Chaos Theory

[Neesa]

Even the tiniest perturbations in initial conditions can create vastly different results over time.


That was what Lord Sitas had told her. Back in her home city she had been curtly told that there 'was not enough pure blood’ in her to make her worth his time. Since coming to Athiss she had been formally declared his Hand and been under his personal supervision. A lot of that seemed to revolve around him making clear how much more intelligent and educated he was than her.

Still, she'd followed the point. Make a small change, it became bigger. Though the bit about predictability seemed to have been glossed over. And neither did assassinating one of Tek's political rivals seem all that small a change.

As was usual for her master, he had laid out the barest bones of a plan. She wasn't certain if that was part of a continually assessment of her growing abilities or for deniability. Either way she now had to observe, and plot to kill, a well protected member of the Sith hierarchy.

For the first time she wasn't going to be working alone. In the city she had grown up in Lord Sitas had been an outsider. He had arrived and swept away most of the existing underworld to take hold of the city. Here, apparently, he had allies.

She bowed low before those whose formal garb marked them as above her station as she moved through dark hallways that had been hewn right out of the rock. A narrow spiral staircase took her up to one of the highest levels. There she would find a balcony where he co-conspirator waited. Her hand never strayed far from from the blade at her belt. Her swords dangled behind her, too slow to draw if this was actually an ambush.

 

[Vrak Nashar]

[member="Neesa"]

His fingers tightened on the edge of the balcony. Why did he seem to always be meeting people on Balconies? That was odd, he would have to change that lest he became a little too predictable for his rivals.

Vrak heard boot steps behind him. They were muted, almost too quiet, belonging to a slender woman by his guess. A small smile touched his lips, but he didn't turn. Instead the Pureblood simply looked out at the scenery before him. No one would ever call Athiss beautiful, the world was much like Korriban, the ancient homeworld of the Sith. There was nothing but deserts, a few plain bits of shrubbery, and tall mountains that seemed capped with dread instead of snow.

Still, Vrak loved his homeworld.

Not because of what it was, not because of what it could be, but because of what it had done. For thousands upon thousands of years Athiss had maintained and stabilized his people. Upon this dreadful and dead world The Sith People had survived and even thrived somewhat. Under the watchful eyes of the Council they had made it for thousands of years. Of course, that was now about to change, but no one knew that yet, no one but a few. He smiled slightly as the woman stepped up besides him, though he did not look at her.

"Your Master must be pleased with you." Vrak told the girl, knowing full well what she was.

"Letting you this far on your leash." Was he taunting or complementing? "I've never known him to do such a thing."

With purebloods it was always hard to tell if they were being genuine, manipulating, or just being plain narcissistic. Vrak was a little bit more upfront than the rest of his kind, finding that Truth was just as important as a weapon as a lie.

Many of his kind failed to recognize that truth and they were worse off for it. The Council seemed to think that lies were the salvation of their people, that through enough of them they would be able to mislead the populace to a point that would allow them to rule forever. Vrak knew this wasn't true, he knew that eventually the lies would come crumbling down. He would just have to ensure it happened on his time, rather than by natural force.

 

[Neesa]

[member="Vrak Nashar"]

“I am grateful for what he has done for me,” she replied stoically. Neesa still hadn’t decided how she felt about her master. As he had promised he had given her the tools to find her rightful place in the Galaxy. She was ambitious, but that had been tempered by several things. For years he had barely seen her and had his servant train her and arm her for his personal war.

She had been tested again and again. She had done a great deal of dirty work for Lord Sitas, his own personal assassin. A nobody from the streets that could never be traced back to him. Her swords had been hand-forged by him, but how many potential Hands had he groomed before she had finally proved herself? And now she was back on the bottom rung of an entirely new ladder. Vulnerable but for his favour.

Neesa reasoned that there was every chance that anything she relayed would be taken back to Tek, so she kept her thoughts guarded and her tone even. She wouldn’t rise to his bait, she’d suffered more painful words in the past.

