Breaking The Pit

[Cedric Dorn]

Soliael had thought as much as his mother immediately answered. Still a frown was worn heavily on his face. He would chase after his father still. Darth Moridin must have left records, he must have had a journal, a holocron, perhaps even an entire archive. Soliael would find it all, and he would learn of his father. He nodded to himself slightly as if confirming this theory, and then he looked up at his mother. She could see the varying emotions within her, he wondered if she had come to despise his father, or if she was ambivalent towards him in the greatest way. He decided it was best not to ask, he had learned enough from her and he wouldn't make her uncomfortable.

Instead he slowly reached over to her, placing a single hand on he shoulder for just a minute. “Thank you, Mother.”

He genuinely was thankful, in just a few minutes he had learned more about his father than he had in nearly two centuries. He had a name and a place to start, and from here he could learn everything else he needed whether his mother wanted him to or not.

As for the Shamalain family Soliael was already well aware of that. He had more than enough Legacy, more than enough family strength, and he loved it. His family is what gave him confidence, their strength was his own, and it was the only reason he knew he would flourish.

“So...where are we going?” Soliael abruptly switched subjects, not wanting his mother to dwell.

 

[Quietus]

The movement to clap her son upside-the-head was far too quick to see with any human eye.

Bah, she scowled, eyes narrowed on the road ahead, always with your questions and never with your brain.

There were few places one could travel on Onderon in a speeder and fewer destinations to go when one drove a speeder anywhere but Iziz. A speeder could not likely reach the wilds of the jungles where they would find many clan dwellings. Nor could it traverse the otherwise uncivilized mountain slopes where no roads existed but the beast trails. There was but a single place in the wilderness that one might find or take a speeder, and that was Irontown - an established and fenced outpost of newer technologically advanced beast riders - but there was no need to take her son there.

They were en route to Iziz and that is where they found themselves an hour later. More specifically the starport of Iziz.

Quietus walked with her son to the docking yards for small transfer shuttles and came to a stop outside of terminal 3. Turning to face Soliael she produced from her robes a small datachip that would grant him access to a shuttle and the larger ship currently in orbit from which the shuttle made birth.

Your belated coming of age gift from Oma, the Beastia's telepathic voice said to his thoughts as she placed the chip in his hand and gestured to the skies above, try not to crash it on your first flight like I did mine.

 

[Cedric Dorn]

He felt his mothers strike before he even realized she had moved to hit him. He winced slightly, though a sly grin came across his face for a few seconds. An Hour later they found themselves within the Iziz, the city surrounding them with its lights and fervor.

It was the first city that Soliael had seen in nearly seventy years, he remembered why he hated them. Things seemed far too busy. There were thousands of people, dozens of men, women, and children. Quite honestly compared to the quiet life within the Pit this entire place was just too...big. Soliael frowned, thinking on this until they eventually reached the hangar. Once they got there his mother gave him a surprising bit of news and before he knew it he was holding a small datachip.

Soliael looked at the shuttle, then to his mother and then to the data chip in his hand. Gift? He had not expected any sort of present from his Oma besides perhaps a bit of her knowledge. He frowned, and then looked at his mom again. Soliael wondered what the ship was, quite obviously it was not this transport before him, he knew that if his Oma went through some trouble it would not just be for a small shuttle, it would be for something grander.

For a few seconds he waited, thinking. Then he realized he could just go into orbit and have a look himself. Before he did however he spoke. “Will you be coming with me?”

His voice was even and flat, more curious than pleading. Of course he wanted Quietus there, but he knew that she would be staying, She had plans here on Onderon.

 

[Quietus]

Not today, Kiddo.

The woman managed a smile, reaching towards him again with a hand but this time for a rare display of affection. She ruffled his hair, smirking slightly to herself at having to look up at him just as she had always been forced to look up at his rather tall father. Story of her life really - she had to be one of the shortest Sith Masters around for nearly 200 years. Quietus was fairly certain, even, if she waltzed into the Empire today that would still hold true.

Her smile broadened as she looked at him, showing something very close to fondness.

There's a few things up there from me. Small things. Useful things. Things I wish I had during my first outting alone.

 

[Cedric Dorn]

Soliael looked at his mother, and then smiled at her. He nodded his head and then leaned down, kissing her cheek before she could object to him doing so. He doubted that she would be seeing for a long time, and the action felt right at the time. He touched her arm, and then spoke one last time to Quietus, his voice warm. “Thank you Mother, Stay alive.”

