Ask A New Chapter

[Darth Raze]

It had been a fair bit of time since he had last seen Aadya. A lot had happened since, including him briefly considering escaping from the known galaxy all over again. He battled against himself and finally arrived at the conclusion that he was done running. As a result, by the time she contacted him, he was where they had agreed to meet. Instead of the usual deserts, he had asked her to arrive near a very tall gorge. There was a harrowing path that led up alongside cliff faces and the mountain, leading up to a cave that was his destination.

Raze waited at the mouth of the gorge, standing as a silent sentry as he gazed ahead of himself. He wore familiar armor, but a new helmet. If Aadya arrived, she would see him uncomfortably flexing the digits of his right hand. He was still unaccustomed to the prosthetic and it would never feel like his real arm. He had all the patience in the world and had been here for over an hour already. It was because Korriban always pulsed with life of its own, a dark signature that always loomed in every corner.

He would sense her arrival like he had last time. He knew things were different, just as they were for him. Like before, he addressed her without looking at her.

“You had the children taken to the Cadre,” He said curtly, his voice modulated as before, “Why?”

@Logan

 

[Aadya Rasheer]

The tread of her 125-Z ripped at the Korribani soil as Aadya tore across the open deserts towards her destination. She could have taken a more practical ship to meet Darth Raze, but there was nothing quite like going a hundred and fifty miles an hour and being only a foot or so off the ground.

The sense of obvious danger made Aadya feel alive, even if she knew the feeling was fleeting at best. Something had happened, she had felt it, but Aadya had been too preoccupied to pinpoint exactly why. It was like a hole had formed in her guts and nothing she tried could shake the feeling. Maybe Raze would be able to help her, though that wasn't what this meeting was about.

She arrived at the mouth of the gorge and could see the imposing figure of Raze already waiting. Aadya couldn't help but wonder if the man gave her a specific time to meet knowing full well he would always be there much sooner, just so he could get the first word in. Like the last time they had met, he spoke to her without turning his head, something that Aadya didn't really appreciate. So pretentious.

I like your new face, She said in regard to Raze's mask, having caught a glimpse of it as she walked up next to him.

Aadya had noticed the terseness in his voice and wondered if there was something amiss, though she didn't dwell on it for long. If there was one thing she had learned about Sith Lords, it was that sometimes trying to dig too deep just got you buried.

Easier for them in the long run, She said, staring out into the gorge before them. One less potential weakness. Won't have to constantly struggle with who they are or were or what they're supposed to be - like I did. They will become Sith, Aadya paused for a moment, her mind trailing somewhere else before returning to the present. Or they won't.

She glanced towards Raze's metallic face, the only one she'd ever seen him have. Aadya was unsure how Darth Raze ever felt about anything, she hated not being able to see his face, to read his emotions, even if it would be just as stoic as the metallic barrier he placed between them.

Her eyes returned to the gorge, her thoughts to the hole in her gut.

@Sreeya

 

[Darth Raze]

Raze was caught slightly off guard by the compliment and Aadya would know it by the tilt of his head to regard her. He said nothing in response as usual, staying silent to await her answer. For a moment he said nothing after she explained herself. Raze slowly turned his whole body to face her, the Force coiling around Aadya. While it would make her nervous, it wasn’t anything that would cause her pain. She would be lifted off the ground, left with a gentle sensation of gliding through the air instead of a grip or choke. She would float till she arrived at his height, her face mere inches away from his at eye level. Anyone that ever got this close while he was helmeted usually died within moments. She knew that.

“And what do you know of the Cadre?” He asked quietly, his modulated baritone rumbling. Aadya would see her own face reflected across the metal of his helmet. The crimson gaze was as cold and unfeeling as always, “Were you born into it? Were you raised in it and forged by it? Do you understand how the Cadre works, or have you based your actions on hearsay and rumors?” That was when he released her, but one of her legs would be extended back slightly to force her into a kneeling crouch. It was positioned in a ceremonial way where Aadya would instantly recognize what was happening.

“Sending children that have had a taste of anything but Cadre to the Cadre only gets diminishing returns. You are Cadre from before you form memories or you are not Cadre,” He stated sternly, “You will oversee the training of those children and be responsible for their ascension to becoming acolytes. Because you will no longer be an ignorant girl making brash decisions,” He paused for a moment, “Now rise, Champion.”

