Legends Have Many Sides

[Grace]

Aislin had just been preparing to launch herself into a further rant about her parents, but the slap brought her up short, knocking her head around and brought tears to her eyes. Slowly, she turned her head to watch Tepe leave the room.

 

"I'm sorry," she whispered, though she was sure no one heard her. Truth be told, it frustrated her that her parents would not live up to their potential. But despite that, they were still her parents and she loved them, no matter what. But their actions had hurt her and insults were her way of dealing with hurt. Apparently, she'd have to be careful about that around her great-grandfather, she decided as she touched her cheek gingerly.

 

"Least he didn't kill me," she muttered.

 

"So that's it then?" Ceru questioned. "You're not going to kill him?"

 

"No, I'm not," Aislin answered. "Even if I could, I wouldn't."

 

"Good," the ship said, "because if you decided you were still going to go through with it, I'd have to become your enemy. After all, I am one of his ships."

 

"Hope he gives you to me," Aislin muttered. "I do so love our conversations."

 

"Me too, Lin, dear," the ship replied. "Now off you go, like a good little great-granddaughter."

 

Nodding, Aislin entered the cabin she'd been using and began to meditate on what had just happened.

 

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

 

"It's always good to go back to Naboo," Charna agreed. Then she smiled. "And even better to have my husband join us. And I think I know who his 'company' is... and I look forward to meeting her as well."

[Black Knight of Keno]

The shuttle jumped out of hyperspace, immediately getting contacted by a customs ship for clearance. The intercom of the shuttle crackled open and a hort announcement came throught from the pilot:

"We have exited hyperspace and are starting landing procedures. Landing destination, Dantes Manor, outer Lake Country" the pilot informed and the intercom crackled shut again. Jony took his helmet, stood up and put it on. It was time to get back to work and so he became the silent bodyguard once more.

 

When the shuttle had landed, he swung his rifle behind his back and made sure everyone supposed to come out got out. The manor was a very beautiful place, made specifically for Lady Charna by the first Queen of Naboo who agreed to raise the Dominion banner above the Palace. It was raised a few meters from the ground as it was located in an easily flooding area, the landing platforms located at the same level but on solid ground as the further inland areas were higher than where the Manor had been built. Vines and plants decorated and hid the place from aerial view except for the landing platforms, which were easily covered by a cloaking device if it came to it. Ramps from the landing platforms led to one of the entrances to the house and directly at the other end of the house, a small private pier, which was customized to raise and lower according to the water level by having steps extending and folding, was located so they could go swimming and boating if they wished. The Manor itself was a three-floor house decorated with whatever Charna wished it to be, as Lord Tepe had given it to her as a little project to keep her busy. The top floor was small and meant for the Guards.

 

As the family was getting out, some Tusk cats walked by the fence of the landing platforms, heading for their daily hunt. Jony glanced at them, not giving much notice to them anymore after so many visits even if at first the animals had managed to intrigue him more than enought. When Charna herself stepped outside, the Head of Guard stood into attention.

"Milady" he said as a greeting and got ready to escort her until he as given leave

[Flamehart]

Strider gazed and smiled at the tranquil manner. "Sure know how to build a house, Tepe," he commented, his hips at his side. "This'll be interesting, I've been so busy I haven't seen Charna since the peace," he said, smiling at Tepe.

[Black Knight of Keno]

The Mjolnir silently orbited Naboo, resting it's crew and giving them well earned shore leave, leaving only a skeleton crew and the marines onboard. The trip had been swift and Aislin had been detained onboard the small ship for the entire time, not risking any chance of escape while Tepe and Strider were preoccupied and speaking of the tense situation.

 

Now the very same Syren-class Luxury Yacht Aislin had been using for her bounty hunting landed next to Charna's shuttle on the landing pad, opening the ramp for everyone to get outside. Tepe and Strider were the first to walk out, escorted by two of Tepe's guards and being followed by four more guards escorting Aislin. She had been disarmed and her lightsaber had been given to Tepe for safekeeping so she wouldn't try anything.

 

"Sure know how to build a house, Tepe. This'll be interesting, I've been so busy I haven't seen Charna since the peace" he heard from his side and nodded, looking around.

"Too bad I'm not the architecht here. The Queen of Naboo started construction especially for Charna. She's the one who has kept Naboo mostly untoutched and flourishing. So, as appreciation, they built this for her to retreat to when the pressures of Galactic matters were getting to her. And during these many years, I've managed to use it once or twice myself. and as far as Charna goes, she hasn't changed a bit from what she was back then" Tepe noted as he started to lead them towards the entrance.