The reason for the meeting place became clear. A small entourage appeared from an entrance of a structure not far from their own. Lord Gelder was obvious in the middle of the group, garbed as he was in resplendent robes. Neesa watched carefully. Those around him all looked the same, but at least two of them were failing to keep their lightsabers from sight.

 

[Vrak Nashar]

[member="Neesa"]

"Death is a very interesting thing." Vrak said quietly as he watched the small group, eyes following along.

"Not many on Athiss expect it." He tapped the edge of the balcony with his fingers. "They're Sith. They expect that they can either live forever or no one will dare touch them. It's always a rather surprising thing when a Pureblood dies. Everyone acts aghast and shocked, they think that something like that could never happen, and yet it literally happens all the time. We murder each other constantly."

He shook his head. "I suppose it's to maintain the illusion."

That was after all, probably how they kept one another from outright dueling in the streets. At least this way it was suppressed, pushed beneath the surface so no one could really see it, just...well know about it. It was cowardly in a way, entirely opposite of what the Sith stood for.

They were supposed to show strength, not show weakness.

"You know the truth though." Vrak said looking at the girl. "Better than most I suspect."

Amusement flared in his tone.

 

[Neesa]

[member="Vrak Nashar"]

Clearly he was quite clued in on what it was she did for her master. Whilst Neesa was a careful planner, it never occured to her that he might not have known and was merely fishing for the truth. She was many years from being as capable in a battle of words as she was now with the blade.

"I don't believe many expect it at all," he replied. There were those who begged and pleaded when everything was laid out before them. The shock sometimes took their consciousness before she could complete the act. Those taken by surprise sometimes took a long time to pass and that look of disbelief would stay with them right to the end. It confused her. In some ways she hoped that when her time came she would approach it with some dignity. Perhaps it was just impossible to truly accept mortality.

"Maybe if we accepted death we'd just sit about doing nothing." She was far from eloquent, but it was reasonably poignant for Neesa. Her mind was on other things. Such as which poisons her master had shown her would work on a Pureblood; how far did his entourage follow him; how well protected was his residence?

"How well do you know him?" She asked, avoiding names.

 

[Vrak Nashar]

[member="Neesa"]

He smiled. There weren't many secrets on Athiss that hid from Vrak, mostly because his work over the last few years had been uncovering them all. Secrets were what made this world go around, it was what the Council drove itself on. An unfortunate fact. There was so much scheming, so much plotting, so much that people lost sight of what had truly mattered. He shook his head and then glanced towards the girl, musing for a moment more before answering.

"Well enough." Better than most he would say. "Though no one really know anyone else on this world."

That was too dangerous. Purebloods did not have friends, they did not have allies, just people that they trusted a little bit more than the next person. Even Parents, siblings weren't too be trusted, no one was. Some culture might have abhorred that, but for them it was as natural as breathing.

"It's sufficient to say that we want the same things." For now.

Vrak doubted very much that the Old Man would accept his own end goals, but it worked out at the moment. Eventually things would change, but Vrak would make the most of it now. That was why Neesa was here after all.

A very useful tool.

 

[Neesa]

[member="Vrak Nashar"]

Neesa watched Lord Gelder until he was out of sight. "He is no powerful user of the Force." That was information she had been provided. "He is right handed, but pretends to be left handed to appear more normal. His wall suggests right calves or bad knees. In a flat out run he would be slow. None of which is easily exploitable."

Deathly pale and slender arms extended across the lip of the balcony. Her hands came to be clasped together. Others moved beneath them now. Her city had been a living, breathing entity. This was too, but not one she understood yet. That would take time.

"We need to go somewhere more private."

 

[Vrak Nashar]

[member="Neesa"]

"Nonsense." He told her. "Privacy is just as dangerous as talking out in the open."

For him at least. "What will people think if they see me go somewhere alone with another man's slave girl? No no, the implications of are not well for me at all. Half of this world is keeping up appearances. Do not worry about someone overhearing."

He turned to her, his expression growing more serious.

