Ask Denon Denon' Think it Through

[Darth Tiamat]

Denon

She was almost feeling nostalgic being here.

The memories came back as soon as she stepped foot on the world that was still recovering from the devastation of war all those years ago. Things have changed for most people here; some permanently relocated to other worlds but the rest that remained were fueled by perhaps naive optimism and fear. It was not sunshine and flowers for the world that fought for the autonomy of its people, they were vulnerable here, the city was vast and easily could hide the horrors that arise from their occupation. The upper levels were clearly for show, giving first time visitors a taste of what the politicians wanted you to see, and covered up the despair that lied in the lower levels.

It was here that it was easy to cover up as it was to hide one's true intentions, just like her own and for other previous occupants who made their home down far beyond where natural light could reach them. There was a cruelty that would give any layman a poor vibe, deter them from approaching and warning their children not to visit these places. However, for those more attuned to the ebbs and flow of the Force, Tiamat could feel exactly what she was looking for, or at least she hoped. Cruelty was not strictly reserved for wizards in robes or gods and their creations; the average being is capable of committing cruel acts, earning a reputation that was suited for those more interested in the limitations of beings.

Tiamat was more curious on the how rather than the what. Through some of the galaxy's most unsavory sources, the dark woman had picked herself someone that would be of use, or at least their work. He was of neither jedi or sith, had some inkling to the Force, and had grown a deep curiosity to see just how far he could push the wills until they succumbed to an unnatural death. Finding his lab would be the trick, she was not interested in working with him, more so interested in having answers to the questions she held. She had spent the greater portion of her evening waiting to see if he showed, hair tucked into her hood to avoid a different kind of attention, the rest of her in garb to match the local styles present. This was a common bar where bounties were posted, and it was here she had learned he picked up a few lightsabers that were floating in the market.

 

[Karys]

Denon wasn’t a world Karys would typically find himself on. Since he’d made his decisions in Trokein and then Thule, Karys had found his connection to the Dark Side had deepened. Perhaps that is why lately his dreams had shifted back to his vision on Malachor. He saw lotuses of power on Hoth and Mustafar, he saw the planet with black obelisks and ruins, and he saw the still form of the Son take a single heaving breath. Something was calling to him, it was pushing against the veil, and he meant to uncover what it was.

It was that unnatural pulse, thar call from beyond the stars themselves that has brought Karys here. Normally, he would have worn flight clothes to blend in but today the Dark Side had pushed for something else. Not to hide what he was, but to embrace it. Karys wore dark tinted robes, not necessarily something uncommon on worlds with an underhive like this but something that could stand out to the discerning eye. Beneath the folds of these robes, securely fastened to his wrists were the beskar vambraces and an arsenal within it’s own right

Beneath his hooded cloak, on his back sat his Sith Warblade, Sadowbane. A relic created by Azar Kressh, and one that swirled with the power of the Dark Side to those attuned to it. On the rear of his belt, set horizontally sat the hilt of his lightsaber. And finally,Karys’ blaster pistol sat on his hip.

Karys wasn’t sure what had led him to this tiny bar. He wasn’t sure what had made him duck down to go inside. But once he had, his golden eyes surveyed the room. There were few people, mostly scum that sucked on likely toxic liquor to soothe their own aches and pains. Karys took a seat at the bar next to a diminutive woman, which didn’t mean much, nearly all things were small to him. He pulled his hood back, revealing his face, and his order rumbled from his chest.

“Whatever you have on the top shelf.” He’d place a credit chip on the counter before turning his gaze to the woman beside him. “What memories are you looking to drown out tonight?” He asked, evenly and calmly.

@GABA

 

[Darth Tiamat]

Like the others, Tiamat turned her attention to the door as a large figure entered, having to duck inside as he maneuvered an entry that the woman thought was purposely kept smaller to avoid unwanted excitement. It was not of course who she was looking for as she turned back to her half-empty glass; her eyes closed briefly as she listened to the shadows whisper beside her only to notice the newest bar guest had picked the seat next to her.

He ordered his drink before turning his attention to her; quickly her mind raced through the possibility her target was aware of her presence. However, Tiamat knew she was not sloppy and her curiosity piqued as to who this red-toned stranger was now trying to pick conversation. Her gaze didn't leave her glass, even as the bar tender set down his drink beside her own, she remained motionless.