Saying goodbye seemed wrong, and any other goodbye would not have done. With his finishing words Soliael turned around and walked towards the shuttle. It was a quick journey and before he knew it he was sitting in the cockpit of the small transport ship. He flipped several switches within the cockpit and quickly the transport took off. Just as before the journey was fast, and the shuttle itself had an auto-pilot that took Soliael directly to his Oma's present.

As he approached the ship in orbit Soliael found himself in awe. The ship was smaller than he had expected, not really massive but compact. It was lined and edged carefully, though it was clearly of human design. He looked at it for a few minutes as the transport drifted into one of the two aft hangers. Quickly he found himself nestled within the ships hangars, the light popping on as the Shuttle drifted into place on the deck. Slowly Soliael exited the ship, finding no one.

He walked through the empty halls of the ship, as he passed by them lights instantly clacked on. He found that every room had something in it, and eventually he stumbled upon the bridge. There he found a note, slowly he picked it up and opened it. He found the neat orderly hand writing of his Oma.

After a few moments he finished reading the note and found himself smirking. She had set everything up for him, perfect.

Slowly Soliael wandered towards what was obviously the captains chair of the bridge. This ship was brand new, the first of its kind within the galaxy. He slowly deposited himself in the seat, making himself comfortable. As soon as he did a holo-screen popped up prompting him to take an action. He found that within the ship was already programmed a hyperspace route, directly to Rudrig. Soliael smiled, knowing this was the doings of his grandmother. He pressed the accept key and quickly the auto-pilot of the cruiser went into effect.

The Ship bounded out of Orbit and shot forward into the void, jumping into hyperspace as soon as it left Onderon's gravity well.
~~
Only a day later Soliael found himself once again on his bridge, sitting alone within his command chair. He had spent the past ten hours or so exploring his new ship. He had found a great many things, most of them placed their by his mother.

The presence of so many of her things and the thoughtfulness she put into them had made Soliael smile more than anything else in the past 7 decades. She had provided him with clothes, weapons, and a massive amount of information that any Starfarer could only dream of. It was a beautiful thing, though Soliael had not had time to search through it all, but what little he had seen was absolutely amazing. He had enough to last him for months on his own. The thought made him smile, and as he approached Rudrig he thought about sending his mother a thank you note.

“This is Devin Shamalain of The Freya.” He spoke into the comm as he approached Rudrig, automatically speaking to the port authority upon the world. “I wish to speak to your lord. Tell him its a family matter.”

It was a rather personal message, but he hoped it would catch his Uncles attention. He had never met the man before, but he was more than certain he would recognize his own last name.

 

[Dissero]

In the midst of a meeting with the Scholars and Assistant Archivists, Lord Dissero pondered the flashing of an incoming transmission on the right of the projected holoscreen. A multitude of hovering peoples decorated the space around him, illuminated in blue from their holoprojector plinths upon which they stood. Some broadcasted from the far reaches of the galaxy where they currently dug through troves, others cast their signal from various locations of the planet-wide university of Rudrig itself. No matter where they spoke from, it seemed something a bit more urgent had suddenly come up.

"Gentlemen," announced the Rudrigian Governor from his seat, "Ladies," he smiled, "good work, all of you. Let's take a recess and continue this tomorrow. I have some private matters that need looking after."

Without waiting for a reply the Archivist cut the signal and turned in his chair to face the wall to his right where he brought up the transmission from the ship orbiting Rudrig, "Good day," the Governor began, leaning forward in his chair, "Mister Devin Shamalain. A curious name, no doubt. How did you come by it?"

 

[Cedric Dorn]

Soliael looked at his uncle, the man was noticeably younger than himself. He had to stifle a hint of amusement for a few seconds, not wanting to insult his relative. He found it comical to have an uncle that was far younger than him. He had already lived Dissero's lifetime five times over, yet the man was likely far more knowledgeable about the force and its nuances than Soliael. The Sith Found that fact amusing as well, though he stated neither thoughts.

“Curiously enough, I inherited it from my mother Desdemona.” He name dropped his mother, hoping that Dissero had at least heard of her. He needed to convince his Uncle quickly. He wanted to learn, he had an aching for knowledge and a craving to complete his mission.

He was also quite curious to see Rudrig. It was a planet that even in their galactic Travels Soliael had never visited. Within the note his Oma had given him she described it as a repository of knowledge, it seemed like the perfect place for Soliael to begin his journy.

