instructions to keep quiet and still. Phalomir made his way back to the revealer. The room was empty, but the Revealer still spun its colorful scapes

The Dark Lord Roan is dead. You foresaw this, who killed him?

The unfocused image of a Sith male filled the colored area. It slowly became clearer, seeming to transform from an old man's face into a young, strong one. Phalomir recognized the face as his own.

And what purpose did this death serve?

A single word, in the Sith tongue, appeared: Unity

More riddles? I grow impatient for the anwers.

Another set of words appeared: Civilization did not grow overnight, my son

Surprise beset Phalomir, sending him sailing back immediately to Panthar's body. He snapped his spirit to alertness and wondered if Lady Jharmeen's link had travelled with him.

"Merely the capability of telekinesis???" she finally whispered back, a look of sheer disbelief now clearly planted upon her pale visage. The Glyph cried out it's own brand of effrontery. "Have you any idea what that entails? Objects can be manipulated, moved; common and everyday things turned from the mundane into deadly projectiles."

She paused, her nose wrinkling now.

"Perhaps this Force of yours which so enhances your own senses did so from afar, increasing your wiliness and your cunning. Perhaps it gave you insight as to the means by which the great Dark Lord and my counterpart, Ankrist Roan, could be slain as if he were a dragon-kit.

"Perhaps your ability to respond to things acted in your stead as he came out from his rooms, where he was undoubtedly preparing for battle on the morrow, and enabled you to slay him from afar with those enhanced abilities of which you speak."

She spat, whirled about, and ascended the dias. She did not take a seat upon the carved chair, however, but stood well down from it, letting its massive beauty act in counterpoint to her own slightness, and make all the more overpowering the words she was now speaking.

"You would take it upon yourself to be diplomatic liason of my peoples..." she trailed off, leaning forward now, her eyes slitting and the Glyph fairly yowling upon her brow.

"Yes, I said my peoples! For to them do I truly belong!"

She cut herself off with that, her breast heaving with the sudden rush of anger now filling her, her eyes blackening to ingots in her head. Her hands slid from the sleeves of her doba, and she fisted them, forcing control back, calming herself. She raised her head, and took a deep breath.

"It is not your place to be our liason. This shall be One who is chosen by our peoples, and of them.

"Not some stranger coming to our world seeking an imaginary woman, who prefers to remain unto herself, quite possibly because she was answering to agendas of her own."

She forced a sweet smile upon her lips then, and leaned forward into Shayla's face.

"Upon this world, one is not innocent until proven guilty, but the converse," she said sweetly.

"And so far, I am not convinced of your veracity."

The Dark Lady raised her chin, now connecting directly with Salandaar. She nodded once to him, raising one hand at the same time to indicate that Shayla stay whatever reply she was about to make. The warrior came up to the dias, shouldering past the quiet humans, paused to bow to Graysith, and then mounted the stairs. He stopped on a step two tiers down from where she stood; he was so tall that even from there he was on level with her ear.

Toward which he now leaned, and whispered something.

Graysith leaned a bit forward to receive that information... then shot bolt upright. Her eyes widened, the Glyph raged to an even greater extent upon her forehead.

"...But remember, no matter what happens, no matter what i ever do in my blindness... I promised never to leave your side... and although once i have done it already... I will never do it again...."

Now her eyes slit and she pulled herself up into a regal pose. Salandaar, now overlooked before her, bowed his way back to his original station.

"Before his death, the Dark Lord had been challenged to Entitlement, which you may know," she offered, surprisingly. "It would seem that the one who has challenged has...."

She paused a heartbeat, allowing the Beast within to gain complete control of a tiny little speck which was suddenly crying out in pain.

"Disappeared."

She stood a moment longer in silence, turning her gaze now back into Shayla's pair. For a long moment she remained like that, as if in consideration. Then--

"Considering this new set of... circumstantial evidence..."

Another measuring look at Shayla.

"...I call for Stance of Denial, as is within my right as Dark Lady of the Warrior clan of the Sith."

With that she nodded once, then swept off the dias, heading toward the door. En route she passed near Salandaar, and without even stopping whispered softly to him as she passed,

"Make certain they are watched at all times."

The warrior bowed his head, his fist slapping to his chest, and quickly implemented that order to other warriors standing nearby. Then he stepped forth himself, and hurried after his Dark Lady who paused long enough to shoot a dark look directly into Phalomir's eyes before leaving the Great Receiving Hall altogether.

Phalomir reflected upon on the events of the morning once more. He suddenly felt used, first by his father, then by the Eye, and now by the Dark Lady. His father must have known that someday Phalomir and Thoran would be freed, and would have known what it was they were to do. But something went wrong, and now they were both just ghosts sitting inside a human shell. Phalomir suddenly longed to feel his full height, stretch his enormous muscles, and proudly stand as a Sith once again.

Still he stared…

And the Eye, with its need to protect. Why did it need him for this? Was there not a more powerful member of the sorcerers who could more easily perform this task? Or did his father do this, modifying the Eye to a function beyond its original power? Why did the Eye not tell him sooner, if it had the ability to communicate all this time?

Still he stared…

And now the Dark Lady, Jharmeen. What was her true story? How would a human come to be the Dark Lady of the Warriors? Why would the Dark Lord tolerate this? And to what end was she working towards with her accusations of the other humans? She had to have known of his revelations via the Revealer.

And still he stared…

She used you, as she uses everyone she touches

Thoran? No, and not Panthar. A new voice? Quiet, very quiet. Another soul trapped as I am? Or perhaps I now share some of Thoran’s madness?

