Ask Dromund Kaas When the Dust Settles

[Renfry]

OOC: Open to Sith or anyone who has a logical reason to be at the aftermath of the linked thread​

It had been several hours since the slaughter of the Red Banquet had taken place, and the Sith Lord had returned to the scene of the event. Drying blood clung to the floor and the smell of death was still thick in the air. Bodies were strewn on the floor, and it was all deathly silent in a way that was fitting for what had happened.

For her part, the Sith Lord had shoved a portion of food and dishes off the banquet table and onto the floor. In the empty place she now sat cross-legged in meditation. Dried blood clung to her pale skin from where it had splattered during the violence and subsequent purging of the surrounding facilities. The blood-soaked hairpin now replaced in her hair had seen more kills in this night than some weapons saw in a carrier of service. The Sith Lord had done what was necessary.

And now she paused to think and reflect. Some Sith might have cautioned such a move to be unwise, but some Sith were also idiots. There was much to make clear.

The anger was still boiling within her as she thought about what had happened. She realized as she meditated that the reason for that was because Malicia’s spineless submission had greatly endangered Andruil’s own position. What had once been a powerful ally - even a friend - had completely failed to be even a fraction of what she had presented herself as. And that could potentially endanger Andruil’s position as one of her former allies.

Perhaps it was one of the few saving graces that she was friends with Stolas as well. But was she really? What even were friends in the Sith? She’d fooled herself enough. Loyalty had no place in the Sith. Loyalty to herself and her kingdom and whatever was in its best interest. Emryc... was a more complicated matter and one she continued to try to avoid. Morgan’s revelations had been far more hurtful - and by extension impactful - than she would have liked. He would have sacrificed her in a heartbeat if he felt it necessary. She’d tried to pull herself away before without success.

But the bottom line was simple: she needed to prepare for the worst. Prepare her kingdom to be assaulted by anyone at any time. Ensure she was of value to whoever was Dark Lord or become the same herself. She needed to ready for war and protect herself. But at the moment, she needed to reflect.

 

[Charlotte Le'Anna]

The Darkness pulsed with lives lost. The Jedi would mourn such death but for the Sith it was a natural part of the Force. You were born, lived, and died. Such was the will of the Darkness. The bodies that littered Malicia’s palace had simply run out of time. That was the way of the Darkside. Charlotte had very quietly removed herself from the bed she shared with Aadya. They had spent the hours after the slaughter in an equally enjoyable fashion. She clicked her tongue. The acolyte had been everything Charlotte hoped, but the Sith found herself restless. She knew Malicia was arrogant…yet had never expected the challenge that came from Stolas. It set her nerves on edge.

So, Charlotte wandered the halls of eerily silent palace. Loyal cultists had either fled or been culled. She found herself drawn back to the ballroom. This time dressed decidedly differently. She wore her more traditional black Sith robes, her saber clipped inside. She needed to understand why the white lady simply surrendered. It was not who they were.

The ballroom was no empty. Her eyes were quickly drawn to figure sitting on the banquet table. Darth Andruil. She hummed. The Sith Lord could not sleep either. Curious. Charlotte knew one thing after watching the ballroom bathed in blood. She needed allies. There was no Sith she would ever trust, but the Order was in an odd position after the bloodletting. No one truly understood what might come next. Charlotte walked forward, she was careful to make no attempts to hide her approach. She certainly did not want Andruil coming to the wrong conclusion. A short bow followed.

“Your majesty.” She gestured to the night sky visible behind the throne. “Can’t sleep either?” She knew next to nothing about Andruil, but she did know two things. She was a woman from a planet that prized that above all else and she had not tried to challenge Malicia herself.

@Phoenix

 

[Renfry]

Andruil looked up to see another woman enter the room. She recognized her as the one who had taken a liking to Aadya. She’d not seen the Sith woman before but looked over as she approached.

So she’d opted to return to the scene of the carnage as well. Sleep eluded her but perhaps for different reasons. Maybe she was looking for answers as well.
“Not right now,” she replied simply. There were far too many thoughts in her mind now.

“Aadya wasn’t enough to keep you all night, I see, Miss.... ?” she left it as a question.

