Better Late Than Never

[Louise]

Better.

Karin cast her gaze down upon the plant-woman with a severe eye. “False, you do not need me, you need practice,” her voice snapped, cruel, uncaring. You want the tutelage of Karin Dorn? Then you must prepare yourself for the scolding of the life time, and if you come into the realm of Sith Magic with the aim to impress this Sith Master then you need to rethink your plan of attack.

The servant arrived and almost dropped the jug on the ground, the face was unmistakable the former Lady of Thule walked through this castle once more. He scampered off like a mouse seen by the cat, back to your hole, coward.

“No need to show me any gratitude,” Karin said calmly, donning the robe, “this new form of mine is your gratitude.”

They made their way to the library in relative silence, being able to make long powerful strides, hearing her own footsteps echo throughout the halls once more, the simple things were so empowering. “Although, if you keep insisting on flirting with me, Miss Savan I may be forced to cast your soul to the plains of Chaos,” the threat was made very simply, “I am not some pretty young thing with whom you can play, although you will not find those in short supply amongst the ranks of the Sith.”

You have to be cruel to be kind.

“We are by nature, a rather sordid bunch."

@[member="Circe Savan"]

 

[Onrai]

"And I assume that 'we' included you at some point in time?" She raised an eyebrow in deep curiosity. From how her voice had seemed to drop off, there appeared to be more than met the eye with regards to the resurrected Sith Mistress. "Despite the typical way the Sith do things, I never was one to fall in line. You're likely going to use your newfound physical limitations to leave this place, but before you do, I wish to get to know you better. Maybe even become..." She paused, letting the word she was about to say linger a bit.

"Friends."

Despite the fact that the elder Sith likely held the same beliefs on friendship and compassion as almost every other Sith, Circe wished Karin would give her a possible opportunity to discuss such a thing with her.

She seemed to have her fair share of regrets too.

 

[Louise]

“Naturally,” the woman said coolly, she hadn't been shy in discussing the affairs of her once sordid past, “but you're thirty years too late, Miss Savan.”

Circe's assumption about Karin wishing to leave Thule was indeed correct, she'd had enough of this planet for a life time, maybe two. Unfortunately before she would get the opportunity to leave Karin would have to deal with this one, casting an unamused gaze over Circe the Lady Dorn relented.

“Very well.”

The woman sat down once again, in the very same chair that she floated in not that long ago as a dead woman.

“Your motives are a mystery, even to me,” Karin admitted, “but I will indulge you, for now.” After all, one couldn't spend all their free time making friends with highly-sexed plant people. Places to go, people to see, you know?

“So speak, ask your questions, say your piece.”

@[member="Circe Savan"]

 

[Onrai]

"Thirty years can make up for spending so long as a spectre? Come now, Karin... Deep down inside, you more than likely are eager to see how your flesh feels against that of another." She paused. "Well, let's start with the basics. Tell me about yourself. How did you come to affiliate with the Dark Side? What brought you to Thule? How did you become such a powerful sorceress? What's your relationship with Kaine Zambrano, and why did he kill you? Do you have any surviving family? Sisters, children? I'm curious to learn more about you, and why go through the many tomes of your history when you're here in the flesh to tell me personally?"

A valid point, though Circe admittedly knew little about Karin as a person. Perhaps she'd be able to elicit some important information, all the while feeling at the leaks in Karin Dorn's freshly formed mind.

@[member="Karin Dorn"]

 

[Louise]

“Addictions of the flesh are just as dangerous as any drink or spice.”

The Lady Dorn narrowed her eyes as Circe took the driver's seat in the conversation, the art of chatting, he who asked the questions called the shots and Karin was very aware of this. The balance of power in any social area is a delicate creature, try too hard and you'll frighten your conversational victory away.

“Very well,” she said almost wearily, “you already know my name, so that's one down. I come from a failure of a family line, that ecstatically pushed me towards the life of a Sith upon realising my force potential, if you ever meet another Dorn in your life, chances are that they are worthless. Thule you already know about, my cult, The Seven took over Thule in a coup, an affair made up purely of backstabbing.”

The Sith Master clearly planned on hammering through these questions as swiftly as possible.

“Kaine Zambrano was but a promising Sith Knight before my untimely demise, he came to Thule asking if he could relinquish the planet from my hands, so we had a duel,” Karin's usually smirking face had taken a grim turn, “and I was gutted for my troubles, thus cementing Zambrano's path to Masterhood no doubt.”

