The Other Side

[Sreeya]

It wasn’t often that Andraste had been allowed to wander away from the Sith temples without going in for a particular mission. Ever since she had been given the rank of Marauder, rules had become more relaxed. She was allowed to go wherever she pleased. She knew the difference between this and a Jedi knight was that if something happened to her, no one would come after her. She grinned at the thought, letting it leave her mind immediately. Ever since Exodeus’s ascent to the position of Dark Lord, she had been uneasy around the temples. She hated him, and now he had control of the empire. She felt his eyes on her, felt his presence like a shadow, and he haunted her thoughts almost constantly. She knew it was overwhelming her, and that she needed to escape it.

Theed hadn’t been on the agenda right off the bat, as she had no real business there. However, she had been going from planet to planet, taking bits and pieces of knowledge from wherever she travelled. The more time she spent away from Exodeus, the more at peace she felt. Her mind remained a complete mess of thoughts, always leaving her lost and detached from her immediate surroundings. Her sole anchor to reality was a thread of the Force, which sometimes blurred on its own and threw her into a plane of thoughts and illusions. Sometimes it became difficult to discern reality from dreams and nightmares.

She was on the outskirts of Naboo, dressed as a civilian. Her curled dark hair was tied back in a lazy ponytail, a few strands framing her pallid visage. She had a lightsaber hilt within the confines of her clothing, and she purposely suppressed her Force presence. Though completely immersed within the Dark Side of the Force, her signature retained a more neutral aura, making it difficult to pinpoint exactly what type of Force sensitive she was. Outwardly, she displayed no signs of being a Sith.

Andraste could see the city in the distance up above a cliff. Countless waterfalls erupted from the creases within the elevated land. She felt like a small ant, walking past trees towering over her. She walked towards one of the waterfalls till she could feel the misty spray on her face. She chose the moment to close her eyes and breathe in deeply, letting the fresh air fill her lungs. As usual, she was barefoot, her toes curling into the grass that was still wet from the mist. For a moment, she began to forget there was a city nearby at all.

 

[Demiurge]

It was a pretty common fact that the average sentient didn't truly understand the Jedi. The way they lived, their viewpoints, or in some cases, even their beliefs. But there was one thing everyone knew; being a Jedi was hard, really hard. It was life of self sacrifice, of duty and servitude. But to Äeslan, it was the path of an outcast. After all, Äeslan wasn't a normal Jedi, if there even was such a thing. He was an Altèya, one of the last descendants of the artificial Dark Jedi warriors that waged two seperate wars against the early New Jedi Order.

It wasn't a history to be proud of, but after even a millennium of isolation and division, Äeslan found himself an unofficial exile of sorts. Many distrusted him due to his lineage, and even the vast majority of Jedi who were ignorant of his origins tended to shun him for his unnatural and abnormal connection to the Force; to the natural Force sensitive, he was a warped, distorted presence in the Force, uncomfortable by most to be around. And he knew it.

Even after his recent ascension to Knighthood, that division was still felt, was still there. And sometimes, he just had to get away from it all. Away from the Jedi, away from the cities, away from others. He fitted his robes in the Endelaan fashion, donned his hood and placed his lightsaber behind his wraps. He wasn't a Jedi Knight this day. This day, he was an Altèya. And since he didn't know where his homeworld, Endelaan, was location, and Avalon III was still considered a restricted world in the Jedi Archives. But there was one world Äeslan's never been to that met his criteria. Just one; Naboo.

The fields outside Naboo were tranquil, like a rare haven of solace in a restless galaxy - one of the few. Outside the capitol of Theed, Äeslan walked in silence through the grassy fields, coming to the large cliffside with a long, graceful waterfall. Around the vicinity, a hazy mist of water sprayed about, like an aura. As the waters glowed, Äeslan felt a disturbance in the Force, the same that occurred whenever he was near a natural Force sensitive. At that, he happened to look over, noticing a young girl dressed in Nabooian attire. By all apparent accounts, a native and latent Force sensitive.