 

------

 

Jony rushed to Charna within the house when the ship was landing and getting ready to let the important people inside it out to the landing platform. He rushed into the room where Charna was and bowed.

"Milady, Lord Tepe has arrived with Ambassador Flamehart and the Bounty Hunter Aislin Dantes" he informed her while straightening himself up

 

((I hope you don't mind me making it a Syren-class. If you have a problem with it, just say so and I'll change it))

[Grace]

Charna smiled. "Thank you, Jony," she said. "We shall go out to meet them."

 

She rose and, flanked by several of her younger children, moved toward the landing pad.

 

"Welcome to Naboo," she said, bowing slightly to Tepe and those that followed him. She stared for a long moment at Aislin before smiling at her.

 

"And you, Aislin Dantes," she said, "you have your father's eyes."

 

Aislin shifted uncomfortably under her great-grandmother's gaze. "And he has his grandfather's face," she answered, nodding her head in Tepe's direction. She smiled faintly. "Rather unnerving when the man you were sent to kill resembles your own father so closely..."

 

Charna raised a single eyebrow. "Indeed. So it was not merely his charm and power that made you flee from him at your first meeting."

 

"No," Aislin answered. Her hand went subconsciously for the lightsaber that wasn't at her belt. Though they were older than humans had a right to be, Aislin did not think her great-grandparents had a right to be so... emotionally intimidating.

 

Charna could sense the emotional turmoil within her great-granddaughter, but said nothing of it. She turned to Tepe. "She is no danger to us," she told him. "Let her have her weapons back. She'll feel significantly more comfortable with them within reach."

[Black Knight of Keno]

Tepe nodded silently to Charna, took out Aislin's lightsaber and twirled it in his hand unignited before giving it to his great-granddaughter so that the blade emitter was pointed towards the young woman just incase. He then walked to his wife and wrapped an arm around her waist, dismissing his and her guards before turning to see Strider.

 

"Please, Strider, enjoy our fine house. You will find out the high-end sensor and communications relays might help you in your find for the Sith Hunters when they are needed, which I suppose are soon. I just wish trusty old Emukiel has managed to get the new law to pass in the Governors' Council" the Lord said before looking at Aislin and her slightly swollen cheek caused by his hit.

"And you. You better behave yourself. I'd hate to kill someone of my own blood in one of the last sanctuaries of my family. You will be handled with in due time" he noted before removing his hand from Charna's waist.

 

"Excuse me. I need to check the news. I need to know what the Galactic Alliance has decided on my recent proposal. Then I can join you" the man said, gave a kiss on the Lady's cheek and going inside and straight into his office where he put on the Dominion HoloNet News, looking at the holoscreen coming up from the table.

"Good evening from everyone here in the DHHN. Our headlines today: New Law in the Thule System, Empire and Galactic Alliance in Negotiations, Sith Dominion Uniting, Terrorist Attack Against the Bogan Amphitheater" the Ubese newsreader said. only moments later a report came in about the Terrorist attack, then a spy report of the GA-Empire negotiations and the Sith Dominion's apparent unification from the traditional bickering government into a sort of fascism. This was interrupted by a pair of the younger kids rushing inside, not noticing it was the office until they were already inside and looking at their grandfather sitting in the room alone, more thoughtful than usually before he noticed the children, smiled and walked with them outside of the office, closing the door behind them.

 

"Whatever happens, you to need to promise me that when you grow up, never forget who you are. Even if it would be the middle of a war zone" he said and the grandchildren looked up at him.

"What do you mean?" the other asked and Tepe merely shook his head before they approached the room where Charna was flooding the guests with hospitality.

"This will not last. Every time before something bad happens, there are negotiations. And now it seems we're off to fight the Sith Dominion" Tepe said before they finally entered the room and the Lord let the grandchildren run off

[Flamehart]

"Might as well try, but you know how they like to answer," he said, reminding Tepe, then went to the communications relay to attempt to get ahold of the Sith Hunters.

 

"Sith Hunters, if you receive this message, this is Strider Flamehart. Tepe has requested our assistance with the conflict facing the world powers. Please meet at his estate on Naboo if you get this message and wish to aid. The Ragnarok is near, so you should still be able to pick up it's signature if you need to track me. Strider, out." he said. He sighed. Getting them all together again would be interesting, too long had passed and they had not been out of content, as it often happened. Getting them together again would be more difficult, and now that there were actually more of them, they were more spread out than before. When it was just him and Riebe, it was easy to get ahold of one or the other in one way shape or form. He only prayed at least some would come to his call.

