Ask There is No Balance

[Darth Malicia]

The Darth tipped her head, eyeing the flower he handed her. She didn't hold anything back, smiling with amusement as she accepted his gift. It suited her, certainly. It was also interesting to get a gift handed to her, instead of having to take it.

She barely noticed Emryc leaving, not raising her eyes from the flower. Not even as he explained working alone. It'd be stupid to look a gift horse in the mouth. If he never tried to manipulate her into helping with his own plans, she wouldn't complain. Neither would she complain about the gift in her hand.

Her eyes looked up from the flower when he stopped and brought up the Cadre. Her expression hardened somewhat, though perhaps not as hard as it would to a stranger. It felt odd to hear the name come from someone outside of her siblings. It was also interesting that he knew her desires. Perhaps Asminys let something slip, or words simply got around now that she was a Darth. Either way, he'd see her eyes linger on him, already questioning him before even answering, "Why is it curious?"

@Sreeya

 

[Emryc Thorne]

For a moment there was only the sound of the rain, even after her question drifted into the air. Asminys had been guarded and hadn’t let anything slip, but Emryc could infer enough. The vacant mask stared in her direction, and it was impossible to determine what went on behind it.

“It is only curious if the teachings are for loyalty to mother instead of the Sith,” He said curtly, not elaborating further. Had she made an ally or an enemy just now? Emryc could prove lethal against her enemies or against her, and it depended on how she played her cards. He wouldn’t ask her about the Cadre beyond that, letting the words linger in the air like a wisp of air that could pass between the lips on such a cold night.

A part of him wondered if she had that same unbridled rage that Asminys had. There had been something intoxicating about it that he didn’t care to understand, but it caught his attention nonetheless. For now, there was nothing but her eyes to tell her story, the rest of her face obscured by her armor. For all her desires in wanting to see his face, she took care to hide her own.

@Dread

 

[Darth Malicia]

Malicia clenched her jaw, trying not to let her anger rise so far that she started a pointless conflict.

"What we do benefits the Sith, that's all they should care about," she said in an icy cold voice, in stark contrast to their earlier conversations. She was acutely aware that her wording separated her from the Sith and it was on purpose. She wasn't Sith. Her masters were Sith, but she was Cadre.

She was going to say more but the flower caught her eyes once more and she stopped. "I appreciate the gift," Malicia said, letting out a long breath after she noticed she was holding onto it. Her whole body had gotten tense, even her grip around the flower. "And I don't want things to sour between us, so perhaps this is not a conversation we should have."

@Sreeya

 

[Emryc Thorne]

The rage was bubbling beneath the surface and Emryc could feel it just about to spill over. The cold mask gazed unfazed as Malicia worked through her words, no shift in his demeanor or the way he looked at her. It was unclear whether the answer was for him or for her to say it aloud to herself. It was a dangerous dance, and one that had an uncertain outcome.

He watched her gaze shift to the flower instead, the rage that threatened to spill over reeling back to a light simmer. Her demeanor had shifted, her body locked up and he could make out the lightest ripples in her form as she gripped the rose. It was curious for him to observe, and he stood poised like a sentry through it all, his own form always steadfast and unmoving.

“Then is there a conversation you’d rather have?” He asked with amusement dripping with his words. He was not the traditional Sith that wallowed in darkness at all times. He had his religion that he devoted himself to, but even that was within specific times and hours. He was methodical by nature, knowing there was a time and place for everything.

Emryc turned on his heel and began to walk, making it clear she could join him if she wished. The rain was almost therapeutic, and he would make his way down the street under the building awnings.

@Dread

 

[Darth Malicia]

She could sense that Emryc was amused by the interaction. On the other hand, Malicia was not amused. Not in any sense of the word. Though, it was curious that he offered her to walk with him after. After she'd practically admitted that she wasn't Sith.

Part of her said to walk away, the other large half said to indulge her curiosity.

The issue with indulging it? Well, she might've learned a thing or two about holding a conversation for a purpose. To lead someone on, to pretend she was interested and to echo things so others thought she was listening. But natural conversation? That sometimes eluded her.

Still, she decided to walk by him, placing the rose in one of the pockets on her belt. "So if you didn't help just to exploit me later, why did you help? Curiosity?" she asked. "Or, to simply sew...Sith influence on the planet?" she added. His earlier question made him seem like a loyalist, so perhaps all he cared about was Sith domination? Really though, he was a mystery to her.

@Sreeya

 

[Emryc Thorne]

Emryc had to bite back from scoffing at her words. Loyalist was a blurred word to him these days, not when he sometimes questioned the Eternal. His true allegiance was with the Sith of old, an era that was long gone. In some ways he was detached from the current path of the Sith, so perhaps whatever the Cadre did had some semblance of a cause.

He spun on his heel to face her as he began to walk backwards to address her while walking, “Perhaps I wanted to spend time in the company of the infamous Darth Malicia,” There was no mockery in his tone - her name was well known in Sith circles. She was one of the rare few Sith causing ripples throughout the galaxy.

Emryc spun back around to face forward as they kept walking, “I am driven by the desire for knowledge above anything else. The cause is just as long as it’s the one that leads to victory.”

