Ask Serenno Whose Carl Is It Anyway?

Caelian

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It was a surreal feeling to be back in the same room as the man who had practically raised him in his youth while he had been an academy student. While Caelian's ties to his new master were barely formed and lessons newly taught, his former mentor's impact had been more severe and instrumental far beyond what the Echani could have noticed. The implications and effects of Tiamat's statement was profound and Caelian could hardly believe what he was hearing.

Initially he had held out hope of reuniting with his former master, though those hopes had waned in recent years as he became more independent and learned of his own free will about the galaxy. If the Echani hadn't gone through the very ordeal that he had since Onderon, and happened to meet his former master out in the wilderness somewhere it may have been quite tempting to consider his offer. Though Caelian had always strived to honor his word, recent events had ingrained some very hard-earned lessons into the back of his mind and those thoughts pushed him through what came next.

Romulus definitely looked like he'd had a meeting or two with ISB, the shell of a former great man that Caelian had held in high esteem. In a flash, his mind wandered back to all the lessons and struggles that the mentor had helped him through. Each low point was overcome followed by a high point where Romulus was there to bring him down to level. The amount of admiration Caelian held for him was palpable and it showed. The Echani's face began to grow emotional and his chest felt compressed as facts were laid bare.

In each passing second after Tiamat's question, his mind struggled to find a way out but could find none. The most important man in his life had committed a cardinal sin as far as Caelian was concerned, Romulus had broken his oath of loyalty to the empire. Caelian's own loyalty had been questioned although he had done far less, the sentence was still the same.

With every ounce of strength, he could muster, Caelian's telepathy was pained but strong enough so that both would hear the response. "Death, Master Tiamat. Traitors to the empire deserve death."



@GABA
 

Darth Tiamat

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She watched him in silence as the conflict coursed through his body. The woman knew he wanted to believe her words to be other than truth but the man had admitted to all she described, there was no need to weed out fiction, it was what the ISB already done. There was the notion of honor with Caelian and where his people resided, and to break an oath was a serious deal, unlike many in the galaxy where uttering a few words meant only your favor if there was something in it for them.

His voice echoed through the Force and despite his efforts, she could still feel his pain, shock, and disappointment. He stated what one must do with traitors. The woman nodded and walked past his former master and then toward Caelian, turning to face his back as he remained in front of her.

"Then you know what you must do." she stated flatly.

He would not receive his weapon or given further instruction as Tiamat waited for the task to be executed.



@Xorism
 

Caelian

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There was a vast gulf between what he knew must be done versus what he wanted to see done. His face was forced to hold back a quiver, the agony of the task was taking a heavy toll upon the Echani as reality set in and the nieve aspirations were dashed. This was just as much of a test for him as it was a punishment for Romulus, the implications of failing it were not lost on him either.

His former master sat there on his knees in mute protest, staring directly into the pupil's eyes as he had done a thousand times before. No longer the once vibrant man, having been broken in the man held dearly onto what little energy he had left. Whether Caelian would want it or not, he planned to offer one final lesson to his former apprentice.

From where he stood Caelian watched Tiamat shift back and away from the very man he was to murder. Romulus meant nothing to her and it showed in how easily she accepted his demise. Did she envision Caelian becoming such a man under her tutelage? To become a stone-cold killer with little remorse? Even if the man had committed a crime that deserved it, condemning him and the act itself was entirely a different burden to overcome.

In a pained reluctance, the Echani lifted his hand to summon the force within him. Dark meandering tendrils of the dark side began to force themselves from him and make their way toward the target. A sinister enveloping twirled around Romulus as each layer constricted further, tightening an already painful grip into a treacherous one. But despite his best efforts, his former master resisted the stranglehold.

Caelian briefly looked to Tiamat as he realized that Romulus still had enough within himself to resist the crushing attack before returning his gaze to the man. Doubling his efforts, he squeezed tighter still as they both struggled against each other with neither making any real progress.