"There are more efficient ways to rid one of memories." she spoke softly, "I have a tendency though to create new ones." she said, her head lifting and glancing to the tank of a stranger, feeling like it was suddenly too much work to tilt her head steeply to make brief eye contact. Someone else had entered through the door, finding a table to himself near the entry; the whispers returned and she could feel this being carried the bait for her target. She slowly turned back to the counter, finishing the last of her drink and ordered another.

"What about you? To be honest, you seem the type that could intimidate unwanted memories into non-existence."

@Apollyon

 

[Karys]

Karys eyes flickered down to the woman beside him. He nodded at her response. “Some memories are best left untouched.” His response was distant and pained. “And others haunt us.” He whispered before turning his attention back to his glass and taking a sip.

When the woman looked up at him, Karys glanced from the corner of his eye. She looked strangely familiar, like someone he’d seen at a distance or met without remembering. His gaze pulled away and back to the mirrored wall at behind the bar. He watched as a new patron entered the tavern.

Something tugged at him, a nagging reminder of why he had come. Then he felt the woman’s attention then back to him. He smiled with his lips still pressed to the rim of the glass when she spoke next. He finished his sip before speaking again.

“I have many things I wish I could forget.” Karys replied solemnly. “But I’ve learned that just isn’t the way of the Galaxy.” He stated as he placed the glass down on the countertop and nodded at her joke. “I could,” he confirmed with a smirk. If only that were true. “but today I can settle for making a new one.” His eyes flitted back down to the red head. “And something tells me there are memories to be made here.”

@GABA

 

[Darth Tiamat]

Tia took the glass before the bar tender set down her new drink, taking a quick sip as she listened to the large being describe wanting to forget many things. The corner of lip tugged subtly, eyebrow quirked as she glanced at Karys who spoke of making new memories.

"Do you use that line with every gal you meet?" she smirked, at least this guy was not as insufferable as others she had come across...at least for now, so she decided to entertain it. Tiamat took one more drink from her glass and then pulled out credits for her tab; they tapped quietly as she set down each one atop of the other, her thoughts turning methodically, her senses stretching outward. "I typically don't see your lot this far from home,"

Another being entered through the door and sat down predictably with who Tiamat suspected. The grey lighting illuminated just a sliver of his face, grotesque, scarred, it was hard to decipher if he were a mutt of a species or something else entirely. For Tia, she knew why he looked the way he did...

"Starting to get a bit crowded in here..." she whispered, reaching into the minds of several of the patrons.

"You know, sometimes I like to see what others hold in their memory, have you ever done anything like that?" she asked Karys as the bar begun to empty slowly, even the bar tender seemed to disappear, eventually leaving just herself, Karys, and the two at the table near the door.

@Apollyon

 

[Karys]

A quiet half chuckle rumbled in Karys’ throat, it died by the time it reached his lips. He took the final sip from his glass before he turned his head to regard his drinking partner for the evening.

“I’m not interested in making those kinds of memories tonight, unfortunately.” He responded with a smirk. It was when she mentioned his lot being so far from that his air of neutrality and pleasantry flickered. Few knew that he wasn’t Zeltron and fewer still knew what she seemed to insinuate. Karys’ jaw tensed as he watched another being entered the bar, their face was hideous.

Had he been set up?

Thar was when he felt someone close in proximity to him draw on the Dark Side. They influenced the minds of almost every other patron. Karys watched as they shuffled from the bar. This felt like the moments before blood shed. But he didn’t reach for his weapons, not yet.

<If you know my kind that makes you one of a few things.> Karys began, the steady neutral tone false now. <A Sith in hiding.> Unlikely. <A Jedi scholar.> Also unlikely. <A particularly ambitious Imperial Knight.> Possible but he doubted it. <Or something else entirely.> Highly probable.

However when the woman spoke of exploring memories, Karys tensed. She had influenced the whole bar to leave so easily, that meant she was powerful. He had to navigate this carefully.