She remained in her seat on the table, noting how the woman had changed from her fancy and likely blood-covered ball gown. Andruil had not and seemed unbothered by the blood still sticking to her.

@Valen Pelora

 

[Charlotte Le'Anna]

Great start. Charlotte had forgotten she never uttered her name before grinding on Aadya. Her eyes flicked up and down Andruil. The Dathomirian remained covered in the trappings of Stolas’ ascension. Her own ballgown long gone. “Charlotte Le’Anna.” She kept her tone perfectly polite. She was trying to make friends, not start a war in the ballroom. “Aadya is magnificent.” Her mind briefly flashed to the hours they spend together.

“But even she is not so talented to take my mind from tonight’s festivities.” She inclined her head for a moment. “It appears I am not alone in contemplating recent event, your majesty.” What was Andruil doing sitting on a banquet table in the middle of the night? The Queen of Dathomir remained covered in blood…looking every bit the predator she was rumored to be.

@Phoenix

 

[Renfry]

Indeed, she said. After all, the pair had been gone for several hours. She was sure they weren't discussing the intricacies of Aurak'kesh that entire time.

Charlotte, she repeated as the woman said her name. A flick of her hand sent the trays, dishes, and food flying off the table and onto the floor with an overly loud clash and clatter. Andruil seemed unconcerned with who may have heard or who may have been sleeping nearby.

She motioned toward the now-empty space several feet away from her on the table, offering it to her new Sith acquaintance.

What did you make of the events of tonight? she asked. She knew she wouldn't get a real answer because no one was stupid enough to speak out against a Councilor even if they disagreed, but even a non-answer could be quite telling.

@Valen Pelora

 

[Charlotte Le'Anna]

The dishes went clattering to the floor. Well, that spoke volumes of Andruil's concerns for whatever decorum remained in the palace. Charlotte inclined her head slightly. “Thank you.” The offer to sit was one she could not refuse…the sound her name made coming from the Queen’s mouth ringing in her ears. Charlotte carefully took her place. Sitting cross legged on the table, she nearly met Andruil’s eye. Don’t be foolish Charlotte. Instead, she looked at the destruction surrounding the table. How odd. She found herself sitting on a ruined banquet table, in a ruined ballroom, across from a Sith Lord.

The question that Sith Lord posed nearly caught her off guard. Ah. A trap then. She closed her mind as best she could, her thoughts on the challenge guarded. Charlotte had no idea what answer Andruil sough. Frankly, the Marauder did not know how she felt. She took a deep breath. No games…the truth it was. “I understand there are personal interactions between the Lords of the Sith those of us below simply do not comprehend…I do not know what passed between Lord Stolas and Malicia.” Her head tilted as she thought. “If what he said was true and she planned to betray the Eternal.” She shrugged. “Then Lord Stolas did as is expected of us. We are servants of the Darkside and the Eternal is the embodiment of that Darkness.” Charlotte’s voice grew soft for a moment.

“But the way she gave in, the way she surrendered…almost as if she was surprised Lord Stolas turned on her…it does not feel right.” Be careful. Don’t say too much. “She was a Councilor, closer to the Darkness than any of us, and she just gave up.” A shiver ran down her spine. It was unnatural.

@Phoenix

 

[Renfry]

Andruil watched the other woman take up a seat in the space cleared by the Darth. She listened as Charlotte expanded on her views of the events that had unfolded. She was certainly no fool. There was a great deal of drama that had unfolded among the Sith Lords over the past several years. Even Andruil wasn’t certain exactly what had happened between Malicia and Stolas. She would have liked to know.

“Was she?” she asked. It wasn’t a questioned asked necessarily with the intention of correcting.

“That’s what she should have been and certainly what she presented herself as, but it seems to have all been a sham,” she said. And in saying it she realized that was what had upset her so. What she thought Malicia was was not who she had been. It had been revealed in violent fashion.

“But that’s why the system exists, isn’t it? To find the weak and rid ourselves of them,” she said.

“And so now Stolas is in her place,” she said. “And her cult she cared about so much will be wiped out. Not even the courage to fight to protect it.”

