After a short while, she turned to a nearby wardrobe to find attire fitting for the journey ahead. After some searching, she found and put on a black, sleeveless tunic with close-fitting, black pants with satiny purple stripes on each side, clearly meant for exercise. Seeking further, she also found a flowing, hoaded black cloak. The inside lining, however, was made of a satiny deep purple fabric much like that on the sides of the pants. She finished clothing by affixing a belt-meant to hold weapons-to the pants and putting on some soft, black boots. After combing through her now shoulder-length dark blonde hair, she took a brief glance at herself in the mirror...

...and turned to three objects of keen interest to her in the center of the room, objects which had lead to her donning the belt she had chosen: A blaster,no doubt confiscated at one time or another from one person or another by the Sith; A short dagger, and a cleanly-polished sword with a blade just the appropriate length to match Shayla's smaller size. The blaster, she affixed to one side of the belt, and the dagger she placed in one boot against her ankle, in the case that she might need a hidden weapon.

The blade, however, she rose to further inspect for a moment, her eyes going a bit dark as she made a few practice moves with it, getting the feel of such a weapon back easily, for she had, after all, been trained in the use of a lightsaber.

In time you will have no need of such...toys, came reminder of Graysith's dark yet deeply meaningful words.

Indeed, Shayla thought, her eyes darkening further, That is how it should be.

Finally placing the blade in her belt on the opposite side of the blaster, Shayla rejoined ShaRhylla and Panthar. In no time they took the Sith transport back to Char'lingua where she had birthed the Preon. Leading them inside and indicating that they should get seated and strapped in, Shayla began attending the task of warming the ship and pulling up navigational information for their trip to Endor while the ship was loaded with the final provisions ShaRhylla had requested.

[ 01-12-2009 08:51 PM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Shayla Stargazer Petrolu ]

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Remaining upon her feet, she sniffed.

"It shall do, although a Sith fighter can be acquired. But that ship would be smaller; I desire room enough for my own personal use."

With those words and a haughty toss of her head, she proceeded by demeanor alone to make Shayla's ship into one entirely her own. And the look in her eye consciously dared anyone to say her nay.

[ 01-15-2009 08:51 PM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by ShaRhylla ]

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But that did not matter. Now he was going prove himself worthy of respect, and take control of this strange life into which he had been dropped.

He watched Shayla as she took the pilot seat and expertly worked the controls in preparation for departure. She looked truly beautiful and in charge, and he could not pull his eyes away. He continued to watch even as his gaze became a physical weight on he shoulder and she paused and glanced back at him. Their eyes locked for a moment, then he widened his grin and walked back to take a seat.

The rune on his cheek throbbed, but the other wounds he had suffered over the past few long days seemed to be healing quickly. In fact, he never had felt stronger since entering this particular body. He ran his hand across his chest and felt the powerful muscles there, then flexed his biceps. These arms had crushed stone, pounded away at castle walls, and had snapped imps in half. Now Panthar looked forward to doing this again, but to Phalomir.

He shot a glance at ShaRhylla, also beautiful but in a much more sinister way. Something about her took his imagination and he could not help but let the corner of his mouth creep upward.

“Nothing shall stand against you, my beautiful lady,” he said. “Please, allow me to help usher in these new days by killing Phalomir.”

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"That is why you are here," she replied before abruptly turning to go aft, now seeking a 'fresher where she could at least cleanse her skin of the dried blood yet marring it.

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“I am not fully aware of the meaning of this mark,” he said, calling forward to Shayla. He then stood and moved to the seat next to her. “Do you know the meaning? The true meaning of it?”

He furrowed his brows, then added “And what did you mean – now I am the third?”

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"I do not know the meaning of the rune," she said flatly. "And as for the meaning behind my words..."

She trailed, her eyes darkening as shadows of a memory not all that long past danced in her mind's eye, "It is merely an observation of something you would not understand."

Saying nothing further, Shayla turned her attention back to the navboard. As though the task were nothing more than second nature to her--for indeed it was just that--Shayla then moved to the business of getting them into hyperspace. Before Panthar could even formulate any sort of reply the stars before them converged into starlines, their journey to Endor in place.