"It's hypnotic, isn't it?", he began, as he walked up beside her, "The falls, I mean. When you stare at it, it's like... you just forget the galaxy around you."

 

[Sreeya]

She did not answer him immediately, making no gesture to tell him that she had even heard him. Andraste took a step forward and reached her hand out, feeling the mist immediately coat the tips of her fingers. Another step and she felt the mist begin to wash over her torso, and still it was an exhilarating feeling. The rest of his words were drowned out by the waterfall. She was taken into its embrace, drawn into the chill, letting the unnatural tug of the energy- wait, something was off. It wasn't the waterfall.

He had caught her attention then. She had seen and felt it before ever laying eyes on him. It was not a taint to the Force, but it wasn't a familiar presence in it either. She couldn't explain it. It was its own entity, almost existing independent of the Force. She had never felt anything like this before. Andraste pulled back from the waterfall and finally looked at him. She could only make out the bottom hemisphere of his face, the hood over his head shadowing the rest of it. She said nothing for a moment, curiously regarding him.

"You forget only if you want to forget."

She looked back at the waterfall, for a moment visualizing the water to be a rich, crimson red. The color of blood. The image was beautiful and so perfect. She wanted to forget the galaxy, but only to twist it and warp it to her own vision.

"..And only if you want to escape it."

She did not mention the strange presence he gave off. She knew he understood that she was a Force sensitive. She found it odd to find another Force sensitive simply wandering around Theed. They were hidden from the city, down in an area where no one would go. Had he felt her presence though she had attempted to mask it? Had he purposely followed her? She spoke the words aloud, though they were to herself.

"..Can't be a coincidence.."

 

[Demiurge]

"I guess you're right about that," he began, assuming the 'coincidence' being the matter of losing one's self, "Maybe that's what I've been looking for all along, getting lost. Forgetting everything and just escaping to piece of paradise."

He then looked back at the girl, wondering if she felt the same thing. He smiled to himself, making a quiet chuckle. Why in the galaxy would anyone on Naboo need to get lost? They were a world of peace and pacifism, constantly shielded from the darker side of galactic affairs. Or at least, they projected that image. Taking things at face value was never a good thing. So perhaps, just maybe, she was escaping something of her own after all.

"Hey, so tell me, if I can ask," he continued, as he glance back at her, "Are you looking to escape something too?"

Äeslan could feel something about the girl that was... unsettled. Something deeper. But he assumed she was simply distraught or distracted by whatever was on her mind, and he was sensing the emissions. He possessed a natural affinity with Empathy, so it wouldn't have been the first time it'd happened.

 

[Sreeya]

"Well aren't you nosey.."

She grinned as she spoke. He seemed lost, or innocent.. there was something about him that told her he was knowledgeable and naive at the same time. Or perhaps she was the naive one to make assumptions. She took a step closer to him and lowered herself, glancing up at his face.

"No disfigurements. You shouldn't hide your face, you know. You have a nice one."

Her expression betrayed nothing and she spoke the words very matter of factly, drawing back to her full height. Andraste stepped back from him, completely disregarding the fact that she had closed the distance between them and violated his personal space. She casually wandered over to the edge of the pool of water gathered at the base of the waterfall. From there, she collected a flower, bringing it up to her nose to smell the sweet scent.

"Escape lies within your mind. You can physically run to the other ends of the galaxies and what you wish to escape could still haunt you and cling to you. The mind is where you can truly run away and turn away from the world around you."

She turned to him. The words flowed out of her monotonously, her face a blank slate.

"You are a perversion of the Force. Why?"

 

[Demiurge]

Äeslan didn't move his head at all. While his eyes narrowed in irritation, he never looked away at her, and continued staring forward. Even through the serene environment all round about him, he felt a heat building up from within his abdomen. And he knew, that was anger.

