The huntsman.

[Will]

The ship barrelled out of hyperspace, dropping towards it target. It decelerated only as necessary. When it landed.

The Jedi symbol had been removed. It was a unique vessel, far too fine for the area. With a hiss, an access hatch opened, and a gangplank descended.

The lone occupant of the vessel strode out into the sunlight. He squinted slightly, used to the light outside polarised through the viewing bubble.

Beric Kanasur set foot on Terra Firma. The ship closed itself up, squatting like a gargantuan insect.

He had followed his old friend here. Ever since they had parted ways after their exile, Beric had been hunting him. Together, they could push away the darkness. They could work for the light. On their own terms.

The goal had been fading in his mind, recently. He had become consumed in studying the artefacts. They had yielded many answers to his problems. They had helped him realise the rigidity of the Jedi way. It could never achieve it's goal, sticking to the absolutes.

His hand went to a pendant around his neck. It was ancient looking, a dark amber set in black metal, runes running through the metal and stone. Touching it made him feel at ease. It reassured him of his path.

He hoped to find Augustus, and illuminate him.

 

[Sreeya]

Thaed felt the pulsating power resonating from the pendant. It was darkness in its most untouched form, paradoxically existing as a purity. It was like a delicious scent, guiding the Sith Lord towards it. He had been tipped off to the arrival of such an artifact, and the man that would accompany it. Thaed knew this was dangerous territory, but he also knew the gains were too much to pass up.

The Zabrak's quick steps took him in the direction where the ship had landed and compressed itself. Thaed sported a few lightsabers on his hips, though he hoped he wouldn't need them. The Sith Lord walked like a cat, his footsteps making no sound and he was cast in shadow even during the day. His journey came to an end as soon as he saw his target.

Thaed had to grin. The darkness encompassing the man was almost visible, and Thaed doubted that even the man himself was aware of it. He took a few more steps, highly alert in case this former Jedi was more trigger happy. Thaed came into view, a grin on his face.

"Well, well, I see you're arriving late to the party."

 

[Will]

Beric had barely left the Star port before he was set upon.

Beric's view was marred by a dark individual. He stood there, nonchalant, as if his presence didn't poison the very air around him.

''Sith.'' He spat. He reached for Lightbringer. This creature was his anathema. A being that should not be suffered to live, a corrupter of souls. It would try to take his life at any cost. It needed to be destroyed before it could poison others.

But...

No. If the Sith was fully hostile, he would have attacked. This Sith simply stood, smirking. The force was inert around him. He was not twisting it to his will. He touched the pendant again, resolve building. This Sith would not attack him. He no longer needed to adhere to his old code. The code that had gotten him kicked out of the Order by usurpers.

''What do you want?'' His words held no kindness. Beric's teeth were gritted, his eyes narrowed.

 

[Kit]

Beric had arrived on the planet with a singular purpose; to search, to hunt. The man he had come looking for doubted the the former Jedi even knew what it was he was truly seeking, when he had come looking for his longtime friend.

It was that friend that stepped from the darkness, his presence revealed, even as the former Grandmaster challenged the Sith that had presented himself.

Augustus stepped out of the shadow, and into the light. A movement that was a mockery of the path he had taken in recent days. His aura was suppressed, not fully concealed, but certainly not easily perused.

"I imagine he wants to speak to you, Beric."

The former Battlemaster of the Jedi had always had something of a flair for the dramatic. He had been indulging it more over the past few days, taking great pleasure in the shock, the awe and more than anything else, the fear that he could cause.

His robes were the same he had always worn, resplendent scarlet and grey, though now bearing more than their fair share of blaster burns, he seemed to cut a more imposing figure than he had before. As ever, Mountain hung at his waist, as well as the pair of blade he carried on his thighs. He was very much, as he had always been, a man with whom only the foolish would dare interfere.

"As do I, old friend."

 

[Will]

Beric was primarily elated by the view of his old friend. It had been months since he had seen him. To have his hunt finally ended, to be reunited with his one ally in the galaxy...

Who was standing with the Sith. No! It could not be! Had his oldest friend fallen to the darkness?

He has been truly liberated.

Beric growled. The artefacts were acting up around the Sith Lord. They would not shut up, a cacophony of voices in his head, all trying to be heard. He gripped the pendant, knuckles white. The voices stopped.

''It seems we have much to discuss, Augustus.''

If his friend had fallen, was there hope for him? Augustus had always been more driven in his mission against darkness. And he could already see the changes in him. Tiny, unnoticeable to the normal eye. His posture, slightly changed, his eyes had a different intensity in their stare. The inflections in speech also changed, though slightly, probably not even to Augustus' knowing. To Beric, his friend seemed almost a different person with a simple glance.

''Perhaps somewhere less open.''

 

[Sreeya]

Thaed watched the interactions with great amusement. He felt the pendant around the former Grandmaster's neck throb with anticipation, reaching out towards Thaed with threads of dark energy. It was as if the Sith Lord were its true master. Thaed said nothing, waiting till they finished speaking.

"Right this way then, gentlemen."

With that, he turned away, leading them through the streets of Nar Shaddaa. Regular civilians replaced the drunks and prostitutes, but even they looked grimy and diseased. Thaed skirted around most of them, turning a corner till he found an abandoned warehouse. With the Force he scanned for any lifeforms. Detecting none, he turned around to face Beric.

