The Start of Something... Tedious

[Marr Zianti]

Marr Zianti
Thustra,

A nineteen year old Sephi sat unmoving behind the counter of his little weapons shop. The afternoon hours were creeping slowly into night, and it would be time to close the shop soon. Today had been slower than usual, with only three customers coming in, one buying a small throwing knife, one who requested a weapon polishing, and another who headed in and went right back out.

Buisness was decent, though Marr always remembered the days when his father ran the shop; customers pouring in on the hour, his father walking around importantly and ready to make a deal, weapons being cleaned, polished, and refurbished after hours for all the customers who left them overnight. But his father was on a trip, and he would be back soon. And the shop would go back to its' former glory.

Bored, Marr threw one of his own daggers at the wall, and quickly stretched out his other hand to stop it before it hit the wall. The Force. That's what the one jedi had called it when he was searching for a blaster. The man had dropped one of the guns he was holding, and Marr had used the Force to keep it from hitting the ground and potentially going off. The jedi was impressed and gave him a bit of a history lesson on the Force and the people who used it. Marr had listened patiently, but eventually asked the man if he was going to buy anything. The jedi had looked slightly disappointed and left.

The Sephi slowly controlled the floating dagger and let it come to rest on the counter in front of him. At least it gave him something to do. Marr put the blade away and waited for closing time to come so that he could practice with his new bo staff.


Little did he know what would await him in the coming days....

 

[Via Dolorosa]

The day that once held the promise of something productive was slowly turning into a waste of time. She had been tasked to seek out a 'rare' and 'special' holocron, its origins unknown, and return it to the Sith academy. She had found she was excited to have been chosen for this assignment but that excitement had turned to bitterness when her mind began to taunt her with the idea that this was nothing more than a fool's errand; a way for the Sith teachers to get her out of their hair for a day or two. So be it. Fool's errand or not, she would take this opportunity to seek out information of coming and goings of the galaxy. The information, whether it had to do with the war or not, the Acolytes received in the academy had been passed down from one person to another so many times that the truth of it was lost and the facts misconstrued so badly that if you believed any of it you were a simpleton.

"And you are positively sure you do not know what I speak of," Xhexania asks one last time locking eyes with the small, timid male human behind the counter. With a quick shake of his head, she sighed and released his brown, dirty shirt from her right hand. "You will not speak of what I inquired to anyone else. Do so, and you will find that I can be very unforgiving," she says over her shoulder as she passes through the shop's doors. Mentally checking off the last shop on this side of the street, she crossed over to the side to begin her search anew. The first six shops did not know of what she sought and two of those shops had owners that had been so unhelpful that she had decided to simply do away with them. In the end, they lived for now.

A scream from the next shop attracted her attention but when she saw that is was some form of robbery taking place, she shrugged her shoulders and peered into the shop's windows. The owner or clerk was lying face down on his counter and it didn't take a genius to know his fate while another figure ransacked the register. He would not have the information she was seeking but the way this day was turning out, he was probably the one that did know something useful about this holocron. Skipping the shop of the dead, she entered the next to last shop on this block.

Upon entering the shop, she quickly surmised that there was another Force user in here. A quick scan proved that the only two persons in this shop was her and the male behind the counter. She didn't feel any kind of Force signature that would cause her to believe he was light or dark. He simply was touched by the Force. She casually walked through his shop ignoring his stares and any attempts on his part to converse. She would speak to him when she was ready. Finding a few things useful in his shop minus what she was really looking for, she moved to the counter and locked her eyes to his.

"I've spent the better pat of my day in this back-watered city looking for something that is special to some people I know. All the other shop keepers I've spoken to, minus the one that is now dead, have been very unhelpful. I can sense you are different. I was told it could be purchased in one of these shops but my faith in that is dwindling." Reaching out with her left index finger, she began to trace the outline of his right face from the top part of his forehead to his jawline. "Where can I find the holocron? I know all you shopkeepers talk among yourselves and something as rare as a holocron must have come up in some conversation circles."

[member="Marr Zianti"]

 

[Marr Zianti]

After a few minutes and no customers, Marr decided to close the shop early. He was just about to lock the doors when a cloaked figure strolled importantly in, an air of nonchalance about him. Marr stopped where he was, sensing a strong... Aura about this person. Like his own but stronger. More... Focused. It intrigued him, and he was drawn to the power.