No madness, but reason. You are the rightful Dark Lord of the Warriors, the rightful heir to take your place atop the entire Sith

Who are you? What do you want of me? How will you use me?

Heh heh heh… A quality a Dark Lord must possess is to recognize the spirits of your victims, it is a trait that in time I will teach you. But first, let us remove a certain link from your mind…

Phalomir’s stare hardened, and the Sith warrior blinked and turned away.

She had to know. And there was only one place she could think of where that answer might be found.

She blinked as she stepped out into the dimness of the Library, pausing a moment to let her eyes adapt themselves to the swift change in lighting. Ahead of her, the quietly spinning Revealer announced its operational presence by its soft greeny-golden glow, by its unheard yet distinctly felt bass thrumming as it moved within its spheres, and by the gaping mouth of the Keeper who turned to her in shock.

"M-Milady," he gulped, scrambling to his feet from where he had been kneeling in front of the Revealer, still trying to understand exactly what had caused it to crash...

...as well as how it had so easily come back to life.

He bowed awkwardly, laying the stub-fingered hand against his chest, unable to fist it.

"I-- I am honored," he stammered on, then fell into silence, waiting.

The Lady Q'utaro stood in front of him, contemplating the exotic Revealer for a bit before finally responding.

"You have done your duties well, old one," she said smoothly, now returning her gaze to the humbled Keeper of the Light. Her eyes fell upon his marred hand; she frowned, the Glyph sparking into life.

"You never deserved that," she said softly... and in a rare moment reached out with her talents to manipulate attendant molecules... borrowing carbon from the wooden buttresses, and oxygen and hydrogen from the very air they breathed. The Glyph quieted a bit as she finished, and she cocked her head to one side watching the man.

He was numbed. Then he fell to the floor.

"Mi-Milady, my most sincere and humble--" he began but was cut short as she approached him. She smiled, laying a hand atop his tri-horned head.

"You were surprised before my arrival, Keeper of the Light," she whispered. "Now... why is that so?"

He swallowed, then blurted out the entire incredible story. How her son had come, asking questions relating to something called dark jedi, how the Revealer snapped out, apparently unable to reply, how he had chased the youth from the Library, only to return and find it fully operational once again, although he had not had the time to contact a Sorcerer and see about its repair.

Graysith's lips trembled the slightest. Then they smoothed into a gentle smile. She bent down and whispered into his ear, "I have need of the services of the Revealer. Please, remain."

The Keeper merely nodded, keeping his eyes glued to the floor. Graysith rose and approached the Revealer, came to a halt before it, paused with her lip caught up between her teeth. Abruptly, she asked a Question.

The Revealer promptly brightened, sending flashes of green and gold off into the dimness of the Great Library, from whence it found the answer she sought and promptly portrayed it in a series of flashing holograms.

The line of the Dark Lord of the Warriors of the Sith... progressing all the way from the beginning of their history...

...and through Ankrist Roan.

No mention anywhere of the Q'utaro line.

None.

She blinked her startlement, and could not help but glance down to the tattoo which lay upon her wrist. It gleamed, quietly alive, in mute testimony of her position.

She trembled at the paradox. Thought of the magickal abilities of Jharu's sword. Snapped her gaze back to the Revealer. And with something which was a cross between a snarl and a cry of deep anguish, raised her hand to send it into oblivion.

But stopped. For did not the tattoo on her wrist proclaim her as Dark Lady? For indeed she was that, the title won in fair battle against the Sith warrioress and former Lady.

Yet, if the Revealer now proclaimed no link to the Q'utaro line whatsoever, by what right had she to challenge Kreesha? For only those in line by blood or marriage could indeed do so....

She swallowed heavily, forcing her bewildered hurt and anger deep into herself. Then she turned to the Keeper of the Light, who had wisely kept his eyes and ears closed during this entire episode.

"Please, good sir, I believe this device is in need of cleaning. I would suggest that you devote your talents to that end, and do not let it be used any further. At least not until you have finished with this task.

"Which--"

She trailed with a smile, the smile broadening when he lifted his aged face to her in further surprise.

"Which I feel will more than likely take some time to accomplish. Months, perhaps. Or even years. I understand how intricate and delicate a task this is; during this hiatus the people can seek elsewhere to find answers to their questions."

The Keeper cast a glance at the Revealer, which appeared to be operating as normal. Then he glanced down upon his restored hand.

"It shall be as you wish, Milady," he said simply, bowing once again. When he straightened, she was gone.

He sighed, and began to disassemble that wonderful device, an endeavor made all the easier for the fact that he now had two hands with which to work. He smiled at the ease and rapidity which he was now able to do this, and soon the spinning orb was laying, silent and black, on the stone floor amidst a pile of lesser ones of graduating size.

He got to his feet with a sigh, and contemplated the Library banks.

So much to now attend to....

“I am the heir to the Sorcerers,” he thought. “But my time is passed. By what ignorance do you make these claims to the Warriors?”

No ignorance, boy. Knowledge, wisdom, and desire. I feel it within you, the Eye feels it within you… Yes, I know of the Eye… I know it was the Eye that sent my flesh to my impending grave, but it has shown me the reasons… and I, for one, agree with them

Understanding leaped to Phalomir, along with surprise and anguish.

“You cannot be him… the Eye killed you for unity…”

Yes, unity… but not as you think…you must kill her, add her spirit to mine…

“NO! This IS madness. You lie! I am sworn to protect her!"

Really? Did you SWEAR it, boy? Did you swear upon the soul of your father? Kill her, eradicate my mistakes, take the other as mate

"You are insane! The Eye has imprisoned you and you deceive me to free yourself! Or you are not real and this is trick of another! Either way, I deny you your freedom!”

