One Master, Two Apprentices

[Sara Rain]

The frozen world of Ziost may have been a barren wasteland, home to a few scattered communities and a couple of ancient Sith temples, but from the warmth and safety of her starship, miles above the surface, Ziost possessed a breed of serene tranquility. Unlike so many other worlds in the galaxy, Ziost had remained relatively untouched by the constant development and colonization that had ruined the beauty of so many other planets, and without a cloud in the sky, the sun was free to shine its brilliant light down on the unending expanses snow and ice. Providing additional scenery was the mountain ranges scattered across the planet, each one bigger than the last, and each one reaching defiantly up into the sky, as if the enormous rocks were trying to escape their frozen reality and retreat into the warm glow of the sun above.

Aside from Korriban, Ziost was the perfect location for the Sith homeworld. Even here, high above the icy tundra, Sara could feel the power of the dark side vibrating powerfully through the Force. There had been a reason Ziost had remained untouched by the advancements of modern society, and that reason had nothing to do with the cold winters. Over the span of thousands of years acolytes and masters alike would often gather in the ancient Sith temples, built more than a millennia ago, and increase their understanding of the dark side of the Force. Now it was Sara's turn.

The starship curled it's way around the planet's upper atmosphere until day gave way into night, and pristine beauty gave way to a raging blizzard. The ship eventually landed in the middle of an obscure mountain range, at the base of a massive Sith temple. Sara heard the howling winds the moment the roar of the engines died out. Clenching her teeth and donning her snowsuit, Sara went out and braved the elements.

The walk from her ship to the temple was ten feet, but it may as well have been one hundred. The landing pad was sheer ice beneath her boots, and the buffeting winds nearly knocked her straight off the platform. Willing herself through it, Sara eventually pushed her way through the storm to arrive safely inside the temple.

Welcome to Ziost.

The temple had been built like a maze, probably by design. Luckily, Sara had planned to arrive on Ziost hours before she was scheduled to meet her new master, so she had an ample amount of time to navigate her way through the labyrinthian corridors.

Wandering the temple gave Sara the opportunity to mentally prepare herself for her training. Her training into the IAF and the Ubiqtorate had been tough, but she suspected her Sith training would be tougher still. There was no use hoping she got a kind and caring master, because Sara knew that in the end, none of the Sithasters cared if she lived or died. The only thing they cared about was how Sara could be useful in their own machinations. The least Sara could hope for was a strong and powerful master, who would teach her everything she needed to know to survive in her new life.

Sara arrived in her master's chamber earlier than scheduled. Being early showed dedication and forethought, and Sara wanted to impress her master during their first meeting. First impressions last, and Sara knew what being last meant in the Sith Order. Bracing herself, she knocked on the door, hoping she was ready for whatever came next.

 

[Apollyon]

Audroti had been searching for new apprentices and the more he read about this “Sara Rain” the more interested he became. She was a former Ubiqtorate agent and before that a member of the Imperial Armed Forces, she was raised in a pro-Imperium family and was what Audroti described as a patriot. On paper she was everything the Sith General could have possibly hoped for in an Apprentice, trained, obedient, cultured, cunning, but most importantly deceptively lethal.

Audroti’s research on the young woman was interrupted by a knocking on his chamber doors; he raised a single eyebrow in curiosity. His appointment with Sara Rain wasn’t for at least another fifteen minutes, he was sure of that. Audroti tabbed out of Sara Rain’s files and swiped over to the hologram of the Galactic Map on which he has been steadily replotting attack strategies and plans to reinforce border patrols and the security of more key Imperial core worlds. If this wasn’t his guest he would rather have an image of something very few could decipher open then allow his potential Apprentice to be snatched from his maw.

From behind his metallic holoprojecting desk, Audroti extended his left arm towards the door and slowly drew his extended fingers into a clenched fist. The doors slowly began to open as the Dark Side gently tugged them open to reveal the interior of his quarters to the young woman awaiting him on the other side. The room was darker than the rest of the temple, only three simply designed chandeliers which hung on high from a vaulted ceiling lit the room with natural candle light. The dark marble floors were bare save for a singular crimson rug that ran between five circular pillars. These five pillars looked as if they were a part of the floor and simply rose up from it to merge with the ceiling on high; they were of the same material and coloration as well. On top of this, each one of the pillars had a different symbol etched into the sides that faced both the door to the chambers and the desk that they led to.