The woman sunk back into her chair and crossed her legs, she was almost at the end of this gauntlet of questions. “I became a powerful sorceress through practise, through pain and through sacrifice of both body and mind and also an atrocious amount of time spent reading, there is always something to learn.”

Then it came down to the family.

“My parents may still be alive and I might have siblings but I do not care, the moment they pushed me towards the Sith was my moment of emancipation. They can be dead for all I care. I do however have a...” daughter, “Kath Hound named Chomp.”

This was no lie.

Chomp although he was Evelynn's guardian and companion was technically owned my Karin. Although perhaps ownership is forfeited upon death. She would get to Dantooine as soon as Circe's queries had been dealt with.

“Are you now sated, Miss Savan?”

@[member="Circe Savan"]

 

[Onrai]

She paused. The pause between her talking about what she had and referencing Chomp indicated that there as something she wasn't letting fully out. "Not really... You paused. And I know from experience that pauses mean there's more you were intending to let on, more you chose not to talk about." A sigh emancipated itself from her lips. "C'mon, I'm interested. I have a son of my own on the way. We're cordial enough to talk about family... After all, considering your new body was based off of my biomass, you and I technically are related. Sisters, in a way. And sisters can talk about family."

Her logic was technically sound, though Karin would likely blow through it. "A boy? A girl? Twins? Identical Force-born sextuplets of each gender?"

@[member="Karin Dorn"]

 

[Louise]

Nobody is perfect.

Karin Dorn had slipped up and as a consequence Circe had gobbled up one nugget of information too many. This conversation had suddenly turned dangerous for everybody involved, including the spectators. She'd hit the child-sized nail on the child-sized head with the child-sized hammer and it was not appreciated.

“Miss Savan,” Karin uttered both slowly and deliberately, “be careful where you tread.”

For so long, she had managed to keep Evelynn's existence a secret, her mind a fortress to all those who wished to pry and now she had slipped. Credit had to be given to Circe, even if she was a sneaky mind thief, if she had been Karin's Apprentice she might have shown some pride but this was not the case.

The matter of them being sisters on a technical level would have to take the back seat for now.

“A girl,” the Sith Master admitted solemnly, “oblivious to the lives that we lead and I intend to keep it that way.”

@[member="Circe Savan"]

 

[Onrai]

"What happened to her? I'm curious... Is she a smuggler on Tatooine? Part of a Force order in the Unknown Regions? A senator?" An eyebrow was raised, but Circe soon grew solemn. "She misses you, I'm willing to bet. I know I did when I was away from my mother for an extended period of time, stuck on a slave ship. She still probably worries about me, about what's happening in my life..." She gave a sad laugh, a sap-like tear coming from the corner of her eye with sincerity. "She probably traveled the galaxy to try and find me... But I don't know. I didn't want my mother to see what I'd become."

A tear came from her other eye as she looked Kain over. "You aren't that apathetic.. Are you? You care more for your daughter than most Sith do, right?"

Circe's empathy was starting to show. And God did it hurt her because of it.

@[member="Karin Dorn"]

 

[Louise]

Too many questions.

Karin watched the Circe Circus with mild amusement. Empathy was not her strong suit, rather the opposite, the temptation to feed off of the plant woman's sorrow was great but the Sith Master did not hover on that plain of cruelty, in that moment in time at the very least.

“Nothing has happened to her,” the woman finally retorted, blissfully unaware that Evelynn was not on Dantooine any more. Finally standing up from the chair Karin Dorn struck a new pose, the hands on the hips, sassy yet classy. “She is far removed from the troubles of this galaxy, living an idyllic life unaware of her heritage and the price that comes with it.”

The woman couldn't speak for Circe's mother, she could have been any kind of woman. Perhaps she would have despised what her daughter became, maybe not.

“Evelynn is such a sweet girl, too sweet. Both kind and generous,” Karin admitted, “she would be eaten alive, especially with women like you on the prowl, Miss Savan.”

@[member="Circe Savan"]

 

[Onrai]

"Now now, you'd be surprised. I'm not a woman who forces people I've never personally met before in my life to do my bidding. I've learned from experience that getting their willing approval to do what you ask makes things a lot easier in the long run. You certainly do care about your daughter if you don't want to see her fall into the potter's hands of women like... us."