@Valen Pelora

 

[Charlotte Le'Anna]

Charlotte almost forgot she was speaking with a Sith Lord…a Queen. Almost. The conversation was stunningly frank. She had very little experience dealing with leaders of the Order, she had expected to be treated as the lesser she was. Instead, Andruil seemed genuinely curious about her thoughts. Charlotte was not so naïve to let her guard down, but it was fascinating. “Yes…I suppose that is the way.” The strong survived and all that. “We become stronger by cutting away the rotten flesh.” She shrugged.

“But if she was truly a fraud, how did she achieve such heights?” Her mouth turned into a small frown. “Our beliefs failed if we allowed a pretender to gain such power or there is another reason for Malicia’s surrender that I do not understand.” The entire spectacle still made no sense. She was not shocked a challenge had been made. Rather, by the consequences. Malicia had seemed to hold such power and influence…in an instant it was all gone.

“I must confess, I found the cult off putting…they I will not miss.” The cult had served a useful purpose as a vehicle to conquer worlds. It had morphed into something more concerning. They worshiped a person rather than the Darkside. Perhaps that was had lead Malicia astray.

@Phoenix

 

[Renfry]

Andruil sensed hesitation from the other woman. As if there was something more she wished to say or something she was still trying to parse through. Andruil couldn’t necessarily blame her for that. Though she tried to obscure it, she had a great deal to still work through as well.

“She had a gasp of the dark side, there was no question of that,” she said. It was how she had risen through the ranks. “But power alone will only get you so far. Some Jedi have more raw power than most of the Order,” she said. A Jedi Councilor could wipe the floor with the average Marauder. It was simple facts. She’d been there when Darth Invictus was killed by a Jedi. They weren’t as weak as they may at times appear or be treated.

“So then what do they lack?” she asked. Andruil knew the answer. She had figure it out long ago. To his credit, Emryc had taught her to respect the Jedi. It wasn’t quite a test of the other woman as it was wanting to know how she thought. Her answer would potentially tell Andruil a great deal.

She nodded as the other Sith mentioned the cult being a bit unnerving. Though they’d always been quite cordial to the Nightsister, she could understand the sentiment in others. She also found it interesting that this one worshipped the Dark Side itself. Each Sith seemed to have their own view on that. Renfry worshipped the Fanged Spirit, Emryc worshipped the Sith Lords of old, this one worshipped the Dark Side, some were said to worship the Eternal, and others previously worshipped Malicia. It was almost a bit surprising to her the disjointed nature of the Order, but ultimately they were all in the same vein, weren’t they?

@Valen Pelora

 

[Charlotte Le'Anna]

She clicked her tongue. It was nervous habit, one imperfection Charlotte had never managed to break. It was a crutch to give her time to think. Andruil was not what she expected, but that did not mean she was safe. Everything was a test. The very existence of the Order was one carefully constructed obstacle after another. She knew when to lie and when speak her truth. Andruil, at this moment, struck Charlotte as wanting the truth. The young Marauder was smart enough to know the Jedi had strength equal or greater to the Sith. That did not mean they always used it. “Would you like the cliché answer or the truth, my queen?” She smiled softly. She clicked her tongue again.

“Sarcasm is a defense mechanism.” Charlotte finally met Andruil’s eyes. “They are not the Jedi Order of old. They do not forbid emotions, passions, we would consider natural…but they fear those emotions that may lead them to the Darkside.” She nodded slowly. “They fear Darkness itself...and above all else they fear death.” Her smile faded. “Maybe not for themselves but for others. Death is the most natural part of life and yet they do all they can stop the natural cycle of the Force.” How philosophical was she prepared to be?

“They lack courage. Not in the traditional sense, we’ve all watched them bravely lay down their lives. They are not cowards but they lack the courage to be true to themselves, to be what the Force intended. Their strength is tempered by the fear and it is why they will never win.” She shrugged again. “They posses the power but they lack the conviction to truly wield it…perhaps Malicia lacked that same conviction.” Why else would a being as powerful as the Councilor fall so easily?

