Private Awakening (Introducing Odanneth Mal/ Darth Nyx)

[Odanneth Mal (Darth Nyx)]

-=AWAKENING=-

Darth Empyrean
location: medical bay
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WARNING WARNING WARNING WARNING... SYSTEMS FAILURE... WARNING WARNING WARNING ​

That was the last thing Oda could remember. That and the acrid smell of burning polymers and smoke, the shrieking of air in broken pipes. What ship had she been in? She didn't know. What had been her objective? She couldn't say.

Now she was laying on a metal table that presed cold against her back. When she opened her eyes she saw a medical droid at her side, the source of the humming, whirring and clicking that had roused her. Her bare limbs felt heavy, tired, but she was glad that they stirred when she bid them to move. The swell of the Force started to pool in her fingertips, deep and dark. That was a relief.

Now to get out of here.

She found new aches in her muscles when she tried to sit up -- various wires and tubes that snaked across her, some burrowed into her veins, stopped her short. She hissed under her breath and came back down with a frustrated thud.

'I've woken up!' she called impatiently whilst she craned her neck, hoping her saviour...or perhaps attacker, heard her. She squinted into the darkness beyond the well-lit circle of green-blue light she found herself in. Even without her saber she could make herself a power to be reckoned with, so she continued with demands. 'What happened to my ship?'

Then the unexpected flutter of familiarity, a presence. One stronger than herself. Her voice softened then:

'I know you.'

 

[Darth Empyrean]

“Yes, indeed you do.”, Maliphant offered with a quiet appreciation.

Black robes trailed behind him as he entered the room, a medical droid quickly plodding along next to him - its metallic steps overpowering the hum of the machines. It spoke in a cordial, refined tone - purposeful engineering to promote patient confidence;

“Sir - It appears the operation was a success. Please rem-”

“Quiet. I can see that well enough.”, he snapped at the robot - who quickly silenced at the command.

“Tell me, Odanneth, what else do you remember?”

Odanneth Mal (Darth Nyx)

 

[Odanneth Mal (Darth Nyx)]

She knew that voice, she knew that face.

'Very little, master,' Oda said, knowing that this man had guided her along that path to dark powers. She could trust him. Test-tubes quietly rattled up on the nearby bench as she let the Force flare at her fingertips.

As she closed her eyes and tried to remember more, she was afflicted by a strange, quick, searing pain — not unlike cutting a finger on glass — but deep inside her skull. Flashings of a glory-filled past...the thrill of cutting down a marked man...screams she mocked...the desire to climb ever higher and higher, chasing that power...

Her family? Many many planets away. Obscure, but noble. Stern, distant, haughty. Just like her... they all shared the name Mal.
Her childhood? She barely felt the ghost of it.
Her friends? A lover? If they did or had existed she didn't feel panic at not remembering them. She knew her path had been a narrow one that made little room for distractions.

As Oda continued to turn over blurred faces and fuzzy, static scenes in her mind's eye, the sharp bursts of pain worsened, flooding down until they throbbed in her gritted teeth. She had to relent, and stopped trying to remember. The pain ebbed. To her surprise when she opened her eyes she found her heart pounding and a sheen of sweat on her brow.

She was Oddaneth Mal, but she was Darth Nyx. Had she lost not just one name's memories, but two? It was like a gameboard, a game of dejarik where she knew all the pieces but none of the moves she had played. She played for the darkside's hand though, that was of no question. That she was surest of.

She gathered breath: 'I was in a crash. A system failure...but I do not know what brought it on. I'm always so careful... that I remember. Whatever you set me out to do, I failed.' She couldn't pinpoint a single time, but she knew, she felt, that she didn't like to fail and seldom did. 'I ask for forgiveness. You were the one to call me Darth Nyx... weren't you, master?'

Darth Empyrean

 

[Darth Empyrean]

“Don’t ask for forgiveness.”, Maliphant chided her.

Though he didn’t expand as to why simply leaving it an open ended dictation. Instead, he moved a thumb to lift her eyelid - not asking permission to do as he switched to look at the other, a slight frown on his pale, rigid features. With a sigh, he took a step back.

“I did, but I was not the first. Overseer Seki gave you that name when she trained you. It appears you’ve lost bits of your memory…”, he idled. The robot seemed to come to life for a moment, but a glance from Maliphant sent to scurrying back to whatever corner of the room it needed to sterilize.

“It is good that you live, however. You were shot down over Dromuund Kaas on a mission for me. For all its worth, you’ve recovered at a remarkable rate.”, he mused - giving no inclination as to the actual truth of the matter.

Odanneth Mal (Darth Nyx)

 

[Odanneth Mal (Darth Nyx)]

'Understood, master,' she said, pausing as Maliphant lingered above to look into her eyes. Inwardly she scolded herself -- of course she shouldn't grovel like a pathetic lamta farmer.

She inhaled sharply. Even at the brief touch of a fingertip she could sense his power and found herself holding her breath. To think that some day she might be that way, that she might have that potential.

'....Overseer Seki...' Yes. Yes, she knew that name, and in a bubbling rush came memories...the sith academy at Barbatos, the Overseer's smile and blackened hands, the day she received the title of Darth Nyx... but that mission at Dromuund Kaas, how she had met this master who she had the deepest respect for, the memories were prickly like static. Again she was afflicted with sharp pains that started to wax and wane, mesh together, become tangled. It was like having the mind of a child.

It was weak.

Oda gritted her teeth and slammed her fist off the metal table beneath her, two then three empty test-tubes shattered up on the side table, the shards falling to the floor with a tinkle. 'I-It's coming back to me here and there, master. I know the world, our cause, my place, our glory, but not the faces and actions to put to it all. In time I'm sure it will settle and return.' Oda looked to him and shook her head as she talked. 'Do not pity me, master. Like you say I am well in body. I swear on my life this will not be a liability to you nor my missions. I am ready for your bidding as the darkside wills it.'

Darth Empyrean

 

[Darth Empyrean]

"I'm sure you are...", Maliphant offered with a step away from the table.

The Sith turned around and moved some tools aside that the Medical Droid had been using only a moment before. Amidst them, a lightsaber he lifted, tested its weight and balance, then turned back. Nyx would carry it like she had before, and Maliphant would give her the weapon in a symbolic transfer. As though to remind her who gave her the strength to carry it.

"Our goal is to end the Sith Empire, and eventually the Worm Emperor. It is that simple, apprentice. As your memory returns to you, you shall help me in these two efforts - until the day comes where you can live under your own strength. Understand?"

Odanneth Mal (Darth Nyx)

 

[Odanneth Mal (Darth Nyx)]

The saber jumped to her hand as the Force inside her willed it. The cold metal of the weapon felt familiar and right against her palm. Memories were still distant, but dark, terrible, wonderful purposes filled her instead. For all her aches and pain, holes in her mind, it felt as if some indescribable barrier had been lifted. She would climb to the heights she dreamed and none would stop her.

'Understood, Master. By my hand they will fall for you.'

Darth Empyrean