Circe sighed. "What happens if she's chosen to leave whatever paradise she resides in? The curious ghost, wondering how it feels to be in the depths of Chaos, bored with their existence behind the veil of oneness with the Force. If she were my daughter - and I'm probably no one to give parental advice to you, I know - I'd certainly go and check on her now that I'm free of the bonds of spectredom. And if anything's happened to her..." She gave a quick salute. "You have my support in whatever endeavour you choose to venture on."

"But then again, that sort of deep conversation's for another time... Shall we continue teaching and learning?"

@[member="Karin Dorn"]

 

[Louise]

“Miss Savan,” the Sith Master said very slowly, “my daughter is both naïve and trusting, you may not use force to coerce your subjects to do your bidding but I am most certain that you'd have her bedded within an hour of meeting her.”

A peculiar thing to say. Not only peculiar but incredibly dangerous to reveal so much after having kept Evelynn's existence under wraps for such a long time. She was a girl too trusting and too curious to ever meet Circe Savan, the outcome of such a meeting was so predictable Karin had to stop herself from striking the plant-woman right there and then. Of course, that would be rude but everybody had their weak spots and the Lady Dorn's daughter was most certainly hers.

“I'd be on my way to her right now had I not promised to share my knowledge with you. If she's chosen to leave I...”

I do not know what I shall do.

A scroll was suddenly pulled from one of the top shelves of the numerous bookcases. “How well are your versed in the Old Tongue,” she suddenly snapped, grabbing the scroll as it fell. Without giving the woman a change to react to the word tongue Karin continued, “Dwomutsiqsa. The incantation for summoning a Smoke Demon.”

This was one of the more personally devastating forms of Sith Magic.

@[member="Circe Savan"]

 

[Onrai]

Circe chuckled. "I may enjoy my role in life as a seductress, but I'm smart enough to not enjoy passion when the aftermath is predestined. Considering you'd likely have me chained up on a table to experiment with, and not in a good way, I think I'll pass..." Then she worried about her daughter having left. "We'll find her if she has. Don't worry about it... she'll be perfectly fine."

Then came the sudden grasp of the scroll and declaration of the Sith language. "I've read up on it in my spare time... Dwomutsiqsa means "Summon Demon," right? A bit difficult to get the hang of if you don't have any knowledge of the language, but I believe I'm well enough versed to utter the incantation properly."

@[member="Karin Dorn"]

 

[Louise]

At least she was aware of the consequences. Perhaps she could protect her daughter from this galaxy yet.

“If I was feeling particularly malicious I would let you just read straight from the scroll,” Karin said conversationally, “it's a tricky incantation, one that requires the utmost care and respect. Do not use it rashly.”

Like most ancient artefacts of a mystic nature, there were secrets and safeguards. Dorn herself had witnessed promising but irresponsible fellow Sith fall prey to the malice that lurked within the wisdom. If any old force user could simply learn the words and perform the ritual then the galaxy would be infested by Smoke Demons.

“It does not come naturally to those affiliated with the dark side but be humble,” the woman cautioned, who else to advise on careful summoning than she who had her spirit bound to Thule Castle through her own negligence? Yeah, that's right.

“I won't ask you to perform the ritual at this moment in time, it is powerful Sith Magic. This is something you must build yourself up to. Summoning spirits not only calls for wisdom but both stamina and power.”

@[member="Circe Savan"]

 

[Onrai]

"Historical records mention Luke Skywalker having dealt with a Smoke Demon once. Only a lightsaber can kill them, evidently..." She sighed. "Still a valuable asset against standard troopers, as well as an excellent assassination tool. I understand your caution and will take it into deep consideration." She paused, thinking over what else she could learn from the woman before her. "I admittedly am curious in regards to three other particular Dark Side powers... False Light Side Aura, Odojinya, and the manifestation of Dark Side Tendrils."

That almost covered the bases, along with Vazela's training.

@[member="Karin Dorn"]

 

[Louise]

Karin nodded as Circe listed three other aspects of Sith Magic that she wished to learn. One of these were not like the others. “False light side aura is a breeze,” Karin admitted, “it's just a matter of keeping your concentration, deception is a school of the Force that requires a deft touch. You'll conquer that ability in no time at all, Miss Savan.”