"Hello. Welcome to my Weapons shop. I sell and refurbish weapons of all kinds and series. Are you looking for something..." His customary greeting trailed off when he noticed the person didn't seem to care less, and was ignoring him prominently. Marr clenched his teeth, and grasped at the throwing knives hidden in his pockets, though for some reason doubted they would be very useful.

He watched silently as the person examined his wares, then moved swiftly up to the counter. He stifled a gasp. The person... A female, was wearing what he hoped was just some serious face paint. Between the unnerving black lines and markings that covered her body, the hood, and the strong aura, Marr decided that he would be very cautious around this person. Just in case. Unfortunately, he wasn't very well trained in keeping calm.

The Sephi listened silently as the girl explained briefly why she was here and what she was looking for. To his credit, he didn't flinch when she touched him, but did clench his jaw even further. He was slightly confused and saddened to hear that one of his fellow shopkeepers was dead... Though that would mean better business for him. And then the girl asked the question, and his mind sparked in panic.

A holocron. The holocron. His father's holocron. The one that he had brought back with him on his last trip. The item that kept him away from home for three months while he tried to find it. His father has returned home tired, filthy, skinny, but triumphant. He had held out his hand to show Marr the object; which had been a blue tinged, cube shaped object. Marr had asked what was so special about it, and his father had proceeded to beat him. He had never asked about the holocron again, and his father only told him that if they were able to sell it, they would be rich for generations to come.

His father had kept the holocron on him at all times, and seemed to be much more cautious; speaking to other shop owners less and less, sometimes letting what might've been a good bargain tilt in the customers' favor, and retiring to his study at night for hours without eating or sleeping.

As far as Marr knew, his father still had it with him. His parents had gone for a trip to Hoth, and weren't back yet. He had no idea why this odd person would even know that his father was in possession of a holocron, but was definitely not going to tell this person any of that.

The Sephi kept the girl's gaze, but it was obvious that he had paused for several seconds. "A holocron? Why yes, an item like that would definitely spark up some interest between shopkeepers. But i haven't heard any talk of such an item for quite some time." A short pause as a devious story entered his mind. "A few years ago, in the shop next to mine, there was a man who dealt in black market trades. He had closed his shop for several months and we all thought he had moved off-world. But his store was never for sale and his wife still lived there."

"On the sixth month of him being gone, he returned. He had lost an eye and an arm, but had a huge smile on his face and a small object in his hands. A holocron."

"He boasted to anyone who listened, and set a enormous price on the stolen holocron. However, after only a week of having the object, a group of cloaked figures visited during the night and murdered him and his wife, burned down their store, and took the holocron with them. Nobody around here has dared to look for one again." He finished his story and waited to see if the lie would satisfy the strange girl.

 

[Via Dolorosa]

[member="Marr Zianti"]



Xhexania merely observed the body language of the shopkeeper as he weaved his tale of lies. She felt the Force in him just as he may have felt it in her, for she was not trying to mask it but broadcast it loudly for all to receive. She wanted this holocron and any who stood in her way was an object to be dealt with, harshly. Besides the small gestures of movement in his body language, he was practically screaming through the Force his nervousness in dealing with her. However, it wasn't his nervousness she found unnerving but how he continued to fabricate his lies further while his mind betrayed him. She could have killed him for his insolence but he did have knowledge of a holocron cause why go through so much effort to keep up this story's ruse.

She turned her head to examine the outside to show her own ruse that she was believing his fable. "These hooded figures you spoke of, did you or anyone recognize them? Does anyone know if they are still planet side? Perhaps a name of a city they may have fled to," she asked returning her gaze back to his. While she waited for his reply. she began to formulate a plan in her mind. She would not kill him, yet, but use him to achieve success in her quest. He could prove quite useful and though he would surely keep up the guise of his story, she would earn his trust and perhaps without violence he would reveal the truth about the holocron. Even help her search where she can keep close tabs on him. If that proved unsuccessful, then she would be forced to rip it from his memory.

Another thought occurred to her as she waited for his response. Did he know he had the gift of the Force? It was there, raw and unpolished, waiting to rear up and be formed into something powerful. Perhaps he would make a great Sith? Perhaps her Master could sway his allegiance? Maybe, just maybe, she would attempt to bring him over to the Dark Side rather than discard him once his purpose had been served. Surely the Jedi would snatch him up if they knew about him if not to prevent him from turning into another enemy. If that happened, then he would have wished for death rather than spending a meaningless life with those brown-cloaked fools.