@Logan

 

[Aadya Rasheer]

Ah, so there was indeed something amiss. Aadya felt the force wrap around her and she did not fight it. This wasn't the first time the Darth had taken it upon himself to force his will upon her and she knew goddamn well it wasn't going to be the last. There was more

As Raze gently floated Aadya up to his eye level and mere inches away from his face, the acolyte would return the eyeless gaze with a unflinching one of her own. If the Darth wanted to kill her that's what he would have done and there's little Aadya would be able to do to stop him. She knew that, she accepted it. Because of that, she did not fear the Darth in that way like most people did.

Aadya didn't bother answering Raze's rhetorical questions about what she knew of the Cadre. He knew the answer as well as she did, that Aadya didn't know fuck all about it save for rumor and small snippets she'd gotten from Ashla.

When Raze floated her back down towards the ground in a kneeling position, Aadya couldn't help but raise her gaze to him, a flash of confusion turning into understanding crossing her face. Of course, she hadn't really been expecting the part about being responsible for the children she had taken from Yavin. That.. that was unfortunate, but she wasn't going to argue.

She would acknowledge acceptance of his task with a simple: Yes, my Lord.

And then Aadya rose to her feet, now a Champion of the Sith Empire. A strange feeling, but one she did not mind. Turning back towards the gorge, Aadya said nothing for a few moments and just stared out at the landscape. Things in her life seemed to be moving at a very rapid pace since making the choice to follow Raze after Dantooine.

You had me meet you here for something else, She said without turning to look at him. Aadya wasn't stupid. Raze could have done his display literally anywhere, why pick some gorge in the middle of the desert?

What is it?

@Sreeya

 

[Darth Raze]

Raze eyed her for a moment, but he ultimately looked beyond her to catch sight of her choice of transportation. He hadn’t met many others that favored speeder bikes over regular speeders. It was one of this things that always tugged at Emryc, and in many ways, Raze as well. If Aadya looked, it would appear as if he didn’t hear her question, his gaze lingering on her speeder bike. A flood of memories rushed through his mind - racing through the streets on Cloud City, blasting through the stronghold on Keldooine, racing in the championships on Ryloth. A faint grin began to spread beneath the mask.

The Sith Lord walked towards the bike, circling around it as he surveyed the model, knowing the max speed already. He spoke as he walked, “There is a cave halfway up the side cliffs of the gorge,” He explained, “We will be corrupting your saber in there. It is a long hike to get there,” He paused for a moment, still gazing at the speeder bike. Raze then began to walk the opposite direction, back from where Aadya had arrived, “Follow,” He stated curtly.

They would keep walking till Raze took a side turn into another crevice within the gorge. Parked in that gap was a custom made racer bike, the very one he had used to arrive here. She would notice right away it had been modified for someone that was left handed and it was primarily manually controlled. It was built specially for racing. The Sith Lord walked over and swung a leg over the bike to take a seat, kickstarting the engine. There was a thunderous roar as the bike purred to life, the extra thrusters blasting. The visor of the cold helmet looked up towards Aadya.

“You can hike up there and build some character, break a few nails,” He jutted his chin towards behind him, “Or hop on for the scenic route.”

She had very little time to make up her mind because Raze was going to do what he did next regardless. If she chose to hop on behind him, he would glance over his shoulder, “Hold on tight or you will die,” He said quite casually through the modulated voice.

With that, he kicked off the bike, even the initial kickback enough to almost send Aadya flying if she didn’t hold on. Raze shot out of the crevice of the gorge, zooming around the path they had arrived on and going up along an incline with a drastic drop to the left of them. The bike moved up in speed, gradually passing 400 KPH then 500 and then it kept climbing, the powerful thrusters shifting and rapidly adjusting based on how Raze quickly changed them up manually. The speeder was simply a blur of red, cutting through the harrowing turns and curves. The speeder maneuvered beautifully and there was strict and measured control. There was no denying that it took a Force user to maneuver the racer to this degree.

Within seconds, the speeder was going at top speed. Raze shifted a few things, a massive drop coming ahead of them between their path and a path across that connected to the other side of the cliff, “Hold on,” Raze called out as a reminder as the speeder abruptly launched directly into the air. Without warning, the entire thing spun and flipped, allowing them to sail upside down as the bike sailed through the air. Raze rapidly shifted and adjusted the controls, entirely unfazed by the trick as the thrusters adjusted and adapted again until they were right side up once more. The bike careened down towards the ground and Raze quickly readjusted and the front thrusters adjusted to pad the landing. He lurched the controls in one direction, letting the back end of the bike jut out and cause a feeling of sudden loss of control. The entire bike drifted laterally, skidding with a sensation of coasting out of control. Raze resumed control at the last minute, shifting rapidly till the speeder slowed down and corrected into a park directly near their destination.