[Grace]

"It's good to hear from you again, Strider," came a message from Jahara Tal. "I've fallen out of touch with everyone... not heard from Reibe or Katherine in decades. Just letting you know I'm close, so I'm coming. See you soon."

 

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

 

Aislin was sitting quietly in a corner, watching as Charna flitted from person to person, laughing and talking. She entertained her children, grandchildren, and even the guards with equal concentration, even trying on a couple of different occasions to get Aislin to speak. But she quickly realized that the young woman was intensely intimidated by both Tepe and herself, so she backed off a little.

 

"It's a little uncanny, isn't it?" an unfamiliar voice asked. Startled, Aislin looked over to see a younger-looking woman standing next to her. This newcomer's blonde hair was pulled back from her face in what might be called a 'stylishly casual' bun. Her bright blue eyes were focused on Charna.

 

"What?" Aislin wondered.

 

"That one so old can look as if naught a year has passed by them," the other woman answered. She smiled down at Aislin. "I've not seen you before... what's your name?"

 

"Aislin." The young bounty hunter thought it wise to conceal her last name, as she suspected it may have been exposed at least to the family that she had attempted an assassination of their leader. But the other woman grinned.

 

"Aislin Dantes," she concluded. "Oh, I've been wanting to meet you! You're fantastic!"

 

Startled, Aislin stood, her hand subconsciously going to her lightsaber. "Fantastic?" she echoed. The other woman nodded enthusiastically.

 

"Fantastic!" she repeated. "I've kept an eye on your career. You've done surprisingly well for being in the game only four years."

 

Aislin blinked. She hadn't expected to find a fan in this family... then again, this woman didn't exactly look like a Dantes...

 

"Jahara!" Charna exclaimed and the woman standing next to Aislin departed from her side with a grin, rushing into a warm embrace with Charna. Aislin flushed bright pink as she realized the woman she'd been speaking with had been none other than the Sith Hunter Jahara Tal.

[Black Knight of Keno]

It was quite the number of children Tepe and Charna had managed to get during the century and it was quite weird to think that some of them had died of old age before seeing the newest addition to the family. However, most who knew the family had grown to accept the odd fact. Even the children.

 

Tepe sat down in the middle of the room, looking at Jahara and smirking. It was even more odd to see Charna and Jahara embrace each others like friends, even if they were enemies during the Formation Wars. That just showed you the human nature, which some species even after millenias of interaction couldn't figure out. The Lord looked at them silently, merely sitting there with some of the youngest children buzzing around him.

 

"Looks can be decieving, can't they Aislin?" he asked after a long silence from his part. With a smile, he stood up and the children screamed and ran off laughing. With a steady step he walked to her and extended his hand towards her to help her up.

"Come. Walk with me throught the forest. You have many questions which you no doubt wish to ask but cannot in this crowd" he said. Some of the guards got ready to leave with them, but the Lord gave them a look which denied them this duty. So the guards backed off again, marching to the top floor where they were normally stationed.

 

Jony, however, was sitting in the kitchen with Tepe's Head of Guards and a couple of his children that were nearing their twenties. They had engaged in chater about the Armed Forces and the Guards, as it was roughtly the time for the children to join the Dominion Armed Forces to serve the mandatory time of a standard year and after that possibly specialize in something. They even had the option to become Guards, but more probably Sunguards as the personal guards rarely were shorthanded. The main problem indeed was that what they wanted. The Navy was always shorthanded and had to use droids to keep the crew requirements to minimum, the Starfighter Corps weren't shorthanded but it wouldn't hurt to get some recruits there and the regular soldiers were always needed, as they were the ones who died most often. They had the plus side of it in that their father didn't demand anything of them with the choise they made about service, but he wouldn't help them get into the higher ranks either. He wanted his children to succeed on their own, not by daddy creating a new honorary rank which they could have. He didn't even name most of his sons Princes or his daughters Princesses, thinking that it would only create an aura of arrogance around them. The only time when he splashed the title around was posthumously and only to those of his children and grandchildren and great-grandchildren that had managed to do something with their lives.

[Flamehart]

Strider came down from the communications. If anyone else got his message, they would be sure to arrive. He had already gotten another one from Katherine as well, who was on her way. He went down to visit the rest of the Dantes family and smiled upon seeing Jahara, who looked at him with an expression of confusion.

 

"Like the new look? I think it makes me look younger, you know, being over 4100 years old and all, I can afford to shave a few years once in awhile!" Strider exclaimed, smiling.