A perversion. It wasn't a word he'd heard anyone say to him, not aloud at least. In their eyes, he could see it; twisted, distorted, warped, but the words never came to their lips. Until now. And while the words were like knives in his ears, it was almost something of a relief, to finally hear someone say it.

Whatever contradictory feelings were seething inside him quickly vanished when the full realization of the girl's statement came to him.

"You," he said, turning his head toward her sharply, "You know of the Force?"

 

[Sreeya]

Andraste scowled when she realized he wouldn't answer her question. She hadn't missed that light surge of anger, and it made her smile. She lowered the flower from her nose, pondering on his question. She did not face him, crushing the flower between her fingers, the bits of petals serenely cascading down. She used the Force to catch them mid flight, suspended in mid air. For a moment, it looked as if time itself had stopped. There was silence around them, even the waterfall itself seemingly muffled. It was a sudden lapse into the Force, where reality blended into something more ethereal, a world forged by it. She opened up a mental connection so he was included in it as well.

"Why do you ask me questions to which you already know the answer?"

Andraste was amused. She broke the connection as instantly as she had formed it, letting reality come back full blast. The bits of flower fell to the ground at her feet. She finally looked up, meeting his gaze despite his eyes being hidden by his hood.

"The Force doesn't accept you as its own and yet you blindly worship it. Pathetic.."

 

[Demiurge]

There was once a time where Äeslan would have fallen into anger at the first sign of temptation. Given in at the moment of frustration. But that was then, and he wasn't the same as he once was. Not out of dignity alone or the satisfaction of not giving into impulse, Äeslan refrained from action.

But her words struck deep, withstood or not. Äeslan was an adherent of the Unifying Force. He believed the Force to be a sentient deity, unlike the followers of the Living Force. And in turn, the Force had no sides, and treated all life equally. Unbiased, unprejudiced.

Now, his attention was on the "native" girl. Initially, Äeslan saw her as being a witch of sorts, a Force sensitive who'd come to learn and use the Force from instinctive self-education. But there was something more about her. Telekinesis was a common ability, as was seeing past the physical barriers of the universe. But the illusion... was finessed. Transcendental as it was brief. That was not something learned, it was taught.

"What I worship is of my own accord, not yours," he said, pulling his hood up enough to expose his heterochromiac eyes, "And as for me doing it blindly? Perhaps then your clairvoyance is wanting."

Äeslan then stared directly into the woman's eyes, "So answer me this... what are you?"

 

[Sreeya]

"What am I..."

Andraste repeated the words. She looked into his eyes, immediately noting that they were different colors. His appearance made him look almost inhuman, his complexion far too pale and his hair far too light to be that of an ordinary human's. He was beautiful in many ways, as if a creature of divinity. Nothing could be further from the truth. She let her mind linger on the question, crouching down beside the small stream.

"I am a child of the Force. Born from its darkest womb, molded by malevolence and created out of abhorrence. But even then I'm considered to be purer than you. Isn't that funny? I could sense you from a mile away, like the vile stench of a rotting corpse."

She rose to stand, a grin spreading across her face.

"Do you know you give off that stench within the Force? Do you see others cringe when you walk amongst them? Do you see them smile at you and acknowledge you, yet tense up in your presence because you taint the very air they breathe?"

Andraste took a few more steps, closing the distance between them.

"You look like an angel and yet you are nauseating to those that are aware of the Force. Pity.."

 

[Demiurge]

From her first words to her last, Äeslan's eyes remained fixated on hers, her grin, her demeanor, her pleasure in her degrading him. She was enticing him, that much was obviously clear, but for what purpose - to what end? That was what bewildered him.

"If you're trying to provoke a reaction out of me, have at it. Better sentients have tried and failed."