These symbols were each virtues of the Sith Order and the Code all Sith upheld: Passion, Strength, Power, Victory, and Freedom. The pillar starting with Passion sat the closest to the large double doors and sat a few meters away from its entrance, the rest followed suit in a staggered yet evenly space formation leading to the desk Audroti currently sat behind. Along each of the walls there were racks of weapons, a pair of bacta tanks on the left side of the chambers, and a small sparring pit on the right. Outside of this there were four hallways each leading to a different area of the chambers they were located at the front and back of the room and along the left and right walls. Finally, the entirety of the chambers had a transparisteel window that was unsegmented that ran along the back wall of each of the room. Normally, the window would not have its protective metal blast shield closed and would allow anyone within the chambers to witness the eternal storm raging outside but with all the attacks, Audroti had decided to seal it until further notice.

Upon seeing Sara Rain standing outside his chambers, Audroti rose from his seat and reopened his clenched fist as an unspoken invitation for her to enter his domain. The mighty Sith General was not adorned in his Battle Armor, instead he wore a simple white tunic, with a loose fitting pair of black cloth pants, and a black cord around his waist acting as a belt. A clear plastic tube ran underneath his nose and above his upper lip, the sound of it feeding pure oxygen could be heard throughout the chambers. His scarred visage seemed void of emotion as he gazed down at her through the makeshift hallway the pillars formed and the chrome of his right cybernetic arm could be clearly seen from Sara’s vantage point. Audroti hid nothing about his physical state from the woman, nor would he hide the morbid presence of death and despair his presence in the Dark Side conjured from her either.

Audroti wanted the young Sara Rain to know exactly what he was, he wasn’t a mere General, he was a Sith, he was a Conqueror and the power he wielded was far beyond her understanding. He wanted her to understand that this was his domain, that by agreeing to this she would potentially become his property and in exchange he would foster the same power to bloom within her. When Sara finally entered into his chambers Audroti would once again slowly draw his fingers into a clenched fist and the door behind Sara Rain would shut on its own accord.

“You are early Ms. Rain…” The spartanly dressed Sith Master stated. “…this is good. Please, come and take a seat.” Audroti continued as he gestured to the chair on the other side of his desk.

 

[Sara Rain]

The door automatically opened in front of Sara, allowing her to enter her master's sinister lair. The room was dimly lit, though Sara could not tell where the light was coming from. She entered slowly, trying to give herself time to adjust to the darkness. The air felt thick and heavy. Every part of her screamed to turn around and flee, while another part of her wanted to draw her blaster and fight whatever demon awaited her here. It was painful to breathe, and Sara felt her chest tighten with fear and anticipation.

As reluctant as she was, Sara pressed on. She remembered the names of all her friends the Rebels had killed. She remembered the betrayal of her colleagues and superiors to the Imperium's enemy. Memories, anger, and determination pushed her forward.

As her eyes adjusted to the dark, Sara looked around the room. She almost expected piles of rotting corpses to be lined up against the wall, but there were none, instead there was a sparring pit to her right, and a bacta tank to the left. She noticed the strange, yet familiar, symbols carved into the pillars connecting the ceiling to the floor.

Then her eyes fell onto the being who was unquestionably her master. He was a Sith Pureblood with crimson skin and eyes that shone with an unnatural light. He was dressed more simply than Sara had expected, wearing only a white tunic and black pants. Sara noted the metallic gleam of his prosthetic arm.

Sara stepped further into the room, and the door closed again behind her. Watching her master's outstretched arm, she realized that the door was not automatic at all, but that her master was manipulating the door's movements through the Force.

"Yes my lord", she answered when he was done speaking. Following his order, she walked forward towards where he was sitting at his desk. As she drew closer, she realized that the ominous sound she was hearing was the sound of his breathing, and as she came even closer, she could tell why.

Sara's master was the embodiment of war and death. A single scar slashed straight down the left side of his face, so deep Sara wondered how his eye could have remained unscathed. The right side of his face was even worse. It appeared as though an entire war had been fought across the right side of his face, mutilating his flesh completely beyond repair. A wave of fear rushed through Sara. The Sith standing in front of her must have experienced more pain, sufferring, and trauma than she could ever hope to imagine, yet still he was easily the most powerful being she had ever come in contact with.

It only felt right to bow to him before taking a seat. Once she was seated, Sara searched for words to say, only to find that she had none. She nervously waited for her master to speak.

 

[Apollyon]

Audroti watched as the young Imperial slowly moused her way into his den. A familiar scent wafted through the air originating from the core of the young woman’s being, it was fear mixed with awe. The Sith Master wouldn’t speak again until the woman had finished her approach and took the seat he had offered to her. Audroti in the meantime simply watched as she drew closer, each step she took allowed her to grow ever slightly bolder and the courage born from agony driving her forward deeper into the jaws of mystery.

His twin golden eyes remained fixated on the young Acolyte as she took her seat in front of him and yet she didn’t speak. Audroti’s emotionless gaze took on an air of curiosity, almost as if he were puzzled for a moment before the emotion vanished from his visage as quickly as it had been born. The Sith Master realized what she was doing, she was awaiting his orders, she was awaiting him to relieve her and allow her to relax. A small half formed smirk appeared on Audroti’s lips before he spoke to the woman.