<I have.> He replied calmly. <But few like sharing their secrets so freely.> He continued. <If you’re wanting to see something in my head. I propose a trade.> He offered with a smile. <Secret for secret. Memory for memory.> He continued, he knew few beings would accept such an offer. <Sound appealing?>

@GABA

 

[Darth Tiamat]

She could feel the unease, it teetered on a sense of anxiousness, caution that she could not be trusted. It was unnaturally quiet for the briefest moment but then the sith replied, trying to guess who she was... a sith in hiding... she couldn't help the scoff that escaped.

A Jedi scholar?

The woman quirked an eyebrow.

Imperial Knight?

She turned her body to him.

Something else...

A wider grin appeared, she felt that was entirely more fitting.

"It is not your secrets that I want...perhaps not yet."

The grotesque being who had entered only moments earlier was now standing up and Tiamat stood up. He seemed to have frozen mid-step, the other man at the table also stood up, scrambling for the door, but Tiamat let him leave, she had her prey. And as she approached him, she touched the minds of each remaining patron, blasters pulled from their own holsters as ozone burned with each shot they inflicted to their own heads. Tiamat stepped over a body that had slumped to the floor and pulled the frozen man to her.

"The mind is a precious thing, you would do well to protect it and not be so willing to forgo it." Her eyes burned with an amber fury as the man remained in a paralysis as Tiamat siphoned what she wanted, eventually leaving him as a mindless vegetable. "Those who wish to play with the dark are foolish not to take precaution." she said, staring at her victim as she pulled two bled kyber crystals from his pocket. "Tsk, he would have known he would dabble too far for a fate that would be worse than he could imagine..."

The woman stood up straight looking at Karys, "You want to go see what this guy was up to?" she asked him, almost excitedly.

@Apollyon

 

[Karys]

Something else entirely. Words that had been spoken in Ur-kittat, the language of his people. This woman knew them, she understood them, she grinned widely at them. Karys felt his blood freeze in his veins at that wicked grin, at the cruel fires alight behind amber eyes.

What had he been guided to? And for what purpose?

When she turned away from him to focus on the rest of the patrons, Karys felt a wash of relief. The predator’s gaze fell to the rest of the room. Those wise enough fled, those foolish were soon dead. Their passings punctuated by the flashes of blaster fire. Karys turned in his stool to watch as this woman approached the man at the table. He watched as she ripped his mind asunder and left him a drooling mess at the table.

For the first time since Zygerria, Karys felt like a novice in the Dark Side. An ant in comparison to whoever this woman was. When she turned to face him again, Karys’ golden gaze wouldn’t be filled with fear but awe. The display of power she has put on was the finest of wines to him. He felt every agonizing moment she had put the man through and it made his blood sing.

At her offer, a hungry smile etched itself across Karys face. He stood from his stool and made his way to this still unknown woman. <Yes, I would.> The words came out as a purr. <Where do we begin?>

Karys was right, this would be a night to remember.

@GABA

 

[Darth Tiamat]

If Karys chose to follow Tiamat, he would be pressured to remain quick as the woman moved effortlessly through the shadows across the slums of Denon. There was so much despair that resided in these parts, forgotten by the elite who took opportunity to bury any undesirables and give the false impression that Denon had rebounded quickly from the aftermath of war and death caused by herself, her master, and other servants of the dark.

Those down here were not above their own values to sacrifice what they could if they were able to get ahead just for the briefest moment. Many who were children at the time of Denon's invasion were now young adults, hardened by the crime and injustice that was gifted to them. It made a perfect breeding ground for opportunists like the one the dark woman had just brain-creamed moments earlier.

Karys would know they had arrived at the destination by just a mere feeling of something beyond unnatural. There seemed to lack any sort of life, and that remained, rodents and alike, were just as grotesque and unnatural as the being from earlier. She could feel the kyber crystals, their cries like pulling a nail across the durasteel ship, the small hairs on her neck rose and she proceeded inside.

For most, they would have turn around within meters of this building, if they had managed to enter, instinct told one to step no further as the dark tunnel of doors lead them both to an unmistakable lab. Cages were stack upon another, different sizes, the creatures inside mutated, others stiff from death, some seemed to be untouched by the darkside that blanketed this place. Tiamat headed for a table in the back, linked with open texts, holo-journals, and hopefully something of use for her to bring back for her own. If Karys decided to explore further, he would see many different kyper crystals placed in devices near some of the experiments that were taking place. Some of the creatures bound to the crystals woke and ferociously attack the cages trying to get at Karys.