Before, Äeslan was simply looking at the girl, seeing what lay on the surface. But that was enough, there was something... unholy about her. Something corrupt, and it wasn't just in her aura, it was her speech about darkness. Of malevolence and abhorrence. In the manner of all Altèya, Äeslan's eyes burned, glowing intensely to an illustrious platinum-white as he called upon the Force. And as he saw through the Force, the girl's aura... was sheer darkness.

"You," he said, somewhat surprised by what he saw, "You are a demon of the Dark Side. A slave."

 

[Sreeya]

Andraste grinned at his words.

"You say it like it's a bad thing."

She began to walk around him, circling him like a predator would its prey. She was close to him, close enough to feel the energy emanating off him. It was a twisted perversion of the Force, something constructed and forced instead of being natural. It was difficult to discern, but it made him unique. She could tell he had been subjected to a lifetime of scorn and disdain.

"I was born a slave of the Force, but now I am a master of it. Why do you stay where you are not wanted? Why do you follow ideologies you are not born for?"

She completed the circle, facing him again. Her dark eyes met his mismatched ones. She leaned in, her face mere inches away from his.

"You can command the Force. You can master it. You can subjugate it and will it to do your bidding. A demon I am..or perhaps an angel that found its true strength."

 

[Demiurge]

Äeslan's face began to fall, taking on a more focused gaze as he stared onward, ignoring the girl as she paced in circles round about him.

"True strength? Do you think the shroud of the Dark Side can save you from what will come of it? I've heard of the things you speak of. I know what you are."

Immediately, Äeslan reached out and grabbed at the girl's wrist as she passed around him once more, and glared into her eyes.

"And the ideals I follow, I follow of my own accord - nothing and no one else's. And if you knew anything of the will of the Force, you'd know it does the bidding of no one."

Äeslan paused for a moment, never breaking eye contact with her, and continued.

"Now tell me, why is it you are here? One such as you has no business on this world."

 

[Sreeya]

The second she felt him grasp her wrist, she felt anger shoot through her like a bolt of lightning. It was as if poison began to rapidly spread out from where he touched her, flooding her body and tainting her mind. She suddenly felt dirty, as if being grasped by a leper. She scowled at him, her eyes suddenly taking on a darker hue, tinting on gold. Andraste grasped his wrist right back, her nails digging into his skin.

"Let's see how the Force favors you then."

Without warning, she yanked him down by his wrist and raised her free hand up at the same time, letting a blast of lightning erupt directly into his upper body. It was clear that it had taken a simple touch to infuriate her to the point where she wanted nothing more than to murder him. She hated him, hated his false sense of purity, his appearance which made him look like an angel, his eyes which mocked her own and how he thought he was above his emotions. Andraste whipped around, letting him go as soon as the lightning escaped her palm and as he would fall forward. She would pivot around and reach for her saber hilt, fully prepared to fight him.

 

[Demiurge]

It was a feeling he'd not sensed since he met a fellow Altèya, disgusted, unstable... and engulfed in waves of rage. He could sense it all within her, but even with the Force alerting him to danger, as it did to all Force sensitives, Äeslan didn't react in time to defend himself from the dervish of electrical Dark Side energies surging into him.

His eyes burned from the light, as did his body as he was forced backward several inches by the Force attack, before falling to his knee. Pain echoed in his bones and skin, but it wasn't a lethal blow. It was meant to inflict harm, not death. Working through the pain, Äeslan's head shot upward at his opponent, glaring at the crimson blade in her hand. As he rose up from his knee, Äeslan telekinetically pulled his lightsaber from within his robes into his hand, igniting the golden-amber blade.

"The Force favors no one... but the Dark Side damns all that it touches."

At that, Äeslan made a Force enhanced jump at his opponent, flipping vertically and upside-down over his opponent, making a sweeping opening slash at her weapon arm.

 

[Sreeya]

Andraste scowled at his words, watching his every move. He jumped into the air, flipping above her. Without pause, Andraste gathered Force energy to her palm and blasted it out upwards. She appeared unfazed by the threat above her, her blast of energy enough to throw him back. Because he was in mid air, he would have little to no control of his movements, letting her push carry him away from her to where his saber harmlessly cut through thin air.