@Phoenix

 

[Renfry]

Andruil didn't respond to the woman's first question. Rhetoric and clichés rarely helped and almost never yielded anything of value. However, the other woman seemed to agree to speak and Andruil listened.

Killer instinct, she said when the other woman finished. It was another way of saying the same thing, but it was more to the heart of the issue as Andruil saw it. Both Malicia and the Jedi failed to harness the true depth of their power and pulled back when the definitive blow needed to be taken. Simply put, they were not the apex predators that they could be.

Or is it self-preservation? she counter-queried. Jedi don't suffer corruption of the darkness, Malicia is alive even without her power or freedom, she said.

If I told you to cut me down right now, what would you do? she asked. Her naturally yellow eyes pierced through the other woman with intensity, watching as much as listening for her answer.

@Valen Pelora

 

[Charlotte Le'Anna]

Charlotte nodded. Yes…Killer instinct. A simpler explanation of the same truth. The Sith acted without hesitation, a yoke the Jedi bore heavily. Andruil was absolutely correct on the dangerous of corruption. It could not be avoided and took a toll on those unprepared. All power came with a price. Charlotte knew that all too well. The Darkness gave them gifts but expected repayment. She would rather succumb to the Darkness than lose her will.

The next question nearly took her breath away. Charlotte used every ounce of that will to keep her face calm, her heart and breathing steady. She resisted the urge to reach for her saber or the Force. That would only get her killed. She continued to meet Andruil’s gaze. Fine. If the Sith Lord wanted her measure, she could have it.

“Your death would weaken the Order…to lose one with such command of the Force and Dathomir.” Charlotte’s head quirked to the side again. “But, to forfeit your life willingly? That would speak to a soul faltering at the core…a weakness that could not be overcome.” Her voice was still soft as she spoke. “A weakness with no place in the Order. A lack of killer instinct. Strength in the Force can be replaced. Conviction cannot.” She let out a deep breath. Hopefully, she had not just signed her death warrant.

@Phoenix

 

[Renfry]

Yes, but what would you do? she asked. She seemed wholly unperturbed by the woman's statements because they were not inaccurate. Andruil had no interest in being cut down nor would she allow it, but she wanted the depth of the Sith's daring. She wanted to know if she would try or decline. She wanted to know if the woman had a self-preservation instinct.

Or perhaps there would be no answer. Andruil slid smoothly off the table, her bare feet touching the cold floor. She walked to one of the bodies on the ground. The entire slaughter of the cult and barely a Sith had been killed. It was no accident. The cult was weak compared to a Sith, and yet they would have given their lives for Malicia. An override on their self-preservation instinct. There were things Renfry would have died for, but Andruil? Perhaps even her.

She bent over the body of the cultist who she had maimed earlier. The pool of gore around his neck was still horrifying to smell or see, but she turned the body over nonetheless with a sickening sound.

Time weeds out the weak, and the Sith are stronger for it, she said, eyes locking with the other Sith woman. But that's enough of that, she said. Discussing philosophy was perhaps not to the liking of everyone in the Order.

What did you come looking for in your sleeplessness? she asked.

@Valen Pelora

 

[Charlotte Le'Anna]

She chose the truth again, foolish as it may have been. “Kill you.” Her voice remained perfectly still. Charlotte maintained carefully constructed control over her body and mind. “Or die trying.” A few hours ago, her answer may have been different. She may have espoused some banal answer on preserving the strength of the Order. What a lie that would have been. Watching Malicia fade into nothingness with mere words had shifted Charlotte’s world view. They could never again allow such poison into the upper echelons on the Sith. She was a servant and that meant serving.

Her eyes followed Andruil as the Sith Lord slid off the table. Charlotte joined in her leaving their perch. She did not join the queen in inspecting the dead, although she did walk closer. It seemed their talk on the finer points of their faith was over. Exhausting. Andruil pointed the conversation in a no less fraught direction. Charlotte had witnessed the fall of a Councilor, the slaughter of a cult, and spent hours using Aadya to forget. She was tired and that made it harder for her to conceal her thoughts. “Honestly…I am uncertain.” She ran a hand through her hair, sending it tumbling over her shoulders.