"Lord Gelder has to go." He would be candid with her. "He is an staunch isolationist, seeking to keep this world all to itself. Neither I nor your master can have that."

Not with what he was planning. "You'll meet my agent tonight, on the far side of the city."

Vrak pulled out a small datachip from his pocket. Upon it Neessa would find the coordinates to where she was supposed to go, there she would find...well Vrak. She wouldn't know that of course, he disguised himself so as to not rouse suspicion within the others.

 

[Neesa]

[member="Vrak Nashar"]

The concern was obvious at his open declaration of intent. As had the frown been at his description of her position. Her fingers flexed. They wanted a blade.

She concentrated on keeping her expression neutral. There was a game going on here and she didn't understand the players, the goals or the rules. That would have to change. At least when she'd been alone in the gutter she'd chosen her own path.

"It'll be done," she replied coldly, giving no further explanation of which request she was responding to. There was research to be done. Back at home she has quietly built up her own network of informants. She stole from her victims to pay for their loyalty when her master did not provide the coin and she had the uncanny ability to know when they were lying. But here she couldn't do so on her own, she needed to talk to Lord Sitas on the matter.

---

Her cloaks were a different colour to those she had worn on Magnus. Again they were a mixture of colours, worn and frayed. This time a mixture of browns and greys. Black didn't help you meld into the shadows, it merely made you a silhouette. They were pulled tight about her as she waited, keeping her milky white skin from view.

 

[Vrak Nashar]

[member="Neesa"]

Val stood quietly on the edge of a small cliff overlooking what seemed to be a ruined and crumbling estate.

Much like the garb he wore, the building below was a facade. The outside of it had been constructed to appear as nothing more than an already broken tomb, an ancient structure that most would mistake for nothing more than a lost cause. That was the point of course. In case anyone ever found Athiss this place, and many others like it, were built to be concealed, hidden. It was a way for the Purebloods of this world to remain secure without ever actually having to fight.

Pathetic in a way.

Vrak shook his head slightly and peered down towards the ruins, his eye eventually wandering towards a figure approaching within the dark. He almost would have missed her had he not been waiting for her, and interesting fact that he would have to make note of. She was good. The voice modulator of his mask sounded out within the dark. "The guard change occurs in ten minutes."

The fact that Vrak didn't turn around to face her spoke volumes. Either he was confident in her loyalty, his ability to defend himself, or he never even considered the option that she might attempted to kill him. No matter the reason Vrak stood within his guise, proud, tall, and ready.

 

[Neesa]

[member="Vrak Nashar"]

Neesa stayed quite still for a moment, appraising the situation. This was rash. She rarely made a move without taking days or weeks to observe the subject and formulate a plan. Something felt off about this whole thing. And now a masked agent with a voice modulator. There was little time to argue, just to trust her abilities and make the best of the situation. She walked up beside him before lowering down. Even against the night sky there was no need to make a silhouette at the top of the cliff edge.

"How many in, how many out?" she asked. She pulled a small cylinder up to one eye. There was light from several windows. She ignored these. No one in a fully lit room would see her coming. If there were guards posted to watch, they would be in the dark. Nothing seemed to be moving or visible in the dark rooms. That threat was unlikely. Even with his position of power it wasn't likely that he posted spotters at every corner of his abode. Far too expensive.

Gelder's room was large, occupying the corner to their right on the top floor. She had, at least, been able to glean that much information. Sitas had happened to hire on some of Gelder's departing staff. He hadn't seemed annoyed at her asking questions or looking for aid. Perhaps if she had panicked he would have, but she had slowly run through a list of pertinent questions and he had aided where he could.

He had grimaced for a moment at one of the questions. And then he had provided a bottle of Inshiw. Apparently the mix was quite deadly to purebloods, whilst the worst it would do for Neesa was give her a bad headache. Quite instant, quite hard to trace. He had seemed reluctant to give her this information. She could see why.