Why was he making this so difficult? The man was on the death's door and held on for dear life making this decision incredulously more difficult than it needed to be. Why couldn't he just sit there and let it happen, Caelian would grieve but the trauma would be less severe and more manageable. The clock was ticking and something had to be done, without his weapon he considered lightning would be dangerous if Romulus countered. There was, he thought, only one way and it shook him to his core to think it.

Whilst maintaining a tight grip around the man's chest, Caelian began to circle him. Romulus watched until he could no longer, his face catching glimpses of the Echani in his peripheral. Caelian looked back to Tiamat with a small trickle of tears forming before taking one last look at his former master alive. Leaning closer he wrapped his right arm around the man's throat into a headlock, compressing his airway. That combined with the force grip effort was clearly more than the broken man could resist, shortly afterward the telltale signs of asphyxiation presented themselves as the man started to wriggle.

"....I'm ...sorry...friend." The Echani struggled to say without a tongue. It wasn't decipherable by ear but by emotion.

In his dying moments, Romulus had realized that somewhere deep down the lessons he had taught to Caelian were still there somewhere. Perhaps they would be buried under an avalanche of hate and misery that Tiamat might inflict, he hoped that someday they would rise back to the surface. The hopeful wish was all he had left as the clock ticked down to his expiration. Perhaps his former pupil was lost to the dark side as he had seen many before, it was difficult to tell but the last lesson was necessary for his survival.

If Caelian was to survive in this environment, he would have to get his hands dirty and commit the very same deeds that Romulus had hoped he could spare the young man from. A lesson so very brutal and cold, laced with malice and suffering that even surprised the teacher himself. Caelian would have to give up a part of himself to complete the cruel task that he set before himself and in doing so, become better equipped to survive in the galaxy without the master's guidance.

As he sat there feeling the sweet embrace of death, he smiled, before his body went limp in Caelian's hold at last.




@GABA
 

Darth Tiamat

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Tiamat watched in silence; her golden gaze rested on the men before her, the disgraced master fighting for every last breath of his life before his student would take it. She understood the connection to one's master, the bond they would hold just like the bond she held with her own former master. However, what Caelian had yet to see is how his master has failed him, if his training was different, would he have been even put into this position? Did his master even know he had made his former pupil weaker by not giving him the training he deserved to have as a Sith.

The conflict within Cael was acceptable, she would have been more concerned if she could feel nothing from the sith learner. This lesson was not easy but it was necessary. Not only to teach Cael the consequences of one's actions, but also the need to stop failure further up the river before more can under his tutelage.

He went at it again, this time with a bit more conviction and force as he constricted the old man's airways. The moment felt as though it lasted for an eternity, the woman's mind wandering briefly to the research she could be doing instead of babysitting a Sith that got passed onto herself. Though she felt it in the Force, the life passing from this realm to the next, signaling it had been done.

Tiamat looked at Caelian, "You are dismissed for today, you may first visit the infirmary, they will get you a replacement for your tongue." she said remaining still until he would exit.



@Xorism
 

Caelian

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Caelian held the man tightly until he could both sense and feel the life literally drain out of him. It wasn't the first kill he had ever made, but it was the most significant one and one that would leave a lasting impression. A pang of emotional pain struck a nerve as the realization of what he had done became undeniable. The lifeless body became limp, pulling away from his grip and slumping quietly on the floor below.

Romulus had been a traitor, Caelian reminded himself as he stood back up, collecting his thoughts. He would have no funeral, no one would sing of his deeds nor hold his memory. Such a fate seemed worse than death to the young Echani, still lost for words. Pulling together for composure, he turned back towards Tiamat and watched her carefully for a sign that she approved of his actions as the turmoil flustered him.

In his turbulent emotional state, Caelian almost choked when Tiamat spoke about ending his punishment. His reward for learning and taking to heart her first of many lessons as his new master. Nodding in silence he dipped his head respectfully before withdrawing towards the infirmary. As he walked by the body, he took one long last look at the man he once called master before returning his gaze forward.

There would be consequences to his actions, but how that would play out, he wasn't sure yet.




@GABA

/end thread
 
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