“I found the entire spectacle of the ball odd. As if Malicia was flaunting her power before the Eternal, Lord Stolas was within his rights to challenge…although I doubt many of us expected such a challenge.” Rambling again Charlotte. Andruil seemed to value speaking directly. “Everything about this feels off.” That was the simplest truth. “And so, I can’t sleep, looking for answers I doubt I’ll find.” This was their nature. Why was it bothering her so?

@Phoenix

 

[Renfry]

Indeed, she said again, unclear whether it was the answer she was looking for or not. Perhaps it was a good thing that such a request would not be made by Andruil. She had no interest in dying and killing the other Sith served no benefit to anyone.

Answers, she repeated, as much to herself as to Charlotte. Answers were that ever-elusive thing that Andruil had long pursued as well. She had only begun to find the very first sliver of answers.

Flaunt power in hopes of overthrowing the Eternal and back down when presented with a challenge of someone with lesser power, she agreed. It was odd. Perhaps musing on the past - even the recent past - was a waste of time. Perhaps all they could do was move forward an expand their own power.

She knew there was danger all around her. Even likely from the woman she now spoke to. She needed to protect Dathomir at all costs, and the only reason to do that was more power. That was the way, wasn't it?

Surely there's got to be a bottle of wine around here somewhere to help us sleep, she said, standing and making her way in the direction of what had appeared to be the kitchen. She avoided the pools of blood along the way and stepped carefully past the bodies littering the floor. Such a grisly scene.

Tell me a bit about yourself, Charlotte, she said as she continued onward. She always had been a curious woman, and that hadn't changed now.

@Valen Pelora

 

[Charlotte Le'Anna]

Charlotte was not dead. She took that as an unqualified win. This was the closest and longest she had ever spoken with a Sith Lord. She expected speaking with the others might not be as pleasant, but Andruil seemed different. Charlotte could not completely place her finger on the answer. The Queen of Dathomir seemed more contemplative and less blood thirsty. That was not to say she wasn’t dangerous, Charlotte had seen exactly what the woman was capable of during the slaughter.

She nodded. Yes, that was exactly right. Such arrogance and then such cowardice. It might never make sense. What had Malicia said to Stolas to spark his rage? She doubted she would ever know. Those were secrets of the Lords. Charlotte refocused. Yes…wine. “I suspect more than a bottle.” Her wand waved around the room. “Malicia did seem to have a taste for the finer things in life.” Such an appetite that would go unrewarded. She followed after Andruil, trailing into the kitchen before she spoke.

Charlotte began to casually flip through cabinets in the very large culinary scene. The fighting had not touched terribly far beyond the ballroom. The cultists had proved terribly easy opponents. None had lived long enough to flee deeper in the palace. “I have felt lost, my queen.” More truth from the Marauder. “I fought and clawed to heave myself from the dregs of the Order to the ranks of Marauder…for a time that was fulfilling.” She could not help the sigh that followed. “I have served faithfully. My devotion has never wavered, but I feel stuck.” Charlotte shook her head slowly, flicking open another cabinet. “I have searched the Darkness for answers and found none.” This feeling had been gnawing at her for some time. “I understand this is my failing, that I must fight for opportunity, but the path is difficult to see.” Charlotte almost laughed. She was in the kitchen, searching for wine with a Sith Lord, and apparently had decided to share her misgivings. Brilliant.

@Phoenix

 

[Renfry]

Andruil began poking through the cupboards and pantries, stepping over one of the few bodies in the kitchen and continuing to rummage.

Ah! Excellent! she thought excitedly as she found a package of jerky and tossed it over on the counter. It didn't pull her away from listening to Charlotte's story or the misgivings she apparently suffered.

Stuck in place. An interesting dilemma, and she wondered if the Marauder was subtly - or not subtly - asking for a leg up. But then, Andruil had asked and the woman had been surprisingly honest. Perhaps even suspiciously so.

No matter, it didn't bother Andruil. She didn't mind receiving straight answers from others when it came to questions. Stolas had a habit of driving her crazy by not actually answering her questions. She also knew she did that to other people, so it was karma, she supposed.