 

[Dissero]

"Ha-" Dissero felt his jaw stretch open in disbelief. He itched at the stubble there, a grin marking his face with clear amusement as he thought on that very simple statement.

"I was not aware Des had a son," the name of the woman, the true name, was all he needed to hear. Those names were kept very close, very secret, and only the most trusted ever did learn them. Brows raising, he shrugged into guilt of his own ignorance, "but I am accustomed to learning many new things every day, be that as it may, and I am always eager to meet a relative. What can I do for you, Devin?"

 

[Cedric Dorn]

“Well Uncle...” He said the word with a charming grin on his face and then immediately continued “Silencia sent me here to be trained...by you.”

Soliael had no idea if Dissero knew who “Oma” was, so he called her by her name. He was direct about his purpose, there was no use talking around everything. Disero was his Uncle, and that meant he was part of the Shamalain clan, meaning once again they were all on the same side. Dissero would want to help him just as Quietus did, just as Silencia did, and just as Soliael would help his Uncle with anything he needed. Family was fantastic like that.

His thoughts stumbled for a few seconds as he thought about family. Did his father have any family? Any Brothers? Sisters? Any children? Soliael's face changed to an expression of utter curiosity and slight distraught. When he realized this he immediately took on a neutral visage, though he expected Dissero to comment on his sudden change of demeanor.

 

[Dissero]

"Did she now?" mild surprise drew across the Governor's face mixing with a fresh well of intrigue. The man rubbed at the stubble on his chin as he contemplated all the things happening unseen. His mother was a crafter of figurative clockwork and all means of machinations. What she had in mind for this he couldn't say, but perhaps there was potential here. Certainly he couldn't turn Devin away and risk the scorn of their Elder, and if nothing more he would have an assistant for a time. A talented one at that, to be sure. The Shamalain bloodline was void of useless subjects - every one of them had notable promise in some form.

"Well then, let's get started. I'm sending you coordinates to the Imperial Archives. There is a port for small shuttles," the man leaned forward at his desk, fingers tracing across keys, "oh, and Devin - no weapons. Of any kind. They are strictly prohibited on this planet. You won't be needing them here anyways." The smirk on his face and the action that followed would be curiously familiar to Devin as Dissero tapped at the side of his nose and pointed to him. All that was missing was the telepathic message of 'Wotcher, kiddo.'

The connection cut and the Governor rose from his seat and stepped from his office, muffled undertones of "Ve, I'm going to the Archives. I'll be back in a few hours," echoed in before the office door hissed shut.

@[member="Soliael Devin Talith"]

 

[Cedric Dorn]

Soliael stared at the screen for a few seconds after his Uncle disappeared. There was a strange feeling in the pit of his stomach, though it was not born of fear or anything of the sort, more like powerful dejavu. He frowned slightly, and then he finally stood from his place on the bridge. Following his uncles directive would be absolutely no problem. He had no weapons to speak of except for a small shiv he had created in The Pit, and that had been deposited in his bedroom long ago.

Of course the young Sith was completely unaware of the massive armory that Quietus had deposited on this ship. Weapons of all sorts sat within the armory of The Freya unbeknownst to Soliael.

With quick steps Soliael wandered to the hangar, boarding the same small transport he had used to get aboard the ship. In no time at all Soliael found himself within Rudrigs atmosphere, his transport zooming through the air and setting down outside the archives. Soliael wandered off of his transport. He looked around with a quiet trained eye. He had never been to Rudrig before, it was a world that according to the database was known for its University, and apparently the Sith had made it the home of their vaults. Slowly Soliael walked onto the planets surface breathing in the cool and warm air.

Soliael wondered if his Uncle had a good life here. He knew that the Empire was rather oppressive, Sith always were, but Rudrig seemed far too peaceful for such aggression. He sighed slightly, and then walked towards what he assumed was the archives.

After a few minutes Soliael found himself standing between massive book cases, each filled to the brim with holo-pads. As he walked through the archives he called out. “Uncle?”

 

[Dissero]

Let's not get into the habit of using the words Uncle or Nephew, I think we're both beyond the need for that, the voice of the Archivist rang clearly through the mind of Soliael. A sensation he would be all too familiar with given the nature of his family line. There were no Shamalains incapable of Force Telepathy, and the only one in the history of the bloodline to maintain utter silence was his Great Aunt Anhedonia, taken by the Gulag Virus.

You are family, said the voice, so in private you may call me by my birth name: Merovign.