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But this time the images were second in his mind, for things did somehow not feel right. Perhaps it was only that annoying voice that tried to be heard, demanding that he stop this nonsense and run screaming as far away from ShaRhylla as he possibly could… But that voice was easily squelched and the task at hand remained clear.

But what Shayla had said still concerned him.

“Perhaps you could help me to understand, then?” he asked. “We should not keep secrets from each other, we have a long road ahead of us and must stay focused and together. Ask me anything in return, I will tell you.”

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Trailing, Shayla realized something, suddenly understanding that it was perhaps far more than just that. Her eyes darkened and defocused. "Two already have."

Falling silent once more, a long moment of heavy silence followed. "Nothing can stop what must be done, nothing and no one. Are you really prepared to do anything you must...

... anything, to accomplish what lies ahead?"

Her eyes locked with Panthar's once more, something very dark swimming in their depths. "If indeed you truly understand what that really is."

[ 02-10-2009 09:42 PM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Shayla Stargazer Petrolu ]

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But instead his hand reached out under her chin and grasped it gently. He wasn't sure where that command came from, but before he could withdraw it, or bring it down to her throat, he found himself saying words.

"I understand more than you know," he said, stroking the soft skin of Shayla's cheek with his long thumb. "Long have I wished to be close to you, Shayla, and betrayal is not something I could ever..."

Wait, what? What was that?

Panthar blinked, and he was back in control of his voice. He cast a menacing thought down at the strange little thing in his mind and then turned his attention back to Shayla.

"It is not a thing I can tolerate, which is why Phalomir must die." His hand moved away, slowly, but his eyes returned to hers. "I never lose sight of the goals, the purpose, and the true task at hand. No secrets between us, then. What do you wish to know of me?"

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Wait, what? That’s not what I meant to say…

“But you sit there in silence? Is there nothing you wish to know of me? Nothing at all? Do you think so little of me to ignore my reaching out, the bearing of my soul?”

Panthar stood and turned towards the rear of the ship. He was angry, and he wasn’t sure why. But he was also hurt.

“Bah,” he muttered. He spun around again and stepped forward, close to Shayla. He presed his face close to hers, his eyes wide with anger.

"There is something inside me, small and weak and leftover from a time before my enlightenment. I hate it, it causes me nothing but headaches and distraction. But it is in love with you, and there is nothing I can do about that. There, it is on the table, now let us work together and move things along. No secrets!"

[ 02-18-2009 10:47 PM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Panthar Dantares ]

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...so Shayla softened, if only ever-so-slightly. "Secrets?" she queried softly, her voice deepening. "I keep no secrets. My only desires are to be reunited with Graysith and assist the Sith in their rise to power."

And become a part of it, came an instinctual and now unsurprising addendum.

She paused then, letting her deep greeny-blues linger in Panthar's eyes for a long moment. "You have studied a great deal about the Sith and had Thoran and Phalomir's spirits within you for a time," she then observed. "I am interested to know of anything you learned."

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Leaning back, the smile on Panthar’s face grew wider as he folded his arms together and regarded Shayla.

“Very well,” he said, returning to his business-like demeanor. “Phalomir is confused, unsure of his past and fearful of his future. He is weak. He spends all of his energy in his love for the Sith, and for the love of Graysith. Oh yes, that’s real, I am sure of it. But it is a folly. He will be easy to control, and easier still to destroy.”

Phalomir let another smile rise as he thought of the many ways he could lure Phalomir to his doom. Soon.

“Thoran,” he said, “is a different matter. There is more to this one than we know, for beyond that buffoonery he so prominently displays lies something dark and sinister. He is a relic of the Darker Realms, but something about him does not make sense to me. Perhaps ShaRhylla can tell us more.”

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As is everybody else, a little voice whispered. And as are you, it continued.

Shayla chose not to hear this, however, for another interesting question presented itself, one which she wanted to know the answer to. "How did you end up finding traces of the Sith in your studies, anyway? After all, their worlds are known by few."

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Panthar smiled a bit, reflecting. Then he turned his smile back to Shayla.