Phalomir pushed with his spirit, harder and harder until he could feel the voice begin to retreat into the nothingness from whence it came.

Have patience, boy. I have eternity to wait for you…

And then silence…

Indeed, there was much to think about.

Why did the Revealer show her the line of Q'utaro BEFORE the Sith were returned... and now showed no trace of that lineage? Was it as simple a thing as a mere paradox? Or was the Revealer able to be tampered with? She thought it showed only the truth....

She paused in mid-step.

Truth as stored in the Library banks themselves, as gathered through the magicks of the Sith and placed there.....

A long moment passed in which she remained still as stone.

The magicks of the Sith... Jharu's sword, so heavily endowed in that manner for the son of a warrior.... someone able to manipulate because of magick....

Phalomir. Was he not the son of a Sorcerer? Is that not what he had told her? And yet-- what other Sorcerers did she know of?

Aelvedaar... whom Roan had once told her was in league with Recinis.

She shook her head, and moved on.

That would make no sense... or would it? Ahh, but how she wished she had someone to turn to, to discuss this with. There was a time she could turn to her Sire, one other to a hand-picked sister, another time, to her husband and Lord.

And Lord....

The answer the Revealer gave again haunted Phalomir’s memory: unity. The Sith had never been united under a single Dark Lord, as far as Phalomir could remember. That would be folly. There must be checks, balance… such as what he felt the Eye represented, but to what? The all force? What WAS that?

And what of the Dark Lady? What could she be planning? Why did she leave so quickly? From what was he to protect her--

Protect? Did he swear it? He had assumed so, but—

A sudden need filled him. A need to find her, to protect her… but… wait, what were the words he had heard? in time she will understand her legacy, protect her, my son

He had assumed… but perhaps…

--at least, these particular Sith--

--had little interest in humans as a whole, and especially not in what humans believed wrongly of them...

...and suddenly she felt robbed of the only possible purpose she'd be able to find in the past few days. She'd gone back to the Jedi Praxeum what seemed like ages ago...

...and she had been taken from there by someone she couldn't even remember...

...but then what? She knew she'd married Erik and that she had a son...

...somewhere...

...and she knew she had at least once felt there was a purpose in her life. But now...

Now what, Shayla Stargazer Petrolu-Kartan? Shall you live your life in the past which you can't even remember, or shall you do something to press onward to whatever may lay ahead, taking a step at a time...?

For a moment, Shayla didn't even so much as blink as all these thoughts rolled through her mind. But then suddenly she firmed, her eyes hardened slightly with a line of determination...

...and she waited in thoughtful but alert silence for whatever was yet to come her way.

The stone was... stone. It cared not. It merely held up, supported, remained through eons....

Sudden resolve came to her, strengthening her. A slow smile crossed her face, her eyes darkened a bit to the hue of the sky just before sunset.

It mattered not. The intrigues leading to her current place, the mysteries of who was Dark Lord and who was not, mattered not.

What mattered was that she bore the Tattoo of Entitlement upon her own wrist, her daughter holding inheritance to that title. That was what mattered. That, and nothing else.

Now was not the time to weaken before the softer emotions. Now was the time to be...

To be Sith.

Her chin pushed her face up and led the way back to the Receiving Hall. Her unwanted guests yet remained. She glided past them, a worried Salandaar coming up from somewhere behind to trail her, up to the dias and to its apex, there to turn and seat herself upon the intricately carved seat atop it.

She laid her hands upon the wood of the arms, and looked down upon them. At length she spoke.

"What is happening here in Phrinnchatka is of concern to the Sith, for it is of the Sith, and Sith only. Thus it is not necessary that you remain here further, especially since new evidence indicates your innocence, Shayla Stargazer Petrolu-Kartan."

She paused, turning her gaze briefly into Phalomir's.

"Remember that I spared you; there were two arcs of red lancing out...." she thought into his mind, before backing out and directing her attention to the others once again.

"Leave Phrinnchatka. Now."

...don't expect them to understand you, especially not with how I know they think you are. But if you have no interest in changing those beliefs, or at least not through me...

...then so be it."

And with nothing more that that, Shayla Stargazer Petrolu-Kartan turned, a group of Sith warriors gathering about she and Erik to no doubt escort them back to the Supernova where they would leave Prinnchatka and K'eel Doba...

...perhaps never to see the grand city and its planet ever again.

And in the midst of all, he now was forced to live with new realities: the death of a Dark Lord at his hands, willing or no; his secrets revealed to a Dark Lady he was not yet sure he could trust; an oath to protect the Dark Lady, but a level of doubt raised as to validity as to whether it was indeed the Dark Lady he was sworn to; and finally, he had to face the possibility of spending the rest of his life in the body of another. He felt like a pawn in a game of unknown masters, with no vision of the larger goal.

Unless the Eye would speak to him. He had not considered this before, but had only recently found the Eye sentient, and even then more urgent matters seemed to press. He reached inward with his thoughts, seeking the power he felt pulsing within him.

You have found me, my son

“I have questions,” thought Phalomir. “You will provide the answers. Why did you kill the Dark Lord?”

Unity

“Unity for what?”

All

More riddles. Phalomir sighed. “Why? Why do you seek this? How will it be accomplished?”

One Eye to embrace the magick, One Eye with the key to all, One Spirit to feed them, One son to rule

Again, Phalomir did not comprehend. “Who am I to protect? Who will understand her legacy?”

The Graysith

Phalomir searched his memory for this name and found nothing. Again, more riddles. Enough of this, these were not answers, only more questions. Finally, he settled on the question which burned deeper than all others.