Now let us see how well Desdemona has maintained your senses. I am somewhere in the Archives–find me.

 

[Cedric Dorn]

Soliael frowned slightly as he heard his uncles voice in his head. Well that was wonderful. He was also capable of telepathy, though he did not like using it for some strange reason. It was a personal preference of course, Soliael was more than used to hearing voices in his head. The thought made him smirk slightly, thinking of his mother as little more than a voice in his head there to drive him crazy amused him slightly.
For a few seconds he did not move. He was used to silly games like this, his Mother and Oma had trained him in all sorts of ridiculous manner for nearly a century. Hide and Seek was nothing new to him.

Slowly the Sith Lord closed his eyes, focusing himself. Locating another darksider was always difficult for him. Soliael gave off such a powerful darkside aura that it permeated all around it. Most of the time it obscured the senses of others and himself. When he concentrated however he managed to suppress this aura long enough to find what he was looking for. So he did so, he closed his eyes and and stretched out his senses.

He searched for an aura similar to his mothers, similar to his Oma.

Then he found it. A smirk settled on his face, over confidence permeating through his whole form. Slowly he began to walk through the archives his bootsteps resounding through the hall. He turned several corners, his stride still stinking of a certain smugness. Then he turned a final corner and spoke “Hello Merovign.”

 

[Dissero]

A robed figure standing over a table alerted at the coming sound of footsteps, but when it turned at Soliael's greeting he would find no Archivist. He found instead a familiar - the Noghri - and it looked upon him grimly.

"Afraid not," it said before turning back to the article it had been studying.

Admittedly, Merovign's voice return to Soliael's thoughts, that was a bit unfair. I'll tell you why later. I can see we have some work to do. Keep looking.

 

[Cedric Dorn]

Soliael frowned, his overconfidence shattered in a split second. To be fair sensing someones presence had never been his specialty and apparently the Noghri had been close enough to Dissero for long enough time that he felt somewhat like him within the force. He frowned slightly, staring at the strange lizard man before even thinking about finding his uncle again.

The Noghri were an interesting people. There had been one within The Pit when he had been there. They were fast, agile, and capable warriors. Most uniquely however their nasal glands were almost impossibly sensitive. They could actually “smell” ones heritage, Soliael had never seen them do it, but his fellow prisoner had explained quite well and had attempted to demonstrate, though obviously without one of Soliaels family members such a thing had been impossible. He frowned slightly as he looked at the bodyguard, and then finally turned around again.

Getting sidetracked would not help here, he had to find his Uncle. He closed his eyes again and focused. The darkness around him swirled slightly as if mist clearing from a rode. He concentrated perhaps more than he had in years. Then he found another “ping” within the archives.

Slowly more cautious this time Soliael moved in between the book cases, turning corner after corner until finally he turned the last. This time he said nothing, just hoping to see his uncle.

 

[Dissero]

"Very good," said a voice from nearly ten feet off the ground. Soliael looked up to find his uncle standing high up on a ladder, stack of holopad files in one hand while he carefully stored them away with the other.

"That noghri is my associate, Mahet. Mahet has been in the service of my mother for over 500 years. He was once the leader of the Honoghran Noghri Assassins, and when Silencia became Governor of Honoghr he offered to act as Ambassador for his people. He served at her side while she lead a faction known as the Dark Sith Order, and stayed with her even when she retired from the Council. She rewarded him with longevity through sorcery and stasis, then saved his family from the ravages of the Gulag Virus. When I was born she awakened him, and tasked him with the duty of being my Body Guard. His son, Kefka, was awakened years later when my younger sister was born to be hers. And so the family legacy goes... generations raised and guarded by deadly Assassins."

He noted, as he looked Soliael over, that the man had not been given such measures so far as he knew. Then again, the son of Desdemona would also stray from the traditional family style. Des had been marked as the black sheep since the day of her birth and he still hadn't figured out why.

"Mahet," he began as he placed the last of the holopads back into its niche before descending the ladder, "wears an amulet gifted to him by Silencia that protects him from Darkside spells, to an extent, and contains traces of my blood so that he may always find me no matter where I am. This is what you sensed and why you first came to find him, which is very interesting to me because that tells me your connection to these things is quite powerful, but-" his feet touched down upon the floor as he came to stand by the man that was his nephew, "unrefined. That is easily rectified."