 

[Vrak Nashar]

[member="Neesa"]

"On this end of the facility there are four." Though that wasn't the sum total of the guards within the estate of course. He had no exact numbers, unfortunately Gelder was quite good at concealing his expenses, but he knew that more than a few Massassi stayed within the inner compound. That wasn't to mention the pawns he used. Much like Vrak or Neesa's master Gelder had no real qualms about using the other species that came here, though of course he thought they were lesser than himself.

Not that Vrak didn't, but he was at least willing to give them a position of power once he took over...relative to their own strength of course.

"It is best we avoid them entirely." Vrak said, his voice still distorted through the mask. "Killing or disabling them will leave a chance for someone to find out we've been here."

It wouldn't be too much of an issue, but Vrak would rather avoid an alarm. "There."

He pointed towards the far wall. The guard standing atop it seemed to be shifting and moving about a bit, he was a human bulky and rather stout. In a few minutes someone would come to relieve him of duty, that was when he and Neesa would have to go.

 

[Neesa]

[member="Vrak Nashar"]

This time there was some emotion in her expression. A cant of the head and a thin black eyebrow raised incredulously.

"Last resort." Her nearest hand pushed her cloak back over her hip to reveal a dart gun. Poisons were an exceedingly delicate matter, but when it came to tranquillisers the answer was always the same. Use Smartranq, fire and forget. No one had put together a decent neutralising agent to the intelligent compound. If there had been more time they could have put together a more elegant plan. Their target had a lot of staff, there would have been a weak spot there.

She pressed herself down to the ground and crept forwards. One hand grasped the edge of the ledge and she slithered over. Cool air rushed over her as she dropped from a height, but her feet landed softly. From the ledge she had already picked her path to bring her closer to the compound and where she would cross the crumbling guard wall. Neesa moved silently through the night, one eye always on the silhouette of the guard.

 

[Vrak Nashar]

[member="Neesa"]

Vrak followed after her, though his path was notably different.

He didn't exactly have the same mastery of stealth that Neesa did. His own training hadn't really focused on subtlety or the art of being concealed, rather it had been more in...direct confrontation. He was a fine bladesman, but when it came to sneaking around in the night it was hardly his cup of caf. Despite that however Vrak made careful progress down the ledge, dropping low and ensuring that he pulled free no rocks or gave any indication of where he was.

He moved quickly, quietly, eventually dropping into place directly behind Neesa. His teeth clicked as he pulled up the infrared view within his mask, the guard highlighted for him within the dark night. The man stood patiently atop the wall, waiting, but barely watching his surroundings.

The Sith duo quietly crept forward.

Eventually they reached the wall, a pause falling on them as they waited for the guard to change. After a few moments the man atop the wall yawned, looked around, checked his chrono and then slowly began to climb down from his post. Vrak watched him go, smiling slightly and then motioning for Neesa to go first. He crouched down and cupped his hands together, giving her a foothold to quickly and efficiently get over the wall and into the estate.

 

[Neesa]

[member="Vrak Nashar"]

She placed her right foot in his hands, taking a moment to gauge the height of the wall. She dropped and cooled like a spring, gathering the Force around her to launch herself up. The jump was well weighted, her hands grapsed the lip of the wall but her body didn't rise above it.

Bracing one foot against the wall she slowly pushed her head up and took a glance in each direction. Hearing movement on the courtyard below she kept herself low as she rolled onto the walkway. She peered over the far side. Two guards conversing before the change. Neesa paused still as she saw a massassi march past a far window.

It seemed clear so she returned to the wall and signalled the other. She braced her knees against the lip to steady herself and lowered her hand in case he wanted it.

 

[Vrak Nashar]

[member="Neesa"]

Vrak moved quickly. He couldn't take a running start because of how they were positioned, so the hand would be necessary.

Some Purebloods would have balked at even touching a slave like Neesa, but he didn't mind so much. He saw her much as one might a pickaxe or a sword. She was a tool. Much like everyone he himself employed, she was simply a means to get to an end.

Not a person, a thing.