[Grace]

Jahara laughed. "Well, well!" she exclaimed. "Guess I can see how you've been spending your recent days... I scarcely recognized you." With a chuckle, she added, "After a few decades apart, it's not unusual to hear that said among friends... however with us, it means a little something different."

 

Then, she took a step back to examine his new look fully. After a moment of silent observation, she shrugged. "It does make you look younger, I suppose..."

 

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

 

As they entered the forest together, Aislin was silent and thoughtful, seeming hesitant to speak to Tepe. In truth, she was more uncomfortable around him than she was around Charna, but after the encounters in which she was captured, she had gained a deep respect for him.

 

"I-I intended to [/i]kill[/i] you," she said finally, her voice low. "You knew that and you still met with me... and when I jumped through a window, careless of my own safety, you protected me." She looked up at him and he could see in her eyes a mixture of fear, respect, and trust.

 

"Furthermore, you provided the discipline I never knew as a child when I insulted my father," she went on. "And through all of this, I never saw anger or hate in your eyes. Your actions came of love..." Her words trailed off into a thoughtful silence. Finally, she shook her head.

 

"I don't understand you," she finished. "And I don't understand your wife, your children, or your friends. Now that I've spent even a little time observing all of you, I am nearly positive I shall never understand any of you and I'm okay with that. But I am absolutely positive that, even if I had the ability, I could not end your lives. There's a connection between us... here," She tapped her chest over her heart, "and here," she tapped her head. "I won't harm you because I am incapable of it... in more ways than one."

 

With a little sigh, Aislin shook her head. "And if I've made any sense whatsoever to you, I've got to give you credit for your interpretation skills... I don't think I made much sense to myself..." This thought amused her and she smiled. But then, a thought struck her.

 

"But what am I going to do?" she wondered. "I've already returned the initial payment the Sith Dominion dropped in my account for the job... but now, I've got no job and the depreciated reputation of having one job I could not complete..." It was obvious on her face she didn't like that, but it was equally obvious that even regaining her reputation of no failed jobs would not persuade her to change her mind.

[Black Knight of Keno]

"You talk too mutch" Tepe said with a smirk before looking at her properly.

"And to make you feel at ease, I rarely understand it all either. The terms 'family', 'children' and 'friends' are such strong words that nobody can really get what they are all about anymore. And have you taken into concideration that maybe it would be time for me to die. After over a 150 years of living, maybe it would be time for someone like me to step down from the opportunity for more?" he asked and chuckled.

"Too bad I'm stubborn and like my life, eh?"

 

"And to what you said about my actions, they are not formed throught emotions. That is why I made a bad Jedi. And an even worse Sith. Love, hatred, compassion... They never came throught in my actions. I am a man who works with his brains and memories to keep himself the man he wishes to be. I do not have an anti-slavery law because of empathy, but because my brains tell me that all slavery has done is cause major trouble to the nation. Brains are the most valuable asset to the human body, yet not many of them use it. Emotions are a bad place to find support and guidance. They are always biased" he said before kneeling down and touching the ground, using the force to feel the surroundings before standig back up.

 

"Let me show you something" he said and took her hand in both of his hands so she wouldn't move too far from him. The Lord closed his eyes to concentrate and cleared hs mind of thoughts before sending every important memory of his to be seen by Aislin as a slideshow. The fall to the dark side, finding Ruun, training in the junges, Darth Rythe, Welmin's Cantina, his first Jedi kill, formation of the Dominion, meeting with the New Republic diplomats and Sith Hunters, followed by a meeting with the senate itself, the launch of his fleets, several battles of the Formation Wars, the duel with Sith Hunters on Ruun, his walk throught the Sith Hunter machine, the first kiss with Charna and then after a long period of a feeling of calmness, Aislin's drawing of a weapon, her jumping out of the window, her meeting with Charna and then this very moment. Tepe released her hand and stepped back.

 

"After all that horror with only a few moments of happiness, would you trust your emotions?" he asked and smiled. He took out his ligtsaber and looked at her quietly for a while before igniting it. Unlike what it had been during the Formation Wars, it was a purple instead of red and the hilt was partly covered with electrum.

"It is time to test you. If you pass this test, I might give you the opportunity of your life" he said and lowered the blade into the starting form of Makashi, a form no more tought and replaced by a mere three forms of combat, which were easily conquered with the right knowledge of the right old lightsaber combat forms.

[Flamehart]

A young woman with short, shoulder length black hair and dressed in black and red clothes approached the group, her clothing reminded them much of the style Strider once wore in his early years as a Sith Hunter. Then again, considering her mentor, much of his habits had rubbed off on her to lead to that.