“Must I and Thoran remain trapped? How may we return to our bodies?”

You must be Sith to return. Thoran’s madness rends his will, his salvation lies within the Stargazer

Phalomir raised his head and truly comprehended the scene before him for the first time.

She leaned forward then, the Glyph screaming, and lifted a corner of her lip in a sneer.

"You speak words with little meaning, Ms. Kartan," she said in a low and dangerous voice. "For how is it that the Universe would need any assistance from anyone in how they interpret us? We have only just come back to it, have we not? If they live by erroneous, preconceived notions, those notions shall be easily eradicated when...interaction, as you state, begins. No matter what...they expect, the rest of this galaxy shall find a noble people when they finally realize we are indeed here."

She paused a moment, her anger darkening her eyes further at the self-centered comment put before her. Then she dismissed it altogether, turning to Phalomir, newly refreshed outrage now in her eyes.

"You dare belay my command," she seethed, her eyes flashing directly into Phalomir's. "What further madness has come into your brain, ghost carrier?"

Hovering between settling back to listen and leaping up to lash out, she remained frozen in that strange attitude, gripping the arms of the seat she was partially raised off of, ignoring all others as she glared at Phalomir and with that glare demanded he respond.

Slowly, she sat back upon the chair, leaned back into it, drew in a great breath and exhaled, letting the Glyph reduce its fires to a more easily beheld fury. The fingers of her right hand tapped a staccato beat upon the arm of her seat, the Claw ringing in sharp counterpoint to the duller thuds of her human nails.

She cocked her head a bit to one side, and smiled sweetly.

"Why, Mr. Dantares," she purred, like a sandcat about to devour a womprat it has been toying with for hours. "You do not need my permission to speak to this woman."

An offhanded wave of the Claw-bearing hand indicated the fuming Shayla. She replaced that hand on the arm of the chair, then moved it up to toy with the throat of her doba.

"You only need my permission to remain here, on K'eel Doba."

Another pause, another sweet, sweet smile as thoughts of promised discussions with the one he held within crossed her mind... and was promptly dismissed as...

Dangerous.

"Speak to her of whatever you wish, wherever you wish," she continued then.

"...as long as it is not upon this world."

Phalomir… this is Panthar… got some advice for ya, buddy… back off and let it go…

Yes, let it go. But how he so badly wanted to explode, turn her sweet smile into a frown, make her understand the turmoil he was experiencing, tell her of his sudden overpowering need to… protect? Serve? No, what was he feeling for her…? Rage tried to surface once again. He pushed all emotions down into the pit, allowing reason to return and overpower them.

“Yes, my lady. I understand, I will communicate with Lady Stargazer at another time. With your permission, there are matters I wish to attend to here on K’eel Doba for a very short time. If you allow that, I promise you will soon be rid of this human as well, and perhaps find yourself enriched.”

His eyes widened slightly, softening.

Again, one had the fortitude to do so.

Her lip could not help but crook, even as her eyes deepened. She gripped the arms of the chair more tightly.

"Very well," she said abruptly, knowing that the Revealer was fully out of commission, believing there was no other way Phalomir could obtain the information she felt he was seeking.

Let them tread upon our soil a final time, she mused to herself. Let this be the first act of leniency that they carry with them back into the galaxy, as Ms. Kartan so greatly fears will be so impossible a task.

"You have until the sun sets this day. But as it sets upon Phrinnchatka, our twilight will be lit by the fires of the ship which has carried you here.

"I trust the consequences of a... delayed departure are likewise understood?"

She waggled the Claw the merest bit... then rose, descended the dias, and continued on out of the Grand Receiving Hall. A mental thought... and the clatter of great claws echoed through the stone corridors of the temple, as three tuk'ata bounded in to position themselves at her side and back, protecting her as no foresworn man, be he human or Sith, really ever could.

...not just because of Panthar's persistance, or because she was yet still here, but because of Lady Jharmeen's misunderstanding of her intentions...

Why was that the Sith, who had been away from the rest of the Universe for so long, still had such apparent distrust for humankind? What happened to them so long ago that they withdrew from the rest of the Universe, and how was it that there had come to be such a misconception concerning the true nature of the Sith?

Shayla frowned unconsciously, her thoughts turning yet another corner:

And just why had the Sith, who had totally withdrawn from the rest of the known Universe, returned now...?

"Shayla?" a familiar voice queried, breaking the silence.

Shayla jerked to alertness, her eyes snapping to meet the brown ones of her husband. "Just thinking..."

She trailed a moment, then motioned the way which Panthar had departed. "Let's stay behind him. Cause as soon as he finds whatever it is he's looking for...

...I don't want to waste a moment getting off this planet."

He traced his steps back to the main hallway, and waited.

“3…2…1…”

Shayla and Erik rounded the corner and into the hallway where Phalomir waited, statues hovering behind him. He looked directly into Erik’s eyes.

“These must be loaded onto your ship immediately. Go there now, they shall follow. You will not be challenged. Prepare the ship for departure and return here, we shall rendezvous in the dining hall before sunset.”

He turned to Shayla.

“I have a dear friend who needs your assistance. I know not how, but it is vital you assist me in this endeavor. Somewhere in the courtyard at the entrance to this temple shall be two stone cylinders, approximately this size,” he said, indicating with his hands a two-foot span. “Look for them in a place of shame, degradation, humiliation. I have no time to explain, but all shall be clear in time. Take them to the ship and then join your husband here.”

Both Erik and Shayla offered dubious, if not defiant, looks.