@Dread

 

[Darth Malicia]

A laugh left Malicia's lips, and a smile that her own mask covered up. The laugh was lighthearted and genuine, a mix of flattery and disbelief. Him wanting to simply spend time in her company was a hard sell for her. For her cultists sure, but... Sith? Still, she hadn't heard mockery in his tone and she took note of that.

"Driven by knowledge..." she echoed in thought. Knowledge did equal power, even if she only sought out 'knowledge' when she needed it for something. Though there was something about what he said, or perhaps the way he said it, that made her consider something.

"Perhaps you'd be interested in weighing in on what I do with Oota's knowledge then," she began. "His holocron. I'm not certain if what it holds is worth it - worth trying to open. I could keep it as a trophy, though I could also destroy it so no Jedi has a chance to benefit from it if there is a raiding or looting while I'm not around."

@Sreeya

 

[Emryc Thorne]

Emryc was caught off guard from the laugh. It was a gentle, trilling sound that suddenly made her that much more intriguing. She wouldn’t see his own grin that lingered behind the mask, but there was one then. He kept walking, listening to her words about the Holocron. He had obtained a holocron as well, but he doubted she would appreciate the significance of it. Wyck was far too ancient to have too much relevance to anyone that wasn’t a history buff.

“It’s certainly worth opening,” He said, wanting to squash the thought of destroying it from her mind, “They may contain useless things like ideologies, but at times they also teach abilities or locations that could be critical to the Jedi,” Emryc watched as the rain began to lighten up. It was almost pleasant to go on this walk, though both of them funnily enough looked like they would kill for fun.

“Opening it will be….unpleasant,” He said after a moment, thinking about when Oota had pierced through his mind. Had Malicia witnessed that? He wondered if she thought him weak. Oh well, he would simply have to work to change that perception.

“What will you do once you have all that you desire?” Where did that entail? Becoming Dark Lord? Becoming Empress? His only ambitions were in flux still. For now he only sought to collect artifacts and gain knowledge.

@Dread

 

[Darth Malicia]

Malicia tipped her head some, allowing his words to sink in. "I suppose it could have helpful intelligence," she answered. Maybe it was worth keeping, for now, though she was still unsure if she wanted to allow it to exist forever. Perhaps opening it would change her mind.

She didn't doubt it'd be unpleasant to speak to the Grandmaster either. Her mind hadn't been on Emryc much and what he experienced, but no one who fought the grandmaster came out unscathed.

What she desired?

What she desired... Malicia felt the whispers at the back of her mind get louder. The feeling of hunger exerting itself over consciousness. Rolling through her body, clawing at her skin. "I..." she began with a lingering pause. Was she answering for him or for herself? "I am two parts," she tried to explain.

"One part may acquire all that it desires..." Malicia trailed off. Her eyes stared almost vacantly into the distance. Her mind focused on the life all around her. The little blips on the edges of her senses. The ones that taunted her. "The other may never be satisfied."

She tipped her head then looked up to the sky. "But I'm unsure if both parts can exist separately forever," she continued, uncaring if he understood or not. He probably didn't care either. "What about your desires? Do you think you will ever satisfy your thirst for knowledge?"

@Sreeya

 

[Emryc Thorne]

He observed her as she took the time to answer, and when she did it piqued his curiosity. The two sides usually existed together for Sith Lords of the past, and that’s what led to their unraveling in the end. He kept walking in silence for a moment after she asked her question. Normally he was the type to brush off most questions, but he did have more respect for her than he did others.

“No,” He said bluntly, “Nor do I wish to. A life without a thirst for knowledge that eludes me sounds depressing,” He muttered as he pondered the implications. Knowledge was what drove him, what kept him hungry and chasing, "I will assist you with the holocron when you wish to open it."

Emryc kept walking for a while, and Malicia would begin to recognize the path. Her means of transportation was only a few steps away, her cultists waiting for her.

In true gentleman fashion, Emryc had walked a lady back to her proverbial car at night. Even if that lady would most certainly break necks without lifting a finger. He tilted his head slightly as he looked at her.

“If there’s nothing else, I bid you a good night, Lady Malicia,” He said politely.

@Dread

 

[Darth Malicia]

It was the answer she suspected, and wanted. His thirst of knowledge was never ending like her hunger. They were similar in that way, at least. She nodded when he offered to help her with the holocron. Having another powerful Sith there— especially one who fought Oota—wouldn't be a bad idea.

When they got back to her ship, and he said good night, Malicia realized she'd enjoyed Emryc's company. The..."revelation" was certainly surprising, to say the least. His words were met with silence at first as she stared at him curiously. "Goodnight Emryc," she answered, a hint of amusement in her voice.

Malicia turned to get on her ship, but stopped and looked at Emryc one more time. She turned back, stepping in front of him-closer than before. "Next time we meet, I might demand you remove your mask," she said with a grin. A glimmer of playfulness lit up in her eyes as they ran over his mask once more. Though after, she turned again and didn't stop this time. "You've been warned," she added. Her cultists followed her into the ship, and Malicia went to her seat.

@Sreeya