“Do you know what this is?” He asked, his hand moving towards the holographic map of the Galaxy and the lines of various colors he had drawn upon it.

Audroti had decided to forgo pleasantries, he was sure that Sara Rain knew that he had likely researched her intimately and even unsealed documents of her activities within the Imperium. Instead, Audroti had decided to test her military tact, to see if she remembered or even knew what a galactic scale campaign planning and simulation looked like. The Sith Master revealed to her a portion of his secret, his trackings of rebel attacks and the scraps of intelligence he had gathered from field operatives that were in his influence. All of this was to begin to roughly locate Rebel bases using rough estimate locations with the little Intel he had readily available at his fingertips and he wanted to see if his potential Apprentice was able to recognize this fact.

“Tell me what you see, Sara Rain.” Audroti demanded.

This test was imperative to determine whether or not the young Acolyte was worthy of his tutelage. Audroti would not train a blind fool nor an inobservant imbecile, he expected the best from his apprentices in order to forge them into something greater. In that sense, Sara Rain would be viewed no differently, she would prove to Audroti that she was worthy of him or she would die where she sat.

 

[Sara Rain]

Raw fear gnawed at Sara's gut as the Sith Lord regarded her with his cold, emotionless gaze. Despite her training, Sara realized that she had absolutely no idea of what she was expected to do, her indecision forcing her to wait patiently in her seat. The silence seemed to stretch on for eons until the Sith in front of her smirked and waved his hand towards the nearby holomap.

Sara nodded in response to the dark lord's question. She turned towards the map, her eyes widening as she noticed the depth and scope of the Sith general's markings.

The Rebel scum would sure love to get their hands on this.

To her master, Sara simply replied, "It's a map of the galaxy". Glancing back at him, she realized he probably wanted a little bit more information. "You're tracking troop movements", she added hastily, a random guess that a few more seconds of analysis proved to be true.

Throughout her career in the IAF and the Ubiqtorate, Sara had always been deployed as a field agent, and while she had received some instruction on the analysis and development of grand strategy, her training had always been more focused on skills and abilites more important to her specific line of work. Unfortunately for Sara, the map Audroti was showing her was much too complex in its depth and scale for her to understand properly.

Glancing at her master, Sara knew that an excuse was not the right answer, and she dreaded failing her first task as Sith apprentice. Almost glaring at the map, Sara forced herself to narrow her field of vision and focus on only small areas at a time. Hopefully she would be able to detect a pattern that would be her key to solving the puzzle.

Looking down at the individual planets, Sara recognized quite a few. "Manaan, Naboo, Coruscant, Fondor, Bestine...", she listed the names of several planets out loud, "Those are all places where the Rebellion has attacked us recently". Sara traced her finger along one of the markings, her mind beginning to see the connections. A flash of anger suddenly burned in her stomach. "All of these planets? They're hitting us in more places than the holonet cares to report".

While there were still several markings Sara could not understand, she was pretty sure she had the general idea figured out. She looked back at the Sith sitting across from her. "You're tracking the Rebel attacks, and combining what you know with sone additional intel in an attempt to..."

Her voice trailed off. Audroti was either trying to predict the next Rebel attack, or he was trying to locate the Rebels' secret base. Sara took a moment to deliberate her options, before the answer came to her. Looking at her master's wounds and scars, and feeling the crushing weight of his dark presence, Sara knew that a the Sith sitting across from her had not gotten to where he was by playing defense. "You are trying to trace the Rebels back to their base, to give us the opportunity to destroy them once and for all", she answered confidently.

 

[Apollyon]

Audroti watched as Sara analyzed the map and slowly came to the correct conclusion. Her analysis was a little slower than he had hoped but the end result was what he had hoped for; she would suit his purposes perfectly. Audroti smirked at this discovery, she had earned her first lesson in his eyes and it would be a lesson that would remain on topic of the test she had just undertaken.

Audroti extended a single finger and tapped Fondor, Maanan, Coruscant, Bestine, and Naboo. Each of the locations was highlighted by brilliant and flickering light as he tapped them on the hologram. After this was done, Audroti typed something in on a small keyboard in front of him and a second and third screen flickered to life.

The second screen detailed various vessels the Rebel forces had been cataloged using in battles, each model had been traced back to the original manufacturers. Audroti swiftly brought up a single model from the rest of the countless selections, the Heroic-class Star Destroyer. It was a vessel that the Galactic Alliance had used during their war; it was originally created and manufactured by Fondor shipyards but had been long since discontinued. However a note had been placed underneath the image that rotated before Sara, it notated modifications to the original design and the open sale of the model from a Sluis Van Shipyard.