“Please, do this. Time is short. I have no wish to force this upon you, but if I must then I will. There is much to be rectified on K’eel Doba, but the journey begins elsewhere. I will meet with you in the dining hall before sunset, after I meet with a certain Lady.”

Phalomir turned and headed down the hall, the statues moving to either side to allow him passage, then returning to hover directly in front of Erik, as if anticipating.

...what could it all mean?

Jerking herself to reality, Shayla turned and looked directly into Erik's stormy browns. She let her greeny-blue gaze fall directly into his and simply swim there for a moment.

"Just do it," she said simply. "Do it for me, please."

For a moment Erik stood unmoving, then with a sigh of resignation nodded but once. Shayla leaned in and kissed him softly on the cheek. "Thank you. Now you go...

...and I'll be right behind you. That is, as soon as I've found what has been requested of me."

A single tuk'ata, large as the day, strolled around the corner. It turned its head to face Phalomir, growled deeply, and turned the corner completely to take a few steps toward Phalomir, stopping a few yards from him. The Dark Lady followed, taking a position at the large animal’s side, and was immediately followed by two more tuk'ata. Phalomir calmly gazed at the Dark Lady, taking in her entire form.

“My lady,” said Phalomir. “As you are Dark Lady of the Warrior Clan, I respect your authority in this city and on this world. I understand the trying times you have experienced so very recently. I understand the apprehension and fear you must indeed hold over me.

“Somewhere, I have lost 4500 years. I shall leave this planet and find my place in this new time. Please understand, my lady, there are forces at work greater than both you and I, and we are perhaps unwillingly caught in a web which has already been spun. The Eye of R’lous shall guide me, and I have no doubt it shall guide me back to you in short order. It has spoken a prophecy to me: One Eye to embrace the magick, One Eye with the key to all, One Spirit to feed them, One son to rule

“I believe you are intricate in this equation, for already two of the pieces are within me. That is, if I am to believe that indeed the Dark Lord’s spirit now restlessly stirs within me, as I in turn haunt Panthar. Stay well protected, and we shall meet again… and perhaps then we shall both present our true selves.”

One son to rule.

M'wonBo'o's low and dangerous growl came unheeded to her ears. Her mind raced with the implications presented in that simple, if cryptic, prophecy.

Prophecy? Or threat....

A hand lifted unconsciously to her forehead as she considered those words, for the first time centering on exactly how it was the powers sent to her by Aelvedaar had actually come into her being. She remembered the cavern she had entered with her father, the dim little cave at the back; entering therein, there had been something, she had reached for it to show him, there was a bright flash of light....

And then she killed him.

She shuddered briefly as repressed memories surged to taunt her. Then the Beast within raised its head with a snarl, and flattened them again into suppression. Its flat pewter eyes filled her with gray, directing her now...

One Spirit to feed them....

This was a quandary, if indeed these words were more than so much fluff, created by a mind blasted with too many years of life, ending in a body not its own. For the fact that Mr. Dantares stood before her as he did, reacting in the manner as he had, proved those spirits were real and not a simply some strange personality disorder.

For personality disorders did not lash out with strange lances of red, to kill Dark Lords and momentarily shut down that which she thought was the most powerful force in the universe.

One spirit... whose? Trelanicus? Or had Dark Lord Roan come back somehow, irate in the hand Fate had dealt him. S'slan knows he had had an agenda of his own all along, as did Aelvedaar and Recinis as well; S'slan knows the Sith were a magickal race, able to make what in any other species would be a mundane intrigue turn into something of myth and legend....

She shook her head, her lips curving in a slight snarl in spite of herself. Another growl from her beast, whether that beast was the great tuk'ata at her side or the even greater Beast within, she did not know; another growl directed her thoughts to the remainder of the statement.

One Son to rule. One....

Son.

Her eyes darkened further, and she directed them arrow-swift into Panthar's hazel ones. But it was not Dantares to whom she communicated, not even bothering to speak aloud, just letting a tendril of her essence slide into his mind.

"Strange this ability you have, Phalomir," she began in apparent non sequiteur. "This power of the Eye. How it comes and goes. How unfortunate for you that so much has come to your unwilling person, yet so much that you cannot control but must react as a sailing vessel reacts to the vagaries of the sea."

Now her hand lifted and she lightly tapped the Glyph with the Claw of S'slan.

"There shall be no Son to rule the Sith, Phalomir. At least not now. You state you are 4500 years out of time... and how very true this is.

"So are the words of which you speak."

She let a soft exhalation escape her, its quiet sussurration in direct contradiction to the fire now lighting in her eyes. A brief thought of ending this in the manner in which she knew she easily could...

...was dismissed. For that light had merely dropped her in her tracks, somehow disconnecting her briefly from the All while it had killed Roan. She knew she had come to assist Phalomir; knowing the Dark Lord as she had, she highly doubted his aspirations toward this newcomer had been quite as noble.

She sent a final message into Phalomir's essence.

"You think we shall meet again, Phalomir? As to that--"

She smiled a rancor's smile.

"We shall see."

“Think what you may, my lady, it is highly irrelevant. I believe we shall meet again, and quite soon. I hope that by then your wisdom has risen to meet your station.”

He turned again and slowly began walking down the hall, paying little interest to the growls of the beast… and of the tuk’ata.

"And the next time you have something worthwhile to say to me, please say it aloud. Unlike your beauty, secrets do not become you."

For a moment she remained silent, simply glowering at him. Then--

"How dare you!" she burst out with, fairly seething.

"Who are you to come here as you have, speaking riddles such as you do, and to say such words to me?"