"He wasn't force sensitive but had a curious fascination to the power of the force and the kyber crystal." Tiamat stated, downloading information onto her datapad.

@Apollyon

 

[Karys]

Karys followed the red headed woman as she dipped through the underbelly of Denon. Her lithe form clung to the shadows in ways he could barely perceive and understand. It was as if they embraced her into them, as if she was a specter given flesh.

The journey for Karys wasn’t so simple. He was both tall and massive. Both of those traits made him noticeable. He wrapped his cloak around him and slipped through alleys to follow this strange and powerful woman. When they crossed open streets or well lit areas, Karys would rely on the Force to rudimentarily conceal him.

The ship they arrived at was silent. There were no signs of life. Karys couldn’t help but wonder if this was the place Sith Scorpions, Tu’kata, and other dark side predators would have been drawn to. Karys flinched as the woman drug her nails across the durasteel, the screech echoed into the silence and was met with nothing in return.

From deeper within the vessel he could feel the tortured screams of Kyber. The crystal in his own lightsaber echoed in reply. His brow furrowed at that, was it sympathizing with them? Karys pushed that disturbing thought aside and followed this woman inside.

Within was a new horror show to assault the rest of his senses. Endless cages covered the interior, creatures hooked to strange devices, the scent of death and decay hung in the air. Occasionally, the silence would be broken by a caged monstrosity charging a cage front at him. The first time it happened, it startled Karys but he quickly grew more and more adjusted.

He was crouched and gazing into a crate that contained a mutated creature when the woman spoke again. He didn’t pull his gaze from the mutant, nor the device implanted into its back as he listened. This being held no connection to the Force and yet had fostered a mire of suffering and anguish so potent that it warded away everything? That was fascinating.

“He had a brilliant mind then.” Karys replied. “But what was he trying to do here?” Karys asked her, his eyes finally turning to regard her. “He twisted life itself, I’ve only heard of that in old legends and myths and…” Karys’ voice trailed off but the implication was clear.

Darth Raze.

The Sith had also twisted life into cruel mockeries of what it had been. A Sith Lord that brought the Galaxy to its knees. A Sith Lord that met his end under the blistering hail of turbo-laser fire. A being that within the Order was feared and respected.

Karys watched as the woman downloaded the man’s data. She was interested in this research as well. But why?

“What has you so interested in this man?” Karys asked at last. “You’re powerful enough to influence the tavern. To force armed men to blast themselves. And to rip knowledge from a man’s mind with no resistance.” He pointed out. “And you could have done the same to me. But you didn’t.” He continued, standing to his feet. “Why?”

@GABA

 

[Darth Tiamat]

The woman glanced up from the holoscreen briefly, seeing Karys now rose up fully, asking the question, why.

She could have gave him a long winded explanation, the ins and outs of her goals, desires and passions as she worked to create perfect specimens to add to his children for when he returned. She could have had enlightened him with some tale from the old power of sith lords past and their unyielding conquest to have the entire galaxy gravel at her feet. Or a story about his own vague shortcomings, a warning lesson even the most powerful sith have ignored and perished. However, any of those options possibly would have satisfied the curious sith pureblood, but it wasn't her obligation to gift him with anything more.

"I don't need the extra competition in my line of work." she stated, "Plus, if you're so curious to know why you're still alive, well, I enjoy your company." Tiamat grinned, seeing the information logged into her database. She slipped her holopad away and approached the cage of the creature he was looking at moments earlier. It seemed to quickly back away from her, the woman's fingers flickering subtly, the Force twisting in such a delicate fashion as though she were conducted a sensitive surgical procedure. What she could feel were all the intricacies of the chips within the creature, "We have done well to create such delicate chip systems, but there seems to be a barrier between the mechanical and the natural...when there isn't, only when we decide it should be."

"Do you respect droids?" Tiamat asked.

@Apollyon

 

[Karys]

She didn’t need more competition in her line of work. She was being purposefully vague, but there were a lot of key indicators of what she was. Karys was starting to see pieces of this puzzle click together. Powerful and trained in the Dark Side, an intelligent and crafty woman as well. She might not be Sith, but she was close.