"The Force favors those that survive it in its darkest nature."

The young Marauder dashed after Aeslan, swinging her saber out in an arc. It was a raised horizontal strike, aimed to cut through the lower half of his body while he was still in mid air and being thrown back. Force aided her movements, making her a mere blur of colors.

 

[Demiurge]

Äeslan felt it, the telekinetic impulse overcome his body and movements. Control over his motions ended as the Darksider blasted a concussive Force attack at him. His teeth grinded as his amber blade passed out of reach of his target area.

Although being forced backward, Äeslan could still maneuver the direct motions of his body. Using the Force to augment his natural movements, the Knight began twisting his body mid-descent. As he did, Äeslan brought his body around along with his blade, deflected the incoming horizontal sweeping blow from the girl. He did not need to match it's force; his lack of leverage would deny him that even if he tried, but he could deflect the blow away by angling his blade to redirect his enemy's lightsaber stroke.

Simultaneous to that defensive stance, Äeslan then used his other hand to telekinetically push the Darksider away, sending a surge through the Force at her. As the Jedi Knight landed down to the ground, his head shot upward toward the girl.

"You damned Force-forsaken schutta!" he yelled outward, at the girl, "Why the hell are you trying to kill me?"

 

[Sreeya]

Andraste felt herself get pushed backwards, her saber swipe failing. She cussed inwardly, preparing to launch another attack. However, the young man abruptly cried out asking why she was attacking him. Andraste paused for a moment, tilting her head in confusion. She looked down at her saber. For a long moment, there was nothing but silence.

"Uh..."

The Sith looked at Aeslan, his question ringing within her mind.

"You know, I'm not really sure..."

She thought for a moment, switching off her saber and putting it back on her hip.

"Other than the fact that your Force energy is the equivalent of smelling like a decomposing body, I suppose you're entirely too useless to pose a threat."

Andraste walked over to him, looking down at him.

"Are you supposed to be a Jedi or something?"

 

[Demiurge]

Äeslan's eyes opened wide for a moment, staring in sheer disbelief, then narrowed. She attacked him, and it didn't even occur to her as to why? His mind constantly ran over the nonsensical action, and in the end, all he found himself wondering was if she was stupid, or just crazy.... or both.

"Am I suppose to be a Jedi... or something," he repeated, annoyingly.

At that, Äeslan deactivating his lightsaber.

"No, I'm suppose to be Äeslan. But you seem like you have the sanity of a demented rancor beast, so I guess first impressions don't count for much."

The young Jedi scoffed as he then stood upright, smugly grinning, "Or maybe they do."

"So then, I guess that makes you a Sith."

 

[Sreeya]

Andraste gawked as he repeated her question. Was he slow on top of being pathetic?

"Aeslan.."

Confusion graced her features as she repeated the name. For some reason she got the image of a wise lion in a far away land within her mind. She couldn't explain why or how it related at all, but she quickly brushed it aside. As he commented on her sanity and motioned to get up, Andraste scowled. With a light flick of her wrist, she coiled the Force around his leg, yanking towards herself to make him fall back on his rear while he was in the middle of getting to his feet. Only this time, she aimed so he would sit right into mud.

"Why yes, it does. At least I belong somewhere, fairy boy."

 

[Demiurge]

The jerk of invisible force at his leg came at an instant. Without time to truly react, Aeslan fell backwards, falling down into a muddies area made by the banks.

"Cute," he said, glancing down at the mud splattered about.

Groaning slightly, Aeslan began standing up again, readying himself for anymore petty trickery.

"Like hell," he said, staring bullets up at her, "If you belonged, you wouldn't be halfway across the galaxy away from the Sith, gawking at rivers."

Aeslan flapped his hands, flinging the mud off as he began stepping forward again. "So, what do they call you?"