“I dare because I must! ”, he hissed. “I am who I am! You ask that question of me, can you answer it for yourself? Why do you think you were called forth from beyond the ages? Why would a simple human be given the gifts you were? Think, woman! The Dark Lords made no choices but what they were bid. Your past has led you to this point, as my past has led me to this. The past is but a road to now, your secret plans are mere sidetracks. I am your future!”

That hand clenched, so tightly the Claw imbedded in the palm of it, sending rivulets of her blood to drip down upon the cold stones.

"And what great assurance acts as foundation to those words?" she finally managed in a whisper so low it was scarcely audible.

But no less filled with outrage and anger and perhaps, something else....

Perhaps it was both.

The Tattoo of Entitlement gleamed a quiet gold upon her wrist, giving mute testimony that Jharmeen Jhin'Dar Q'utaro was indeed the Dark Lady of the Warriors.

"Here is my bloodline, Phalomir," she said, struggling to remove the ire from her tone, striving to gain control of herself once again.

"Here is that which bestows it upon me, that which links me to this race more surely than this sigil that has been placed upon my brow, or the power which has been endowed to me.

"This is what guides my hand... this is my truth."

She fell silent, her mouth working voicelessly, her eyes black and very much alive, but other than that her demeanor nothing but utter stone.

That thought rushed abruptly through her mind, bearing with it the images of Aelvedaar, and Ayelmaar, and of her own daughter ShaRhylla.

Indeed... who is to say who is destined for what union, my dear Phalomir.

She said nothing, keeping that thought to herself, believing in the history taught to her of the Sith, the necessity of a Triad.

A Triad.

...when at length she finally came to a far courner of the courtyard which was not decorated with any lavish greenery or statues. No, the decoration which graced this place was enough to make Shayla stop and shudder...

...for it was an altar built of bones, various kinds of teeth...

...and something that looked distinctly like Sith horns.

Shayla shuddered again, tearing her eyes from the altar to the ground below. Around the base of the altar were various strange objects; but in the dead center were two stone cylinders which met the size specifications Panthar had mentioned.

Desiring nothing more than to leave this disturbing place, Shayla worked to free the two cylinders from the ground where they had been encrusted, as though they had been sitting there for some time. After taking a few minutes doing this, Shayla quickly headed for the Supernova, loaded the cylinders with the eerie statues her husband had already taken on board, and headed back for the Temple, no doubt not too far behind her returning husband. As she walked, her mind reeled in curiosity as well as something else she couldn't quite put her finger on. But one thing was for certain:

Oh, how she wanted to get to the bottom of whatever Panthar was up to...

The room she entered was dimly lit, musty, filled with statuary and paintings laying about in disarray. After pausing for a moment in the doorway she moved in, drawn by a rising curiosity which drove away, at least for the moment, all darker thoughts pertaining to the particular circumstances she now found herself in. Every so often she reached out a pale hand, leaving a spider's trail in the dust which covered the art work laying about like so much driftwood.

That part of her which was yet Jharmeen Jhin'Dar, daughter of xenoarcheologist Dr. Andreyus Jhin'Dar, cried in pain to see the condition they were in. The once rich colors were darkened and stained, the intricately carved frames pitted and cracked. What would be magnificence as far as Sith artifacts go lay unforgotten, tossed away like junk, the exotic woods and metals and gems upon them dimmed by the the mere fact that they had been abandoned here in such a manner.

She paused before a scene showing a group of Sith approaching others. In the background, a very familiar Temple loomed; beyond that the shadows of broadleaf plants cast a jungled look upon the scene.

Flashback: walking to those doors in that temple, opening them with no trepidation, no hint of fear, entering therein....

She shook her head, and moved on. Stopped before a statue having a more abstract bent. It was of three Sith, all melded together, their arms clasped strongly about each others', their horns interlocked. She had been taught well enough by Aelvedaar that she read the title carved into its base with no problem whatsoever.

Unity.

Carefully she lifted it from where it lay at an awkward angle, half hidden by other discarded pieces. She set it upright, now using a corner of her tunic to begin cleaning off the dust. Fiercely brilliant eyes were soon uncovered, glowing and vivid turquoise... and emerald... and violet.

She shuddered and backed quickly away, letting the statue fall from her supporting hand. It rocked upon its base before thudding back against the wall where it was when she first found it. Wrapping her arms about herself, she backed yet further, distancing herself from the statue as though it were something poisonous, ready to leap out and attack her. A flutter of something caught her eye; it was a cloth of some kind, tossed haphazardly over some other forgotten work.

She grabbed that cloth, threw it over the statue, covered it with other items until it was buried. Then she turned and hurried from the room, closing the door and melting the locking mechanism with one blast from the All.

The frown upon her brow matched the thin line of her lips, and the explosive fires of the Glyph. She turned and went into the Dining Hall, only to continue ghosting about therein.

Sunset couldn't come quickly enough....

...and Jasyn Lancaster and all of his companions.

Coincidence?

Not likely, considering they'd all arrived at the same point in the same sort of condition...

...and now to add to the fray was all this about a Sith planet and about a woman that his wife had supposedly been connected with...

...only to be told on arrival that the woman didn't exist. Somewhere something was askance, and Erik Kartan wanted answers soon...

...and that alone was one of the only reasons he was conceding to the wishes of this Panthar fellow. That and the fact that he knew Shayla somehow needed this...

A flash of something caught Erik's attention as he paced and he whirled to face whatever or whomever it might be, his senses quite on the alert. It was Panthar.

“I share your sentiments,” said Panthar. “I too feel distastefully uncomfortable as the day progresses. I am prepared to leave as soon as your wife returns with success.”