The third screen detailed the species known as the Verpine and their close knit relationship with the now ruined Mandalorian people. Audroti then silently traced each of the planets he had highlighted along Perlemian Trade Route back to the Asteroid field known as Roche, the home territory of the Verpine. Audroti then returned his attention back to the third screen and circled a few words in the Verpine species profile, the weapons company ran by the race. After this was done, Audroti turned his attention back to Sara Rain who had undoubtedly been watching his every movement.

“Do you see how they are all connected Apprentice?” He asked her rhetorically. “All of these attacks were coordinated, they required not only stealth but a point that could contain, hide, or supply them with weapons, vessels, and munitions to carry out their vendetta.” He explained. “The Verpine’s home system of Roche is within our borders, allowing their forces to bypass most of our territorial defenses, they are within a handful of days travel to each of their targets, and the race has both the means and the motives to aid our enemies.” He continued, explaining his theory about the Verpine to the acolyte. “They are all connected to this singular point.” Audroti stated before he tapped the Roche system’s coordinates, highlighting it.

Once the Verpine’s involvement was explained he brought up the second screen once more, and expanded the Heroic-class Star Destroyer. He intended to explain this to her as well, she had to understand the importance of research before he could teach her anything else. He wanted her to understand the process of acquiring targets before assaulting them, it was the most important part of strategy.

“This is the Heroic-class Star Destroyer, it was commonly seen during the war against the Galactic Alliance. However, once the war was concluded and we acquired the shipyards located there, we cancelled its production and many of the active vessels of its model were destroyed. But we have begun seeing this model in attacks by these insurrectionists once again, at first I believed they were simply stragglers left over on and picked up off of the black market.” Audroti explained before pausing for a moment. “I was wrong, these ships are freshly manufactured, and on top of that they have been modified and updated to hold ground against the technology of this age. I almost missed the signature in these modifications but with a closer eye and a little footwork I believe I have found the ship yard responsible for supplying these to terrorists, Sluis Van.” He continued.

“See these modifications?” Audroti asked her as he expanded upon several points on the model’s updated form. “You can see similar details in other Sluis Van productions, including many of their star destroyers which we saw within Galactic Alliance lines over a decade ago.” He explained to her. “Everything here is connected; both of these planets and companies might be supplying and harboring terrorists.” He stated solemnly. “The only question I have for you is, what would you do with this information Acolyte?” He asked. “Would you plan out an immediate assault? Or would you attempt to investigate the possible findings first? And why would you choose that option?” He continued presenting his Apprentice with yet another test.

 

[Sara Rain]

Sara quietly watched her master work. The Sith Lord's systematic method of presenting the information, combined with his detailed explanation of the data he was showing her, allowed Sara to easily see the pattern behind the recent string of terrorist attacks, and understand her master's complex reasoning.

When her master began questioning her, Sara hesitated for a moment to think. While his question did not require one specific correct answer, like the previous question had, Sara still knew that answering foolishly could very well spell the end of her apprenticeship, if not her life. After a minute if deliberation, she voiced her thoughts out loud.

"My Lord, while I would begin drawing battle plans for a full scale assault on both Sluis Van and the Roche Asteroids, I do not believe that the Imperium should launch an immediate invasion". Sara took a quick breath before continuing. "We should discreetly prepare for a possible offensive on both targets, but our first priority should be the aquisition of more intelligence".

Sara then began explaining the motivation behind her reasoning, her voice shaking a little as she met her master's cold uncaring eyes. "The evidence involving the Verpine is circumstantial at best". Sara used her hand to draw attention to the species profile her master had brought up. "Just because they have the means to assist the terrorists, it does not mean they have. Ideally we could blockade the planet and send agents down into the dirt to confirm the terrorists' presence on the planet, though I do not know the resources we have available.

Drawing her attention back to the third screen, Sara considered the Sluis Van situation. "The information implicating the Sluis Van is much more concrete, though I wonder what their motivation is. Perhaps we can hire them to start prodicing warships for us. If not, then I would suggest taking the same approach as I described to take with the Verpine, though we can be more direct if needed".

As Sara faded once again into silence, another idea crossed her mind. Perhaps the Sith could trick the Rebels into guiding the Imperium right to the Rebels home base. Information could be leaked to the terrorists of a brand new battleship prototype currently in production between Sluis Van and Roche. Of course the terrorists would attempt to steal the ship, and the Imperium might even let the Rebels succeed. Of course the shup would be outfitted with several hidden transmitters that would broadcast the location of the Rebels' base once the Rebels successfully escaped with the ship. Maybe the ship could even contain explosives.

The idea raced through Sara's head, but she remained quiet. Surely her master already had a plan to deal with the terrorists, and he probably did not need her insight. This exercise was a test, nothing more, so Sara decided to wair patiently for her master to give her some feedback.