“But I digress. How did I find the Sith, you ask? Well, I was an archeologist by trade. My specialty was ancient civilizations, and I spent years in the outer rims looking for traces of… well, anything. It was way out… way, way out… where I discovered the remnants of a metal I had never seen before. It so happens it was a piece of a Sith fighter, but I of course didn’t know that at the time. One thing led to another, one clue to another, and I found myself on an outer rim world that just happened to be the home of a banished Sith sorcerer. That’s where I… um, met… Phalomir and Thoran.”

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But it did concern him just how easily that leftover remnant worked its way to the top a few moments before. What if he lost concentration… no, this was not even a possibility. It was buried.

He glanced at Shayla once again, wondering what thoughts were running through her mind as she sat silently. Surely the controls were now set, the ship on auto pilot, but she hovered her hand over buttons as if she were intent upon steering a complex course. Indeed, what possible course of dreams, visions, or schemes were playing out inside of her?

Indeed, what about her past? Her future? Hell, what about her present? What had happened to Erik? Actually, did he really care?

He shrugged his shoulders ever so slightly and turned his attention to the view port. The stars streaked by in their strange way as the ship hurtled through hyperspace –

When had they entered hyperspace? He shrugged again and sat back. Panthar was not sure just how much time had passed as he sat staring at Shayla, but now his eyes were caught again by the streaking stars.

After more moments had passed, he turned again to Shayla.

“So, was that enough, or do you have more questions?”

And where the hell is ShaRhylla, anyway?

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...and was drawn to consider the lie concerning Phalomir's heritage. How was it exactly that they had come to information concerning this Trelanicius that appeared to not to exist at all? And how did the Master play into all of this?

Shayla's greeny blues deepened in thought for a moment, then snapped alert as she then turned away from the controls entirely, finally leaving the navboard to do its own work as she then stood.

"We are enroute and have no further need to linger here," she then said, at first seeming to ignore Panthar's question entirely. "I am headed for the galley."

Pausing then, she let her greeny-blue eyes rest in those of Panthar's as she considered him...

...and considered something he might know that she yet did not.

"I would like to know more of this Trelanicius...

...and of the Master."

She quieted one final time, allowing her distate in speaking that name to show clearly.

Master? Master of just what or who exactly...? Pffft. "He is a great threat to us," she said darkly.

Shayla then allowed her features to soften as she then motioned aft towards the galley. "Come, tell me of what you know."

[ 03-31-2009 09:50 AM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Shayla Stargazer Petrolu ]

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“The Master is an odd one,” he said. “He made a deal, long long ago, sort of, with the Great One himself. He was given the opportunity to become greater, to be a ruler of this realm. He even bargained with his own son, it was so important. He lost his sense of his mortality that day, and saw himself as the rightful ruler of all. He called himself The Master from then on, and nobody has ever contradicted him.”

They neared the door tot the galley and Panthar paused for a moment. He caught a scent in the air, the fresh aroma of ShaRhylla as she finished her cleansing. His senses were growing stronger, he could tell. This would be useful when he found Phalomir.

“But the joke was on him,” he continued. “It was Phalomir they wanted, not the Master. If only he could have seen that coming. By now the Master is dead and will trouble us no more.”

Panthar sat one of the small chairs, made smaller by his large size.

“Trelanicus, though, that is a real mystery. I was indeed investigating a small, desolate world. There were clues of its existence in some extremely old text I had discovered. With those clues, I located the planet and I found a cave that held treasures beyond imagination.”

Panthar smiled slightly, his eyes defocusing.

“He was a scientist, and a sorcerer. He saw the danger in the discovery of how to use The All, and worked on ways to control it. I found things there, Shayla, things I have not told anyone else about. Ships, weapons, devices… all designed to be used against those who could wield the All. It’s only in my notebook… which we need to retrieve. But think of it, Shayla. To have a defense against the All. Do you remember the Eye of R’lous? It was what held Phalomir and Thoran, and what I picked up when I accidentally released them. It was able to capture All-produced energy and redirect it. There are other things there, I am sure of it. We could use them.”