The man's brows lifted as he offered Sol a simple smile and a hand to shake, "A pleasure to meet you. I consider Desdemona more akin to a sister than anything else, I hope to find in you a brother. These extended family trees really mean so little when its members are so long-lived."

 

[Cedric Dorn]

“Ah yes our interesting little family wreath.” To call it a tree would do it injustice seeming as how he was about two centuries older than Dissero. Garhoon families were interesting, though he decided it would likely not be best to get into. The Earlier information that Dissero had shared were new to him however. He had never known that particular bit of information about Silencia. He had had no idea that she was the leader of the Noghri much less that their family had bodyguards consisting entirely of Noghri.

He frowned slightly wondering why he had never been graced with such a gift...then again his Mother had always been a strong proponent of the “I do what I want” philosophy so perhaps that had something to do with it. Soliael shrugged to himself slightly, and then spoke.

“I met a Noghri within the Pit. He was a great...man. We saved each others lives quite a few time within the darkness of the caverns.” He failed to mention that eventually he had ripped the aliens throat out in the end. Within The Pit one could not afford weakness and the man had been a weakness. He gave a mental shrug and then looked at his uncle again.

Part of him wanted to ask more questions about Honoghr and his Oma's time there, but he knew that the longer he sat on that information the longer it would take for him to get his training over with.

“Anyway, how do we begin to...rectify this situation?” Soliael of course had knowledge of the force, but he was sorely lacking in its application and all things of that nature. He was capable of learning, but he needed guidance and sooner rather than later.

 

[Dissero]

"With practice, of course. Come with me."

Without further ado the Archivist took him to a large circular meditation chamber with broad windows spanning the entire circumference. It afforded them a wide view of the Rudrigian mountains within which the Archives and Vaults were constructed, and beyond the purple plains that eventually fed into the horizon and the structures of the university.

"Have a seat," Merovign motioned to the raised dais at the center of the room. A sweep of his hands then activated several panels within the tiles of the floor. From them raised grey plinths upon which were strange stone tablets, each baring different carved markings. On the whole, there were twelve of them surrounding the center, each sitting at clockwork points.

A second motion of his hand dimmed the lights of the chamber and sealed the doors. The effect was both calming yet invigorating, as though the energy of the room was somehow amplified. The truth was not far from this.

"Meditation," he began as he slowly strode from one plinth to the next, adjusting the tablets with great care as he went, "is a crucial method of honing ones mental capability both internally," the man lifted a hand to tap at his temple, "and externally. It strengthens your ability to separate emotion from thought; something that you'll find the Sith are hardly capable of. It is one of their greatest weaknesses and one of our family's greatest strengths. It is what sets us apart from the rest and has allowed us to stand the test of time."

 

[Cedric Dorn]

Soliael followed his uncle with a sort of calm about him. He was curious beyond anything else, though he never asked question, at least not yet. There was a slight smile on his face, he enjoyed being with his family even if he had just met that member. Slowly he wandered to the raised dais until he stood upon it. In one swift motion Soliael sat cross legged where he had just been standing. Soliael was no stranger to meditation, what he was a stranger to however was separating his emotions.

Doing such a thing have never been his forte. Mostly it was because the natural Garhoon bloodlust ran rather strongly within him, and since he did not crave blood it mostly came out in...well anger. Soliael was easy to snap, easy to make angry, and difficult to control when he was in such a state. It was part of who he was, and it was something he had long ago accepted as a part of himself.

He looked up at his uncle a smirk on his face. “I must have missed that particular genetic marker.”

It was meant to be a joke, though clearly it ran deeper than that. Soliael did not like feeling like he did not belong. It was unpleasant being a black sheep. Perhaps he was more like his mother than he thought.

 

[Dissero]

"You are the son of Desdemona," as though he'd read Soliael's mind Merovign offered some insight on that particular subject, "you did not miss it, it simply takes longer to develop." The smirk there told Sol much without needing to say anything. Despite having lived and spent far less time with Quietus, it seemed Merovign was privy to some things he was not.

It helped, of course, that he was not her son and she did not feel the need to keep things from him.

"If she can, then so can you. Considering it was she that taught me this technique, I am more than certain you are capable of learning it, too."

He continued on his path around the room, slowly stepping around each plinth and the stone tablet upon it. Hands folded at his back, he came to rest at Sol's 12 o' clock, "Let's begin. There are twelve tablets in this room. Each tablet has been imbued with an energy signature that will amplify a certain aspect of life. Meditate on them, determine what each tablet represents."