 

"Strider, what the hell have you done to your hair?" the woman asked in shock.

 

Strider laughed and responded, "Hey there, Katherine. Like it? What are you doing wearing my clothes anyway?"

 

Katherine shrugged, "Got me there," she said. "What, do you think it makes you look younger or something?"

 

"Doesn't it!?"

 

"No," Katherine responded harshly, teasing Strider. She smiled and embraced him, then embraced Jahara. "Good to see you've been doing well lately too, where you been?" She turned and then gave Charna an embrace as well. "How's being married to Tepe going? Hopefully he's not too boring?" she said with a joking smile.

[Black Knight of Keno]

Sevral KE-8 Enforcer Patrol Crafts spread out, flying over the forests of Wayland, searching for something. A young psadan male sat immodible next to a tree as the airspeeders went over and put on a modified comlink, listening in to the frequency the craft were using.

"Sir, he couldn't have run further than this. According to HQ calculations, we should've seen him already on the radar"

"Yeah, we missed him. Let's go ten miles, turn around and try again on the way back"

"Yes, sir"

 

The man waited for the craft to go over him again before continuing towards the mountains where a small shuttle waited. Once he reached the small clearing before the ground began to slope up against the mountainside, he was shocked to see nothing there even if his contact had promised to be there. However, before he attempted to return to the forest, a small seed-like shuttle no longer than twenty meters apeared, disengaging it's stealth mode. A ramp from the back of it opened and a Kel Dor came out, wearing the robes of a Baran Do sage. The man turned around andrushed to the Kel Dor, giving out a small disk and getting a lump sum of credits in return. After the transaction was done, the Kel Dor entered his ship and lifted off the planet, engaging stealth mode once again. One he reached space, he revealed another trick up the ship's sleeve by opening a large solar sail.

 

Inside, the sage sat down on a chair infront of a computer. Behind him was a very spartan sleeping section and next to him the door to the cockpit. The ship was piloted by a droid, when in space before it got ready to jump into hyperspace when an astrodroid took over the calculating. Meanwhile the Kel Dor placed the disk into a terminal, looking throught it's contents and forwarding them to Serenno to his master and employer, as he worked as an aide for a high-ranking official in the Sith Dominion.

"The information is quite impressive. We now know the weak spots of Lord Tepe's pathetic Dominion. It is like I have seen. The Sith can now take down a major opponent" he said into a note that he sent with the critical information the Inner Circle had wished to gather.

[Shana]

Name: Arlyn Krinn AKA Princess of Darkness or Lady Ivy

Age: apparently 27

Appearance:

Occupation: Sith

Weapons: Crimson Bladed Lightsaber.

Ship: Vulture Claw.

History: Arlyn grew up among the Sith for as long as she can remember. Though she has always been a part of the lower ranks of the Sith, her capabilities have never been questioned. She has always favored using the force and has studied extensively the reaches of her power only rarely has she been seen using her lightsaber. She is often referred to as Princess of Darkness due to her beautiful features and smile. But also she has been known to manipulate and use her looks to get what she wants and she wants to rule the Sith.

 

=============================

 

It was cold in the night. Two men ran through the dim lit streets, breathing heavily and looking back often as if something or someone followed close. They soon stopped near a blast door to the entertainment district. Both had their blasters out and ready to shoot incase something came from the corner.

 

In the night sky a dark figured lept from building to building, carefully watching as to not make a sound. The figure closed in and looked at both men from above.

 

The men soon started to lower their weapons, clearly thinking they had escaped the fate they were going to face at the hands of the figure who still watched from the shadowed roof.

 

Once thir guns were holstered, the men started to make for the turbo lift to the entertainment district. Suddenly one of them drew his blaster pistol from it's holster and pointed it wildly to every corner of the hallway as he watched his fellow man suspended in the air clutching at his neck as if something invisible was choking him. The man with his blaster whimpered at the sight and tried to run away only to have a pile of steel canisters fall down and crush his legs so he could not move. The whimpers soon turned to cries for help. The man suspended in the air was slammed from wall to wall until his face and back were covered in blood. A steel pipe came loose from the side of the building and when the body of this man was tossed one more time, the pipe penetrated his chest and was left there to bleed out and die.