 

[Marr Zianti]

[member="Xhexania"]

Marr waited nervously for the girl... Or lady, he couldn't exactly tell, to answer. He wasn't sure if she believed him or not, but did know that he wasn't a great lier. Sure, he practiced lying a lot with shopkeepers and do-gooding buyers, but that didn't mean he had ever been particulary skilled in the first place. What he did know, was that her aura was drawing him in. The power, the force of it, the fact that it made Marr want to hand her his holocron without a fuss and maybe even throw in one of the nice blasters he had acquired recently, was stunning. And he wanted to know if this could be taught, but decided that now might not be the best time. He had to focus all of his attention on his lies.

He started to answer her questions. "The men... None of us shopkeepers that had seen them had ever encountered them before. They wore black cloaks that covered their bodies, and most wore menacing-looking masks. They were quite pointless though, for we weren't able to see the faces of the unmasked men anyway. None of us shopkeepers have seen them since, save for one man who wore a dark cloak and stayed around the market area for a few days. He did not wear a mask though, and didn't have the strange, forceful and dangerous aura about him that the murderers did." Marr knew he was going out on a limb by saying that the men had the same presence about them that the gi... lady did, and there were many ways that lie could go wrong, but there was nothing he could do about that now. "As for where the men could have fled to, we just know they ran west, and out of town. We haven't heard anything about them since, and nobody here was exactly keen to prod into their buisness."

He ached to be running his fingers along a knife, or be tinkering with a blaster; that always soothed his mind. However, he dared not move from the counter or take out one of the two knifes from his pocket. An action that involved a weapon would probably get him shot and killed. Marr wished silently that his fingers would stay still, but couldn't bend them to his will, and they tapped patterns on the worn counter. He winced and hoped that the lady wouldn't take this as a sign of him being nervous. He just had work-minded fingers.

 

[Via Dolorosa]

[member="Marr Zianti"]


Xhexania simply nodded toward the shopkeeper as he described the thieves. She wondered if he was aware that he was describing members of the Sith Order, point in fact, he was describing members from the Cult of Mana. The cult was an ancient sect that dedicated themselves to Sith magik and were known to scour the length of the galaxy in quest of retrieving artifacts from both the Sith and Jedi Orders, like holocrons. Xhexania would have granted this shopkeeper an ounce of truth to this lie but the Cult of Mana vanished around the same time Darth Bane culled the entire Sith Order, installing the legendary Rule of Two.

However, if the Sith survived all these years hidden from the Jedi and the Republic before revealing themselves under the rule of Darth Sidious, was it possible this cult did as well. And, this shopkeeper described them as if he had saw them at some pointe in his life. One of the greatest tricks the cult possessed in terms of Force powers was the ability to erase the minds of others or simply plant a deception that what a person saw was only a vision. However, overtime this trick would fade away leaving a partial or potential imprint on the user's mind. She was now interested in hunting down this cult.

Retrieving a data-card with the symbol of the Sith in red and black embedded into the silver, metal device, Xhexania said, "You seem to be my best lead in tracking down this holocron. On this data-card resides enough credits to buy out your competitors here on the strip. You will become the sole owner of this marketplace and grow fat with riches. When others speak your name they will do so with honour and respect. You will become some what of a capitalist legend in these parts." She holds the data-card in her palm for him to retrieve.

She could sense his nervousness in taking the chip but before he could make an effort to obtain it, she snaps her hand shut, enveloping the data-card. "But before all that can come to pass, you will take me west...out of town...and assist me in tracking down this treasure. This is not negotiable. You assist....you grow rich. Refusal is not an option."

She heads toward the shops doors that serve both as an entrance and exit then halts. Without bothering to turn around, she adds, "I am Xhexania, Sith Apprentice to Sith Lord Matsu Xiangu. Your assistance will be greatly rewarded than by mere credits. You shall meet me outside the Luxe Hotel tomorrow morning, 9 .am to be precise. Bring whatever supplies you need." With a gentle gesture from her left hand, the doors open from the use of invisible hands and she steps out into the fading light.