The the mouth of a cave visible at the top of some natural steps by where he parked. Raze switched off the engine. The Sith Lord looked over his shoulder, “If you need to vomit, ensure it does not land on me or the speeder,” The amusement in his tone was clear.

@Logan

 

[Aadya Rasheer]

At this point Aadya was fairly used to Sith Lords ignoring her questions and segueing into topics completely unrelated to whatever had prompted her asking something in the first place. It used to annoy the shit out of her but more and more it actually started to make sense--- Nah, that was a lie. It still annoyed the fucking shit out of her.

Watching as Raze inspected her bike, Aadya wondered what about it had suddenly caught the Darth's attention. Before she could think about it too much, Raze started talking about caves and hiking.. and corrupting her saber. Ah, so he finally did answer her question. Progress.

She followed him idly as they walked and her eyes widened when they arrived at Raze’s own bike. It was a marvelous looking thing and you could tell just by its vibe that it was faster than holy hell. It took Aadya all of a second to hop her ass on the back as Raze mentioned taking the scenic route. Although his next words made her wonder just slightly if she had made the wrong decision.

Hold on tight or you will die,

And so she did just that, gripping the Sith Lord tightly around his midsection. Hopefully Raze wouldn’t be taken aback by just how strong Firrerreo were as they zoomed off and Aadya’s grip tightened even further, but something in her told her he would likely be just fine.

Raze’s massive frame kept Aadya’s vision down to just what she could see on the sides as the bike screamed through the canyon like a banshee. She had no idea how fast they were going, Aadya only knew it was faster than she had ever gone on a bike. It was exhilarating and only a little terrifying, but everything about it was enjoyable to her.

A small part of her might have been starting to trust Darth Raze, which in and of itself was probably more terrifying than flying through a gorge at the speed of sound.

Of course, she didn't expect to literally fly through the gorge. When the thrusters shot them into the air, Aadya pulled Raze towards herself as her grip around his midsection tightened even further, her head buried in his back. She still made a point to keep her eyes open, though. If Aadya was going to die she at least wanted to see it coming.

And then the goddamned thing flipped upside down.

Aadya's stomach lurched into her throat as Raze turned them right side up again, maneuvering the bike into some kind of powerslide as the ass end - the part that had Aadya on it, for fucks sake - fishtailed out. Aadya could have sworn her life flashed before her eyes as Raze got control - Did he actually lose control or was he just showing off? - and skidded the bike into a park in front of the mouth of a cave.

Sliding off the bike, Aadya's legs felt like jello and it took her a moment to get her bearings. What she had just experienced might have been the scariest thing she'd ever gone through in her entire life.. but it was also the most fun she'd had in years.

Vomit? No, I think I'll be alright. Aadya said with a chuckle as she shook her head. The next time you're gonna flip us upside down, a little bit of warning might be good. I almost peed my damn pants, Raze. And I didn't bring any other clothes. She returned his amused tone with one of her own. It was nice to see other aspects of the Lord than the stoic, all business is serious business side she'd only seen until now.

Looking at the mouth of the cave, Aadya found herself uncertain of what was coming next.

I have never bled a kyber crystal before, what should I expect? She was sure Raze wouldn't answer her question, at least not directly. Wasn't going to stop her from asking.

@Sreeya

 

[Darth Raze]

Raze’s helmet turned to regard her for a moment when he heard her laugh. It certainly caught him off guard, and it reminded him that everyone had facets to them. Was Raze teaching her closing doors for her that she otherwise shouldn’t? That was Emryc talking, and he knew it. It was impossible to shut Emryc away entirely, and the Emryc side of him certainly wanted to actually understand the Champion. Tiamat had found success not from a robotic repetition of events, but because Emryc took the time to understand her over time and find out where she could excel. In the end, however, she chose not to listen. Would Aadya be the same?

“You would not be laughing now if I warned you,” He said quietly after a long moment. Perhaps it was a bit uncharacteristic for Raze to say, but he stood by it. He followed her gaze to the mouth of the cave, surveying it. Even from here, they would be able to feel the subtle pulses of the Force. While Korriban had a Force energy throughout the planet, there were pockets that were highly active with ancient energies. This cave had seen many past Sith Lords come and go through it, most for meditation and their personal trials.