 

The other man continued to scream and cry for help, the tears rolled in his eyes as he watched his fellow man get killed and the blood of his body splattered all over the ally walls. The figure lept from the roof and gently fell over the ground as if something caught her and smoothly placed her standing on the ground. The figure walked slowly to the man and lifted an arm over him. The hand was clearly visible to belong to a woman. Her hand closed in a fist and the man clutched at his chest and started to scream in pain. As the woman tightened her fist the man's pain was bigger and bigger to the point when he spat blood. Finally with a flicker of her wrist, the man was lifted from the ground and suffered the same fate as his fellow mate. The woman kept walking away from the scene, never lowering her hood, taking with her a small datapad that was in the men's belongings. She then disappeared around a dark corner into the night.

[Grace]

As she was still shaken from Tepe's sharing of different parts of his life, Aislin did not immediately draw her saber. But she recovered quickly and the saber came to life with a flash of orange and its wielder settled into the opening stance of Ataru, indicating that whoever taught her had been trained in more than the three forms of combat more recently taken up by the Jedi. And after a moment of observing Tepe's stance, Aislin attacked, but almost immediately after her first strike, she shifted fluidly into Soresu.

 

Over the next couple of minutes, Aislin displayed her ability to shift easily from Ataru to Soresu and back, attacking with Ataru and defending by Soresu. Her 'blended' form of combat ever so slightly resembled that of someone Tepe had fought before; Reibe Vailar. The only difference is that Reibe also included elements of Makashi and her own 'tricks', but Aislin did not.

 

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

 

"All over the galaxy," Jahara answered. "Never been one to stay in one place much..."

 

Charna laughed at Katherine's teasing. "Being married to Tepe is only dull in that it has lately required more attendance in diplomatic affairs than in actual combat," she said. "However, I find ways to keep myself and my skills in shape."

 

With a raised eyebrow, she went on, "Actually, he's presently occupied with one of our great-grandchildren..." She smiled at the thought, "one we didn't know we had. In all your travels, I'm sure you've heard of Aislin Dantes."

 

"More than heard of her," Jahara snorted in amusement. "Seen her in action. She's quite the impressive hunter."

[Black Knight of Keno]

"Impressive. Most impressive. I must meet your teacher" he asked while parrying with relative ease. A smile came upon his face as he observed all the small mistakes she made which would in turn give her opponent the place to end the battle, yet the man did not. Not yet. It took a while of dueling before Tepe noted it was no longer going anywhere. It had reached it's peak of interest and so the Lord ended it. With a swift combo of parrying, moving her blade only slightly aside and then jabbing his blade forwards brought them at a standstill which suited him perfectly. His blade was pointing at her stomach while her lightsaber was pointing at his neck but in such a position that were she to strike, she would plunge herself against his lightsaber.

 

"I have seen those two forms utilized together before, but in much more skillful and spohisticated hands. You wouldn't have been mingling with a Sith Hunter, now would you?" he asked with a grin, deactivating his lightsaber and stepping away from her blade's bright end. He clipped the hilt back on his blade and turned to see her again.

 

------

 

The Kel Dor's ship landed on a remote landing area on Serenno, the capital of the Sith Dominion. As he stepped off the ship with the original disk, he was encountered by two sith from the Inner Circle, a sort of secret society that is behind many great men of today. As the Baran Do sage approached them, they all bowed and after standing straight, took the disk.

 

"Thank you, Gor Dash. This will prove very useful. However, we are sorry to inform you that your master was killed. Assassinated. You are free to pick your new employer, from the Sith Dominion or outside of it, but we were hoping you might concider sticking around. You are a very valuable asset for the Circle. And now that we are going to include one more figure into it, we need someone who we can trust to make sure she doesn't grasp for too much power. We are waiting for the so called 'Princess of Darkness' to attend our next meeting, taking we sent her an invitation. You could at least take a look and decide afterwards" one of the Sith said, putting the disk into his pocket for now.

"Yes, milords. I will gladly meet your new member. Maybe it'll prove to be a job worth taking" the sage said and bowed. The sith bowed back before leaving for their speeder that would take them back to the Governmental district. Under the Sith Dominion's rule, the planet had become a ecumenopolis. It might not stand as tall as the one on Coruscant, but it was still easy to lose yourself in the city. The Kel Dor walked back to his ship and began meditating. As was the sages' way, he wished to see what was going to happen in the future. So he meditated

[Grace]

A look of surprise flickered across Aislin's face as she switched her saber off and clipped it to her belt. "N-no, not to my knowledge," she answered. "I trained with the Jensaarai for five years." She frowned thoughtfully. "Although... six months into training, I was assigned to a different master... one who never gave her name."

 

"I'm proud of this one, Kid," Reibe announced, stepping out of the trees behind Tepe. It was clear she was referring to him when she said 'Kid'. "A very fast learner... almost as fast as Jahara was."