A slight glimmer caught in Panthar’s eyes. He tilted his head slightly to the right, his eyes shifting to the left, and the tiniest hint of a small crossed his lips. He raised his voice, “Sunset approaches too slowly, does it not, my lady?”

He then turned to face the Dark Lady, who was quietly lurking in the shadows on the far side of the dining hall.

“In time," he said, "we shall all understand our roles. Thank you for your hospitality.”

Panthar bowed deeply at the waist, pausing to offer a long look at the Dark Lady. When she made no movement, he completed the bow and turned back to Erik. Shayla stepped next to Erik and gave a raised eyebrow to him.

“Were you successful?” ask Panthar.

Someday she would have to find out the truth of it...

Shayla jerked herself back into the moment. "Thank you for your patience with us," she said towards Lady Jharmeen, giving a respectful nod then turning back to Panthar. "Now, unless you have something further which we must do here, I suggest we be on our way before we overstay our welcome."

Even as she said this, Shayla turned towards the entrance to the Dining Hall, somehow certain it was indeed time to go...

...but perhaps not for the last time after all.

Decided the time for subtlety was long past.

"I say this but once. You do not know the so-called role that has been placed before me, nor do I find any great need that you should. Depart from us now, and return to those of your own kind. But return here not again, for if you should, you shall surely die."

She paused, her eyes glittering something deep and dark and flat pewter. All three turned their eyes to her at her words; her lips curved in a smile.

"This I promise you."

He involuntarily reached out to send a parting message, stopping himself in time. But that brief flicker of power managed to touch just a small piece of the lady’s essence, sending back to Phalomir a slight sense of fear, distrust, anger and something else… hope?

He raised an eyebrow and watched the Dark Lady turn to exit, regal and proud. He had to bite down hard on his lip to stifle a sudden urge to laugh out loud. This was the most inappropriate time, but it still took all of his effort.

When she had at last left the room, he turned to speak to Erik and Shayla, his hazel eyes bright and wet.

“We, um… pfft!” he attempted. “We should go… hahahaha!”

He could not contain it any longer. He sat down at the nearest table, put his head down in his folded arms and laughed out loud, trying his best to muffle the sounds.

...giving way immediately before the flare of outrage at the sheer audacity of it all.

She paused, while at her side M'wonBo'o wrapped a tendril about her waist, rumbling a whining concern. That reaching hand now changed course to toy with one of his face tendrils.

"Not yet, my dear," she finally whispered, struggling to squelch both the wonder and the anger. It was only when she had her roiling emotions under control that she spun gracefully about, and re-entered into the Dining Hall. She stopped when she saw Mr. Dantares' body slumped over a table, his face buried and his shoulders shaking with mirth. Behind him hovered a concerned Shayla and her spouse.

"Is there something you find humorous about your situation, Mr. Dantares?" she asked coldly, her voice ringing across the room from where she stood framed between the double doors that led into it.

Panthar lifted his head and wiped away the tears from his cheeks.

“Oh, hi! Sorry! I was just trying to share a joke with my friends here, to lighten the mood, you see! I get that way when threatened with death, it’s an old habit that stems back to my early childhood days when my father would use me as rancor bait and said it built character. But, that’s neither here nor there, see, because they didn’t get the joke anyway and that just made it that much funnier to me, but it doesn’t really matter now anyway because we really need to be on our way now. And don’t worry, from what I’ve heard, I’ll never be back here again! Unless, of course, you change your mind about sharing that dinner and drink with me sometime? No? Oh well, you’re loss! You probably wouldn’t get the joke either.”

Panthar stood and stepped between Erik and Shayla, and wrapped his arms around them both.

“Now, my good dark woman, if you would excuse us, we really must be out of here before sunset. We certainly would not want to block the view!”

He began walking towards the door, forcibly moving the couple along with his seemingly unnaturally strong arms.

As they passed the Dark Lady, Panthar looked her way and winked.

"Sorry about the mess."

She let them get perhaps thirty feet away from her before she reacted. Almost without thought the Claw-bearing hand flashed out as she reached forth with the talents placed within her, guiding them with the knowledge taught to her by her Sire. The very essence of reality seemed to ripple and churn then, as the molecules of the stone before their feet abruptly....

Melted.

The trio came to a halt as abrupt.

Graysith's eyes narrowed as she regarded them, the glacial tone she then spoke with in direct contradiction to the supernova blazing upon her brow.

"Take a care, my friends," she seethed quietly. "I do not speak lightly; you would do well to control yourselves until you are at least away from this place."

Panthar felt a strange heat rising in his abdomen, reminiscent of a time not very long ago in which a strange power blasted out of him and really sent Jharmeen into a tizzy.

“Oh Phalomir, old buddy,” thought Panthar, “do you really think now is a good time for this?”

She must allow us to leave; I am prepared for her if she does not

“Oh, crap,” thought Panthar, suddenly wishing he were elsewhere.

“Please, Lady Jharmeen, we just want to leave…” he said softly.

Her eyes darkened even as the Glyph raged brighter, angry at herself for her indecision in what should be a fairly simple and straightforward matter.

The Triad would indeed return; nothing would stand in the way of that. And she would not rest until that Triad took its place to lead the Sith into the destiny the dark jedi had taken from them four thousand years in the past.

An inarticulate cry erupted from her then, and her hand flew up... up... higher and higher. Energies screamed and connected with the weft of spacetime itself, grabbing it eagerly, greedily, rending and tearing and opening a portal which floated directly in front of Shayla and Panthar and Erik. At it's other end, Supernova beckoned.

When they arrived at the ship, Panthar let out a long sigh and released his grip on the two.

He turned and saw the portal close.