“It is different for everyone,” Raze explained as he looked back towards Aadya, “For some they see their worst fears and nightmares that they have to overcome. Others…they feel emotions they have denied themselves to their best ability. Wounds thought to be long healed open up again,” He reflected internally for a moment, “The saber in your hand once belonged to a Sith Councilor named Sol Puara. He was known to be among the most brutal and ruthless of the Sith under the false Eternal. Hannibal Grayza defeated him with the help of former Sith Talak Rand,” She would know Raze had killed both men in the end, “Jedi Councilor Grayza purified the saber and went through his own trials to do so. This saber therefore has many layers to it and many trials to combat to bleed it once more. Perhaps you will fail in the attempt as a Champion and try again as a Sith Lord, it is impossible to tell as of yet,” He looked back at the cave, “There is also a chance that the saber outright rejects you.”

When a saber had belonged to powerful Force wielders, bleeding and reclaiming it often imbued a bit of themselves in the saber. Anyone attempting psychometry on that particular saber now would collapse from the sheer flood of sensations from it. It had slain as many lives as it had saved. And now Aadya had to test her will against it.

“Before we go in,” Raze said quietly, pausing for a long moment, “I must inform you that your Master Darth Stolas is deceased,” He turned to fully face her, “I was responsible for his death.”

He stared at her calmly, “If you wish to turn from me because of this, I will not hold it against you. You know where this cave is and can find another to guide you through it."

@Logan

 

[Aadya Rasheer]

Aady had been listening intently to Raze as she always did as he talked about what it meant to bleed a lightsaber with as much history as the one she had clipped to her waist. It was a lot to take in but it was important, that much she could tell.

And then, at the very end, Darth Raze dropped a live grenade into her lap and all his previous words seem to evaporate from her memory. Only seven remained, echoing inside her mind over and over and over again. Raze's modulated voice, so fake and so hollow, grinding like rusty gears.

Darth Stolas is deceased. I was responsible.

A maelstrom of emotions roiled inside of Aadya as she stood there, her eyes never leaving Raze. Her jaw tightened, her back teeth grinding against each other so hard the muscles began to ache. Her hands coiled into fists and for a fleeting moment Aadya considered drawing her weapon, willing to die here, alone and unremembered. As just another tally mark for Darth Raze.

But the moment passed, though Aadya's fists remained closed tightly, her knuckles nearly turning white. There was a time when such news would have simply broken her, shattered her entire world into a million pieces that would never have been able to be put back together. Her very soul rended from her body and scattered to the wind.

And standing here in the heat of the Korribanni sun, it very nearly did. But instead of snapping in the wind like a frail little sapling, Aadya bent, weathering the onslaught. Bent but did not break. Proof that what she had been telling herself since meeting Darth Raze was true. That she had changed, evolved. Grown into something more than the lonely girl afraid to lose something that she never actually had in the first place.

Aadya would mourn Darth Stolas on her own time and in her own company. Darth Raze would be no part of that.

The force swirled around Aadya and this time, she rose herself up to Raze's level, to stare him directly in the eye even if he wasn't returning the gaze from behind the helmet. In the helmet's shiny surface Aadya could see her reflection, not noticing until now that she had shed a few tears that had rolled down her cheek.

No. You will be my guide. She said, her voice gravely, low and ominous like far-away thunder. And I want you to tell me why you killed him.

It was a demand as much as someone like Aadya could demand anything from someone like Raze. The Lord would feel anger in Aadya, sadness in losing her only actual friend. But he would not feel hatred inside of her because, well, it simply wasn't there.

Aadya would return herself back to the ground, letting her gaze linger on Raze for just a few moments longer before tearing it away. Looking back to the cave, Aadya shed any concerns she had about cleansing her lightsaber. She was ready to face whatever may come, however it happened.

Without another word, Aadya headed for the cave.

@Sreeya

 

[Darth Raze]

The wave of emotions coming over like a tidal wave was entirely unsurprising to the Dark Lord. He let it wash over him, his gaze and stance unchanged. He half expected her to physically lash out. He knew what it felt like to lose a Master. He had been responsible for the death of his own, and even he felt a powerful pang. Aadya had actually cared for hers, so he expected this reaction. What he didn’t expect was her insistence on him accompanying her into the cave. It reminded him that this was a very different girl from the one that tagged along during the Denon assault.

“He took his seat as Councilor and effectively did nothing with it,” Raze explained as they began to walk into the cave, “He did not uphold any of his duties for a prolonged period of time. He did not expand the Empire or execute the will of the Empress as is expected of a Councilor,” He paused briefly before continuing, “He also failed to complete your training,” He said, “You may be a Champion, but your formal training remains incomplete.”