 

Aislin gasped. "You..." she stammered. Reibe smiled kindly.

 

"You sound like you could use a little help with words," she observed. "I am Reibe Vailar, leader of the Sith Hunters."

 

"I-I..." Aislin attempted. But again, Reibe was faster to finish her young student's sentence than Aislin could have done on her own.

 

"You had no idea," she concluded. "And yet didn't it seem odd to you? A woman nineteen years old by appearance with such skill and power as I have?" She shook her head. "But you were never one to question. You wanted skill and it mattered little who it came from."

 

She turned to Tepe. "You're right, Tepe," she said. "Aislin's skills are impressive, but she was too quick to leave training. She was not yet ready for the full form, so she only learned a part of it... and it was the part that suited the career she'd chosen for herself." She smiled faintly. "I find it highly interesting that she's found her way now to you, one of the last living masters of Makashi. And her own great-grandfather at that."

 

"I tried to kill him," Aislin mumbled, looking as though she felt extremely guilty for it. Reibe chuckled and nodded.

 

"Not to worry, Aislin," she said. "I've done much the same over the years. Now we've got something of a friendship... no, make that partnership going. If it's a wise thing to do, he's not one to withhold his trust merely because you jabbed a saber at him a few times."

[Shana]

Arlyn stepped inside a large building in the main square of the city. There were three men standing in the archway of a blastdoor. One of them came over to her and stopped a few feet away.

 

- "Lady Ivy, they are expecting you. Please make yourself comfortable, they will be with you shortly" - the man said opening the blastdoor. Arly walked through it and stood at the far corner of the room staring at a tank of alien fish that swam through the tanks that surrounded the conference room. She had been invited by the Circle and she wanted to see what it was all about.

[Black Knight of Keno]

"Jensaarai... Bah. Those people think their armors can protect them from everything. What I'm wondering is why you, Riebe, were spending time with them? Trying to lure one of my own flesh and blood to your scheming?" he asked, looking at the Sith Hunter with a grin before looking towards the building they had come from, covered by the forest's thickness.

 

"Well, at least you have something in common. Neither of you have yet managed to finish my life" Tepe noted before starting to walk back towards the manor. Suddenly, his comlink beeped and the Lord took out a small holoprojector-equipped comlink, pressing a button and so receiving the visual of his aide bowing.

 

"My lord, I was asked to fill you in on the new law and report that our Wayland headquarters has been breached. According to the commander, the spy took with him one of our strategy maps" the aide said in the sith dialect with Tepe merely nodding afterwards, even if you could see from his eyes that he was not happy of the news.

"Fill me in on the law later. Tell High Command to revamp the entire strategy. Start bringing in the reservists and double all border guards. Also, put the gears rolling on the NSES project. I want the greyshirts in action by the end of the week" Tepe responded shortly afterwards in the same sith dialect before pocketing the comlink and looking at the building they had managed to come in front of while he was speaking with the aide.

 

------

 

Shortly after Arlyn had entered the waiting room, the same Kel Dor that had only a few hours ago arrived from Wayland entered the same room. He gave a glance at the woman before entering the conference room without any objection from the guards. The Inner Circle didn't even flinch as the sage named Gor Dash entered and took a seat next to a wall, as he was merely an advisor and nothing more before he took the new aide's job as his own. The meeting continued for a while before the leading member gave the signal to the guards to bring in Lady Ivy. Sitting silently, Gor merely observed as the Lady was given way so she could get inside the dimly lit room with seven men and two women sitting around a round table with a holoprojector in the middle.

 

"Lady Ivy, please take a seat" one of the men said, turning his seat around so he could face her and pointed towards the only vacant seat around the table. As soon as she was seated, the meeting continued.

"Now, Lady Ivy, you were brought here because we have given you the honor of being one of the few people in the Inner Circle. Unfortunately, once the decision is made, you cannot refuse because you know already too much of us. This will be your first meeting, so let us start it with some spy information" he said, activating the infromation on the disk provided by the Baran Do sage.

 

"This is the latest news we have of the locations of Tepe's fleets and armies and their strenghts. The Dark Lord doesn't wish to strike yet upon the, so it must only mean he is weak. Are there objections of replacing him? Any proposals for the replacement?" the head of the Circle asked.

 

((Miracle, you're free to control the Inner Circle as you wish))

[Grace]

"I've been following Aislin's life almost from day one, Tepe," Reibe informed him. "Over the years, she's shown such skill and intelligence. Your grandson left the Cerulean Eye to rust to pieces. Aislin practically rebuilt the entire thing and figured out how to switch on the AI... and all this at just sixteen and seventeen years old."