It almost sounded like a compliment.

“Know that if you ever use any of these techniques to strike me down, I will be expecting you to do it well.”

The woman pinched the bridge of her nose and sighed slightly, this had been a long day between gaining a new form, talking about feels and training in the darker aspects of the Force this was a day that warranted rest.

“I do not wish to show you how I perform these spells, every single Sith utilises their powers in their own unique way. We all have our own fonts that we draw from, our own techniques. If your dark tendrils are carbon copy of mine then they're simply not going to be as effective for you. I won't leave you in the dark, visualising an ability before you cast it can be a great aid but otherwise, it is up to you to practise it and make it your own.”

@[member="Circe Savan"]

 

[Onrai]

"If I didn't know any better, I'd say that you just complimented me." A soft smile crossed the Vinithi's face as she eyed over her new 'sister.' It almost seemed... unorthodox for the female Sith to respond in such a complimentative manner. Then again, she had just been given new life, after all... Maybe she was settling in.

"Strike down my greatest creation? Now why would I do that, darling?" She smiled. It was admittedly quite the feat, bringing a Sith Master back to life. In response to Karin's final dialogue, Circe nodded. "I understand your rationale. Shall we continue tomorrow, or will you have left for your great journey to Dantooune by then?" She hoped Karin wasn't going to run off so soon.

After all, she was a friend, wasn't she?

@[member="Karin Dorn"]

 

[Louise]

“Don't let it get to your head, my dear,” she said, almost in monotone, “I am merely a more honest breed of Sith. I won't wither and die upon handing out compliments once in a while.” Funny choice of words that, wither.

A moment passed in her mind, a moment so brief she almost didn't catch it. A spike of rage so swift that if you blinked you missed it. The only reminder it left behind was a clenched fist that Karin peered down at with moderate alarm painted across her face. As a woman who very much craved control, that was alarming, to lose said control of self even for the briefest of moments.

Perhaps she would have to delay Dantooine.

“We may continue tomorrow,” Karin said quietly, eyes narrowing as she still stared at her hand, “there's been a change of plans...”

@[member="Circe Savan"]

 

[Onrai]

How intriguing. The balling of Karin's hand into a sudden fist seemed to be an... involuntary reaction. A case of the infamous alien hand syndrome. Of course, that symbolized such a thing as her hippocampus being split in two, and she didn't have a split hippocampus. Or a humanoid brain at all, for that matter. This suggested a deeper problem, one either affecting her as an individual soul, or some outside force harassing her. Considering how tired Karin likely was, it was probably for the best that Circe didn't ask about it.

"Whatever you say... We can talk more tomorrow."

@[member="Karin Dorn"]

 

[Louise]

To say that Karin Dorn got a good night's rest was, well, actually it was the complete opposite of what was actually achieved. The woman lay in bed, body asleep but mind awake and she considered that moment. Some would be more inclined to brush it off and just continue on with their lives but not this woman. No. This was something.

Something malicious.

Sleep could come later. The woman swept out of her chambers (that she acquired under the ruling of the so-called death tax) and made her way to the library. Moving as silently as the night itself her face cast grim shadows on the walls of Thule Castle.

Time passed swiftly as the Sith poured over every tome, datapad and scripture concerning Sith Magic. From the history she already knew, the spells she had already mastered. Painstakingly translating languages long dead from species never seen. There had to be something. Anything. The Lady Dorn would not rest until she knew.

@[member="Circe Savan"]

 

[Onrai]

At this point in time, Circe would more than likely be curled up in bed, sleeping through her nightly stasis as she enjoyed the tremendously fuzzy blankets wrapped around her statuesque nude frame. But when a Sith sorceress such as Karin Dorn was concerned, the combination of Dark Side ripples and negative emotions were more than enough to wake her up.

Slowly and cautiously, Circe moved down the vacant and dimly lit hallways of the Thule castle. She knew the layout fairly well - not as well as Karin, but well enough - and was easily capable of finding the room the female Sith was in: the library. It was intriguing that one so stuffed with knowledge would return here... But from her feelings were that Karin was looking for an answer to the sudden onset of alien hand syndrome.

Of course, the presence of a green-skinned woman wearing only a fuzzy blanket would be relatively obvious to the woman.

@[member="Karin Dorn"]