“There, that wasn’t so bad, was it?” Panthar said. “She’s really a nice lady once you get to know her. Cold, heartless, pissy, and conniving…. But nice.”

He glanced around to make sure she wasn’t there in the hangar.

“OK, let’s get the crap out of here!”

But even as he said this, Shayla turned, the Supernova not fully warmed, and frowned scoldingly at him. Then she looked over towards Panthar. "I don't know where you intend for us to head next, but I do know this: there is a massing of Imperial ships on the outskirts of this system...

...or at least there was at some point in the recent past. I'm not up for dealing with them, so I'm going to hit and fade and get us the Hell out of here before we progress any further."

She paused for a moment at that, then glanced to Erik before returning her gaze to Panthar. "You both better strap in and hang tight. This could be a rough ride."

With nothing more than that Shayla turned, pre-calculating a brief hyperspace jump and programming it into the navcomputer before ever leaving the surface of K'eel Doba. Then, in one utterly smooth motion she lifted the Supernova into the skies, through atmosphere and past. Even as she did so she increased speed, all the while jinking and rolling the frieghter til at length they were just beyond the gravity well of K'eel Doba...

"Phalomir, buddy?" he thought. "You there? I have a bad feeling about this..."

Be still, my friend. The 'Imperial ships' she speaks of shall not notice us.

Panthar felt the heat rise within him...

"Yes--?" I ask, even though I am fully aware of what it is she has to say. But she was after all my Chosen Daughter; I allow her the charity of speaking on her own.

"The Dark Lord is dead," she begins without preamble. I say nothing, but bow my head to her, my horns casting shadows upon the ground which leap and dance up to her feet. From my viewpoint it is as if I have her entrapped between them; I smile at the thought and give her leave to continue.

"There is One, He who has killed Roan. He is--" I interrupt her, raising one clawed hand. Now I stare directly into her glowing eyes, my own lighting with volcanic fires as I clearly read her intent. I remain silent, however.

"He-- he is gone... again; and with my son," she finishes, lowering her head briefly, hiding the emotions I know are playing across her face. For who? This I really know not, nor do I care.

In the long and the short of it, it is irrelevant.

I inhale deeply, nodding to her once again. Behind her I see a shadowy movement; it is my Chosen Son and Heir, standing by, ready to assist if needed, although against her I am afraid his budding powers would prove naught.

I, however, have no inhibitions, nor any weaknesses in that regard. I simply stare at her for a long moment.

"Is there anything else you wish to divulge to me at this time?" I ask, pleasantly enough. She lowers her head again, shaking it mutely.

I am not fooled. I know what is on her mind... as she fully knows what is on mine. I step toward her, and reach a hand to her face, bending down to kiss her softly on her cheek.

"Thank you, my Daughter," I say to her. "You may go."

Surprisingly, for the Imperials had never been known to have velvet-gloved hands, at least not in Palpatine's day, it never came. The officer on deck merely paced around the debriefing room and finally took a seat back at the desk before which he had been standing.

"Did you get the signature of that vessel, Ensign?" he asked mildly. His fingers splayed out on the shining metal of the desk as he waited for a reply. It was not long in coming.

"Sir, yes Sir!"

The ensign opened his mouth as if to offer more, wisely closed it. This was not unheeded by his superior.

"And you have already initiated a trace of it's identity?"

Again came the immediate and affirmative reply, celery crisp. The officer nodded, turned from the ensign, dismissing him with a wave of his hand.

"Two extra watches, over two days," he said offhandedly. "You may go."

The echo of the ensign's boots sounded in his ears as he now opened a line to his superior, none other than the Second officer to the captain himself. A short but extremely informative discourse followed, which ended with:

"A hit and fade tactic was used as the vessel escaped, Sir. This is not something used often by the general populace; found among such riff-raff as smugglers and pirates and so on...."

He trailed; the Second obligingly filled the airspace with an almost offhanded, "Indeed; this is so."

Time crackled along the airways... and the Second returned.

"I have direct orders from the captain," he said without preamble. "Proceed with Chalarian-Echo, phase one. This system is becoming far too... busy for one that is supposed to be not only off the charts, but devoid of life!"

The link snikked to a close as the officer on deck rose from the desk, and from the debriefing room proceeded to the bridge. There he began implementing the delicate maneuvering of the immense super star destroyer into its own particular position in the blockading of Khar Delba and K'eel Doba. He smiled as the Relentless began moving out from where it had been lurking, taking her sister-hounds with her, and finally settled nicely into a high orbit around the extremely tilted planet of Khar Delba. He flipped on a connection to the outside, his lips now quirking as he watched the others begin placing themselves in exactly calculated positions from not just Relentless but from others, forming a gridwork of gleaming death which slowly but inexorably began to close about the planet like the jaws of a vise enclose what it grips. Elsewhere, K'eel Doba was being similarly blockaded.

A bulkhead broke in two as a door whooshed open, spilling Captain Landarian onto the bridge. He strode within and came to a stop, tall and firm, before enabling another switch to display what the officer had been watching onto the general screen. The officer on deck could see his captain's chest swell with pride as all hands jerked their attention briefly to take in that beautiful sight, then returned immediately to their individual tasks to make it so.

The Captain nodded in satisfaction and remained silent. He had his orders...

...which he proceeded to obey. He moved over to the communications officer, and leaned over his shoulder, his fingers busy on the gleaming board in front of him.

"Get me a link to Lt. General Tarnus, at this frequency," he ordered, rising up and giving his uniform jacket a jerk to straighten an imaginary wrinkle.

"I'll take it in my ready room...."

((OOC: This thread continues in Down the Rabbit Hole in the "Jedi/Sith" forums, thank you....