The cave hummed with a life of its own, the Force pulsing all around them. Right away Aadya would feel an almost oppressive force of an unseen nature all around her. She would hear ancient whispers echoing deep within the confines of her mind. It was difficult to decipher what the whispers said, but a chill would run down her spine simply being in here. Slowly the whispers began to form into coherent words.

“Self doubt…..guilt….failure…..show mercy…”

The words would echo over and over within Aadya’s mind from a disembodied voice. It was a voice she wouldn’t recognize. Raze seemed largely unaffected as he kept walking, ducking to make his way through a tunnel that led deeper into the cave.

“This place will test you,” He said quietly, “It will question you. The only way to overcome this is to commit to yourself in whatever action you take.”

“He rots…he rots….and you did not go to him…he gasped for breath…and you were not there…”

Raze heard none of this, the voices targeting only Aadya. He gave her a side glance to see how she was faring.

@Logan

 

[Aadya Rasheer]

Aadya listened to Raze as he explained why he had to kill Stolas. His tone was the same cold and brief one he always used, though she wasn't surprised. Truth be told, Aadya was surprised at the reasoning, and even more surprised that.. she didn't entirely disagree with it. Where she had lost a mentor, a confidant and a friend, the Sith had lost nothing but extraneous tissue.. dead weight.

Raze had carved out a rot from the Empire. Part of Aadya was upset at herself that she could even rationalize it like that, but she didn't linger on it long. In the end, it was a lesson given to her that she didn't need to learn with her own life, and in that way it was the greatest gift Darth Stolas had ever given to her.

Before she could say much more, Aadya felt the weight of something unseen pressing down on her like a weighted blanket. The presence, whatever it was, seemed to surround her entirely, like it wanted to drag her down into the darkest depths of the void and never let her back out.

Aadya's gaze flicked to Raze for a moment, though she didn't stop walking. If the Lord felt the presence, he surely did not show it. It made her think that perhaps the uncomfortable heaviness was hers alone to bare. Then the whispering started.

It started off subtly, on the edge of her perception but it didn't take long for it to burrow into her brain stem so that it was the only thing she could hear. So much so that Raze's warning about this place testing her was barely audible to Aadya.

She wasn't going to let whatever this was conquer her. Not here, her journey barely even started. Not in front of Darth Raze who, apparently, was the only person in her life now. The only person who would even know if she died here in this fucking cave. Aadya stopped walking, turning her focus inward.

Walls rose inside of her mind, an attempt to push the whispers back into the nether that they had come from. Some came up and stayed up, some came up and cracked like poorly laid duracrete, the whispers still slithering in and caressing her, long, sharp fingers made of smoke.

Even if I was, I couldn't have saved him. She said, responding to the whispers. It didn't matter if they could hear her, it gave the walls more strength. His death has nothing to do with me. Only his own failures.

Aadya's lips curled into snarl, the walls in her mind no longer cracked, but solid. At least for now. The whispering faded to something inaudible and at least for now, her mind was silent.

Unsure if Raze had any idea of what was happened to her, Aadya sighed deeply and continued pressing on into the cave. As they went deeper, the light around them began to dim to near darkness. Turning to Raze, Aadya couldn't help but ask a question.

Where are we going, exactly?

@Sreeya

 

[Darth Raze]

Though he couldn’t hear the voices, he could sense the ripples and waves that went through Aadya next to him. As someone well versed in the more psychological elements of the Force, he was especially sensitive to shifts there. He looked at Aadya and he could tell there was a battle waging, but she didn’t break from it. He knew the corruption of the blade would test her and claw at her psyche in ways she hadn’t been tested before. As a new Champion, it was up in the air whether or not she would survive the ordeal.

“We are here,” He stated quietly in response to her question. They had arrived at a wide open chamber within the cave. The voices echoed here from all around and it was teeming with ancient life and presence. Aadya would be able to make out ancient Sith markings on the walls, some of which had been carved by Sith Lords from the history books. Andraste herself had been in here before and Siris had moments of weakness with the Eternal mask here.

“Draw out the blade and sit here to meditate. You will let every wall down,” Raze explained as he waited for her to do so, “Open your mind and begin by willing the saber to be yours.”

It was all that was needed to start the process. She would see soon enough what that simple command would do and the explosive nature of what would follow.

@Logan @Mr. Teatime