"You must understand, former Grandmaster, that this step is permanent. You hear about dark siders finding the light again, but there is a permanent taint of darkness left behind. A brand of the power they once wielded. With someone as powerful as yourself, you would have to fully delve into the Dark Side of the Force. That artifact you're wearing has already begun the process. I simply hope you understand exactly what you're getting into.."

He glanced at Augustus as he spoke. The transformation the man had gone through already was impressive. Already he could feel the raw energy and power emanating from him. It was potential always there, but chained. He could only guess at how powerful the Grandmaster would be.

 

[Will]

((Sorry, I've been finishing up a project. Back to it!))

''You speak as If I have already accepted my so called 'fate' and fallen, Sith.'' Beric spat.

''It is the arrogance of the Sith that is your greatest flaw. You presume to know all, when you are masters of nought. Indulgent, selfish, sadistic.''

She mentioned the amulet. No. It wasn't dark. It was his. It kept him on his course. It could not be tainted. He needed it too much for it to be tainted with darkness. Beric would never require something if it was steeped in the dark side. But the presence of his oldest friend, comfortably associating with the Sith made him waver.

''What caused this, Augustus? I understand becoming less rigid in our belief, but freely associating with the Sith? It is a delicate precipice to walk, my friend.''

He was loath to admit it, but his inner turmoil was far greater than he was willing to show. It was only exacerbated by the fact that Augustus would know. They had been friends too long to be able to hide anything from each other.

 

[Kit]

Beric was, Augustus couldn't help but think, completely right... Indulgent, selfish and sadistic. For him, the freedom that he had embraced was just that; indulgent and selfish.

He was calm, for the first time in a long time. His thoughts were finally his own, and he had happily reconciled what he must do with what he wished to; no longer was he torn between duty and happiness.

And then Beric asked the question that he had been asking himself the entire time. Why was he here? What was he doing with the Sith? Even if he was not prepared to call himself that, not yet, he was still associated with one.

"Because of you. Because of what they did to you, Beric."

He paused, his words had been barely more than a whisper.

"Because of what they demanded of us. Because of the way we were treated."

Louder now, his normally calm voice taking on a little passion, something it rarely did outside of battle.

"Because we were little more than tools for them, used and thrown away."

He shook his head.

"They cast you out, Beric! They betrayed you! I was supposed to stay and be the loyal attack dog of an Order full of backstabbing cowards?"

He paused.

"No, never. If they do not want to count you amongst them, then I will not allow them to count me. My loyalty transcends Order. Light or Dark."

 

[Sreeya]

Thaed was amused at the inner turmoil taking place within both men. He remained silent, feeling the animosity directed towards him. However, he was calm, addressing Beric.

"Apologies, former Grandmaster, I'm speaking based on what is clearly displayed in front of me."

The man was a complete contradiction, speaking words that went against what his feelings betrayed.

"It's a shame, however, that you do not wish to harness all of that power and finally use it for your own means. You can finally choose, finally embrace what you were born to do, but do it for yourself and no others. Loyalty to Sith ultimately means loyalty to yourself."

Thaed's yellow eyes glinted in the darkness, his passion pouring into his words. Sith's philosophies could be romanticized, yet they were perfectly ideal considering the emphasis on passion and emotions.

"Do you want to disappear into the shadows, become a nobody and let the Jedi go unpunished? Or do you wish to stand with those that will follow you into battle and truly rid the galaxy of the self righteous, hypocritical fools that instill lies into you and then take out the support from underneath you?"

 

[Will]

The words of the Sith Lord held a perverse appeal. Augustus only pushed him further along the path.

He had given his life to the Jedi. For what? All he had to show for it was...

...Nothing. He had given freely, and they had taken his whole life. They were a poison. A pack of hypocrites, parasitic. When they were done with him, they spat him out, drained.

''You should be thanking them, my friend. In betraying us, they have lifted the veil from our eyes.''

Beric grinned. Yes. He held power within him. A power that should be harnessed, and used, fully and truly. Not treated with from arms length. A power he could use for himself. For once, in his life, he would be able to do things for himself. He would show the Jedi the folly of their coup d'état. He was not their plaything.

He would not fade from the galactic consciousness like the Jedi wanted. No, his name would be engraved within the annals of history. The amulet seemed to pulse against his chest, a second, twisted heartbeat.

''The Jedi are a force of stagnation in this galaxy. They are high-minded parasites, who do nothing but deliberate. That has never been my way, and will never be my way, no matter how they try to influence me. They will learn the error of their betrayal.''

He gripped the amulet tightly, warmth flooding his body as he made contact.

''I will show them first hand.''

 

[Kit]

"I will never thank a traitor."

Augustus was quick to respond to his friend. He was aware that he would be labelled a traitor by the Order for what he was doing and what would be done, but to him, the betrayal had already occurred. The sin was the Jedi's, not his own.

"A worthwhile outcome does not beget thanks for malicious actions. The only thanks the Jedi will ever receive from me is a quick death."

His hands curled into fists by his sides. He was allowing his anger free reign, and enjoying it. The savage thrill, the sweet fire in his chest at the idea of their vengeance... It was something he had fought desperately for decades, giving into it being a large step down a dark path.

Yet here he was, had it always been inevitable? Was his life of personal sacrifice and hardship all for nothing? Was it all a waste? Whatever the purpose, he was now here. He would not look back.