Even her response as to why he was still alive was unnerving. Because she enjoyed his company? And her grin, if he had been anything else other than Sith it would have made him feel like a rodent before a feline. But Karys didn’t flinch, instead he grinned back at the woman.

“Well then, I’ll have to be sure to keep you intrigued and entertained.” He replied, watching as she left the data terminal and approach the cage he stood beside.

Karys felt her drawing on the Dark Side as she performed some intricate task. She talked about what he assumed was her craft as she plied her trade. Karys squatted down to watch her work, interested in what she did and how she did it. His golden eyes would flick from the creature in the cage and the device on its back to her.

“You’re no arcanist, you’re more a scientist.” Karys mused aloud. “The merging of flesh and metal, there was an old legend, my mother told me of when I was a boy, that spoke of it.” Karys replied. “It was powerful and potent magick, but it was just myth.” He continued. “No more real than some of our other legends.”

He was right, wasn’t he?

His hostess’s question caught him off guard. Did he respect droids? He thought of Vee and how useful the droid had been on Cotellier. Other instances of droids being far more helpful than some of his peers popped into his mind. Droids certainly weren’t equals but they held their own merits and value.

“They provide utility and reliability, sure.” Karys responded with an answer that was common in the Galaxy. “Why do you ask?” He asked as a rebuttal, glancing to look at her.

@GABA

 

[Darth Tiamat]

He had once considered her craft a myth and at some point in her early days as an acolyte, she would have thought so too. However, what she had discovered myth often took on some forms of truth, and she saw it as her duty to fill in what was missing. She didn't bother with trying to justify her works, since she always knew it would work- as once an acolyte she had a lot to prove of herself and failure was not written in, or else it would be met with unyielding consequence. And yet, she carried this mindset into her current years, even instilling such discipline on the child she had bore and raised until she had been swept up by the Jedi.

The creature seized and convulsed until it became still and Tiamat paused as the pureblood returned the question to her regarding the droids. She didn't answer immediately, instead, she focused on the animal who slowly showed some life, its limbs moved, but its face, there was nothing behind its dark round eyes. The dark woman grinned.

"Just curious..." she hummed, but didn't elaborate more as she stood up to look at other pieces of equipment in the lab.

"You can call me a scientist, but it still takes some level of alchemy and arcane practices to do what I do...so I don't think it describes it well." she lifted a microchip plate, "A fusion of bled kyber and tech..." the woman turned a knob on the maze of machine on an adjacent table, watching the currents and the data readings on a screen that gave its user a way to communicate with it.

"Do you play with the arcane arts?"

@Apollyon

 

[Karys]

Karys’ eyes returned to look down at the creature, it spasmed and convulsed before collapsing. It was dead. Karys moved to stand up and expected her to do the same but then something caught his eye.

The rat bastard started to move!

Karys blinked in surprise before he squatted back down to peer at the creature. Its eyes had milked over in death, yet the device or something else kept its body up and moving. Karys’ eyes narrowed slightly as he looked at the creature, his senses reached out to peer into it.

There was nothing there.
No fear.
No pain.
Nothing normally found in non-sentients.

Karys pulled himself away from the creature and turned his gaze back to the woman as she walked back to the data terminal. This time Karys followed, his natural curiosity pushed into overdrive. He listened to what she had to say, there was a purity of purpose found in her words. And conviction to whatever she was doing as well. Karys didn’t interject, there was no need to.

“My ancestors created the foundations of alchemy and sorcery.” Karys responded. “All my kind know of both…” He continued. “…but I dabble.”

Truth was his marriage and blood bond to Azar had given him powers he’d yet to truly test or develop. He could manipulate his own blood as a weapon and the blood of his kin as well. His understanding of Alchemy had deepened beyond the surface level he’d understood as well. But that wasn’t for this hybrid of sorceress and scientist to know.

He had to keep his secrets after all.

“The implantation of this kybertech could be extremely useful.” Karys mused aloud. “Soldiers that never truly die.” He continued. “Do they retain higher functions or are they little more than AMS victims?” He asked, his gaze pulling itself from the screen and back to her.

It would be quiet for only a moment before Karys spoke again.

“You never told me your name.” He stated. “Who are you?”

@GABA