She shuffled over to see of the other Sith had had any luck with the wine.

Grab a good red for me, she said, peering around the corner and into the large cupboard that looked to be some sort of wine cellar.

She moved over and popped up onto the counter, sitting and opening the bag of jerky.

Why do you do it? Look for opportunities? Fight your way up. No rhetoric, she said. It was a question that struck right at the heart of everything, and it was an answer she'd found very few Sith had a true answer to. That was why they failed.

@Valen Pelora

 

[Charlotte Le'Anna]

Charlotte turned at the sound of the jerky hitting the table. An interesting find. Perhaps the stories of Andruil’s carnivore tendencies were true. She floated over to the wine “cupboard.” A few bottles of red wine lifting from the shells and gently setting down on the counter. Her face scrunched as she examined the labels. Either Malicia had terrible taste in wine, or all the good vintages had been ransacked. There was a Naboo vineyard bottle that should have been serviceable. A flick of the Force tossed the cork. She rummaged around for two glasses, pouring one and then the other. Again, she wrapped the Force around the glass and moved it gently towards Andruil. The Sith Lord sitting casually on the counter. All the while Charlotte contemplated the question. No rhetoric.

“I was sold to the Sith when I was eight, my parents were failed Hapan nobility.” She repressed a shudder of those early years. “The Darkness saved me…gave me the tools to survive. It was climb or be consumed…fight or die.” It was not rhetoric, it was her truth. The Order would have easily tossed her aside. “I could easily have been just another Acolyte or Marauder at the bottom of a pile of bodies, sacrificed for a great cause, but I have survived too long and too much to become a forgotten corpse.” Charlotte assumed Andruil could guess what those early years had been like. A young girl with no family, no friends, and only the Force.

“I hate my family, and the constructs that gave rise to an eight-year-old girl being sold for a chance at being wealthy again.” That hate burned deep in her heart, flaring in her voice. “The Darkness would consume it all and I would very much like to see that.” This time she could not suppress the shudder. The galaxy deserved to burn for what it had created. She served that noble purpose.

@Phoenix

 

[Renfry]

Andruil sat on the counter, "happily" munching away at the jerky as the wine was floated her direction. To say that she was "trusting" would have been a bit too far, and she watched from the moment the cork was popped until the glass was in her hand. She doubted the other Sith was here to poison her, but there were no certainties. If tonight had taught her anything it was that.

She sipped at the wine as she listened to Charlotte's story. It was not what she had expected at all, but it pasted together a few of the pieces that Andruil had yet to realize.

I see, she said, taking a long drink from her wine. The taste wasn't bad. It certainly wasn't the worst wine she had tasted. It would do, she decided.

And then her thoughts turned to the story Charlotte had told and the next real question came to mind.

Have you killed your family? Or gone back to seize what they have left? she asked. If she hated them, the next step offered both revenge and a source to greater power. And a test of her resolve.

@Valen Pelora

 

[Charlotte Le'Anna]

She sipped her wine. It helped calm her nerves. This was a part of her past she had never discussed with anyone. Charlotte eyed Andruil over the rim of her glass. Was the Sith Lord passing judgment? It seemed not. She knew little of the politics of Dathomir but she doubted they involved as much self-righteousness as Hapes. The question that naturally followed was one she had been expecting. “They have nothing left. My father and mother live, but they pissed away whatever I bought them.” The tightly controlled anger was clear in her voice. “My mother drove two fortunes into dust…a truly terrible matriarch.”

Don’t sigh Charlotte. “They still have their titles, ones that may even apply to me, but the holdings have all been taken by others.” Did she fear facing her family again? Could she kill them? Charlotte was uncertain, she hated her mother…her father…her sisters. But hate and the will to end their lives were two entirely different things.

“I don’t know why I haven’t gone back? Other than it feels pointless? They are horrible derelicts who deserve death but…” She shook her head. “Are they wroth the trouble? I’m not sure.” And she wasn’t. They sold her. They condemned her to this life and she had thrived. Her past pain would not evaporate with their deaths and it fueled her now. The pain was her power.

@Phoenix