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"When I first began to understand use of the All, Graysith took me to this place to learn of it in solitude, and I always assumed it was somewhere on the Sith worlds. But this place was full of machines and such that responded to All use."

She quieted a moment, pursing her lips, completely leaving out the reasons Graysith had taken her there. "I wonder if this is the same place you are talking about...

...because if it is, Graysith knows the location."

She frowned then, finishing somewhat vaguely with, "And Lord Aelvedaar may as well."

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Panthar heard the shuffle of feet somewhere in the ship, and he knew ShaRhylla was moving. He lowered his voice.

“But do you really think Graysith will stand in the way? Has she become so weakened by Phalomir that she can not be saved?”

[ 04-02-2009 12:04 AM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Panthar Dantares ]

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"Graysith is not the one to be worried about," she said evenly. "But consider this: if the All can be controlled by the machines in this place, who is to say that someone is not already there manipulating them, blocking us from using the All?"

She quieted, her eyes defocusing as she considered her theory in silence.

[ 04-02-2009 12:19 AM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Shayla Stargazer Petrolu ]

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“Then we should return there as soon as possible,” he said. “We need to know. But I shall need my notebook, which last I ‘saw’ was being carried aboard a ship owned by our friends in the Empire. Or we get Graysith to tell us the coordinates, and hope it is right.”

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"And what is it you two are scheming in my absence?"

Freshly cleansed hair given a toss, the young halfling strode in atop her usual high horse, coming to a halt just in front of where the pair sat in discussion, her chin and nose held high as she shot a glance just short of being outright accusatory between them.

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“Plotting your death and destruction, of course,” he said flatly. “Isn’t that what you would expect?”

He sat and placed his hands on the table in front of him, leaning forward slightly.

“Actually, aside from marveling in your beauty,” he continued, “we were discussing the need for Phalomir to die, and the potential problems that may arise if his powers were restored. And, also, the possible disposition of your mother.”

Another smile crossed his face, and he sat back as he said “Did you enjoy your refresher?”

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"The former statements serve no useful purpose," she asserted as she moved on to where Shayla was sitting, still sipping on her caf. "And the latter-- consists of words spoken merely to fill empty space."

For a brief moment she quieted, her eyes slitting like those of a great cat assessing potential prey. In that brief moment, something within her which had allowed herself to be yet again, reached out to gain the tiniest fraction of control. The motion almost a blur, her hand whipped out and knocked the cup of caf flying.

"Such frivolities are unwelcomed, for they allow one to sink into temporary relaxation.

"And relaxation is weakness personified."

She stood a moment longer, hands on her hips, then spoke up again. While her words were clearly meant for both, she yet kept her focus on the seated young woman.

"Phalomir? In the absence of his powers he is but a warrior; my Father trained me well in their tactics. I don't think he will offer us much of a problem..."

Now her head cocked Panthar's way, her eyes slitting further as she considered him.

"I could teach you some of the Warrior Ways; you are certainly large enough to utilize them to their fullest capabilities."

She let time flow briefly between them all, letting her words be fully assimilated before continuing on, now pacing the confines of the galley, snorting at this appliance here, that bit of color there. Coming to the edge of the counter upon which the caf-maker sat, she whirled about to face them both, her hands gripping the edge now jutting into her back.

"As for my mother, why...

"We kill her, of course. Or rather, one of you will accomplish this, to further cement your loyalty to me.

"I will let you know which of you shall carry this assignment, when the time is right."

The look she bestowed upon them both dared either one to so much as peep a word in defiance of this harsh demand.

[ 04-17-2009 10:12 AM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by ShaRhylla ]

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Or at least, she didn't address it directly. "We were discussing a place your mother called "the Heart of the All," a place which appears to have machines and mechanisms which control it."

Pausing then, Shayla brushed off her lap. "As far as I know only two are aware of its location: Lord Phalomir and your Mother. I was taken there, but do not know the location myself. And, having seen with my own eyes that the machines there respond to one's use of the All, I believe ti may be at the center of our mysterious loss of powers."

[ 04-21-2009 10:03 PM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Shayla Stargazer Petrolu ]

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