 

She grinned at Aislin and continued, "And yes, Tepe, I went to the Jensaarai merely because Aislin had gone to them for training." She snorted. "It took me a year to persuade their leader to duel me for the privilege of training her." She shot Tepe a sharp look. "And before you ask, yes I could have just dominated the minds to make them agree with me, but..." She grinned at Aislin, "... I do so love a challenge."

 

"And then you ran off on me!" she accused, whirling to point a finger at Aislin. "Thought you had all the skills you needed, did you?" She shrugged and grinned. "But no matter. All together now. One big happy family." Her grin widened and she nodded.

 

"Now, if the two of you will excuse me, I've got to go in and say hello to my family," she said, skipping away through the forest toward the house. Aislin watched her go with a mixture of amusement and confusion.

 

"Ever get the feeling that you've just had a conversation with the most unpredictable being in the galaxy?" she wondered aloud. "Just the feel when she's around... it's like you never know if she's gonna hug you or stab you through the heart..."

[Flamehart]

Strider turned as Riebe entered. He knew her Force signature anywhere, and it was impossible to hide from his recognition.

 

"Riebe! Hey there, long time no see, kid," he remarked, smiling at her. She did it to Tepe, he knew, and because he still had a leg up of a couple thousand years, did the same to her to tease.

 

"Looks like most of us are here, minus a few I think. Are we missing anyone? I'm not sure," Strider said, not even mentioning his new look to Riebe. She hadn't seen it ever before, but he knew if she wanted to say something incredibly blunt, she would.

[Black Knight of Keno]

"With her around, you'll get bored of it rather swiftly" Tepe noted and led Aislin towards the house also. Before they got to the door, he turned to Aislin and held her from the shoulders, looking closely at her and sencing around and inside her.

 

"Hmm... You have the potential" he mumbled after a short moment and then removed his hands.

"You have the potential to become a great force-user, whatever sect you choose. Would you be willing to step under my teaching and harness your strength or are you going to stay a Bounty Hunter, in which case I have quite the challenge for you" the lord asked, standing in front of Aislin and watching her as he waited for an answer

[Grace]

"To my knowledge, this is all of us," Reibe confirmed, looking from Strider to Katherine and back with an amused smirk. "So what's the deal with you two... role reversal?" She chuckled. "Only Katherine never had white hair, Strider... didn't you know white is a sign of age?"

 

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

 

"Either path presents a great challenge," Aislin said thoughtfully. "But which is the greater challenge?" After a moment of thought, she nodded slowly. "Training. I choose training."

[Black Knight of Keno]

"Good. Good. You shall take the position by my side that your great grandmother once held" the Lord said and smiled widely before leading her inside. Walking off to Charna, he sat down next to her and took her hand. Before he could relax too much, Tepe's head of guards came over and whispered something in his ear.

"This day is getting better and better. Tell them they have full authority until tomorrow evening" he said and the guard nodded before leaving again. He looked at Charna and smiled, knowing he would owe an explanation for everything. He would explain later, but now the sun was starting to set over the skies of Naboo. A droid came into the room and started shooing the kids to bed. The nanny droid they had gotten for this house specifically so they could get some privacy when they were staying there. This time it was just for saving time.

 

------

 

A speeder stopped infront of a large mansion used by the leaders of the Sith Dominion since Kaoin built the place two years into his rule. Stone steps led to large metal doors that opened inwards on hinges, which was a rather archaic invention rarely used anymore. Out of the speeder jumped a young higher-ranking officer in the intelligence corps. After making sure his uniform was straight and the cap was on like it was supposed to, he rushed inside, the doors opening before he could get all the way up the stairs. As he got inside, a long corridor stretched in front of him, leading after two sets of massive, pompous stairs to the throne room of the Dark Lord. The officer began to run, as he was in a hurry as it was.

 

He didn't stop before he got to the door leading into the throne room itself. A pair of guards noticeable as Royal Guards only by the red and black stripes on their right shoulders opened the door for the intelligence officer who walked in slightly out of breath. The doors closed behind him as the man rushed forwards and knelt before the Dark Lord.

 

"My lord, we have gotten confirmation that the inner circle is threatening your life. Our spies were unable to extract any names of the members of the inner circle from the prisoner, but we did get confirmation of a conspiracy to take control of the Sith Dominion. My supervisors wished me to tell you that the best course of action they could think of is have decoys at public events and you yourself to head for safety on Bakura. We are undertaking surveillance upon all commanders in the military to know who might be most loyal to escort you, my lord"