His palm grasped her wrist, and with a hard wrench she pulled him up and over the edge of the wall. He landed on the other side, not bothering to perch atop like Neesa had. A soft thud rang out, his head poking up as he slowly panned his gaze around the estate. There was a guard coming, but if they moved quickly he could be avoided.

His finger went pointing towards a distant balcony. Scaling it would let them into the building.

 

[Neesa]

[member="Vrak Nashar"]

He wasn't too heavy at least. Braced as she was it was not too draining to help haul him over. She looked to the balcony, down to the courtyard and back to the windows the massassi prowled. It was on the floor below the balcony. Needed good timing now.

There were small buttresses built into the wall, each seemed to house a staircase down to the courtyard. As soon as the guard entered to one on their right she made for the one to their left. She kept low as she went, knees never fully extended, upper body bent over. Her cloaked trailed across the ground but her feet made no sounds.

She vanished in the gloom inside the stairwell and slipped around and down. She moved cautiously, nervous that another might have been coming up from an angle closed off to them.

She paused at the doorway, opening it a crack. There was a massassi on the courtyard, the other guard now up on the wall. The other massassi still prowled the second floor. She mentally mapped the wall to the balcony and then set little counters swinging in her mind. Each guard had a rhythm or a pattern. She felt the sith agent grow concerned behind her and she raised a hand.

"Don't let the door slam behind you. Four, three..." She fell silent. Then slipped through the door and darted across the courtyard. Too well lit, had to move fast. One leap and she floated on the apex of the curve, buoyed by the force. Her feet softened the impact against the wall as her fingers sought purchase. Then she started to climb.

 

[Vrak Nashar]

[member="Neesa"]

Vrak watched her go.

There was a certain undeniable talent to the girl, her Master had chosen well. He smiled beneath his mask, a plan settling into his mind. It would have to come later of course, there was no time now, but he couldn't deny that it would need to happen sooner or later. Eventually the girl began to quickly climb up the building, Vrak watching her for a moment more as his eyes flicked between the different guards slowly ambling about the grounds.

He was not as fast as her, nor was he as quiet.

His finger slowly scrunched into fists, and then he dashed forward.

The path Vrak took towards the balcony was slightly more obvious, but perhaps that was necessary. He couldn't move the way Neesa did, couldn't replicate it. She had been trained for this, he...well he was more of a hammer. His path took him quickly through the estate, a straight shot that saw him jump, leap, and then slowly roll towards the edge of the walkway. His momentum kept him up and going, the tip of his toes touching the ground for only a second before he launched himself up and against the wall.

In an instant he found purchase, and quickly he scrambled up the side of the estate, coming down onto the balcony just a minute after Neesa.

 

[Neesa]

[member="Vrak Nashar"]

The door was creaky. That was an issue. In a minute she'd checked it for alarms and any obvious magical wards. Her master had only taught her a little of those arts, so it wasn't necessarily safe. There was always risk.

They were exposed here, they couldn't linger. Neesa grimaced as she slowly eased it open and kept it moving smoothly. The groan of the hinges was kept as low as possible. Still it rankled to do such a bodge job. The corridor inside was dark. She moved aside and closed the door again. The risk of the noise was lower than the balcony being found open.

What purpose did this man serve? Was he here to assist. To ensure the job was completed? Or to make sure she couldn't reveal the plot afterwards. That was a sobering thought. She made a note to keep her eyes on him when the deed was done.

 

[Vrak Nashar]

[member="Neesa"]

Vrak swept forward as Nessa closed the door behind them. The infrared vision in his mask told him this floor was empty of guards, though there were a few occupied rooms at the end of the hall. Their target lived on the furthest side of the estate, two guards would be standing by his door.

"Kill Lord Gelder." Vrak told the girl as he turned to her, the mask distorting his voice.

Lord Gelder was one of Vrak's chief rivals here on Athiss. The man was a staunch isolationist and a general pain in his backside. Aside from that however he also had a tremendous amount of wealth. Gelder controlled many of the mines due South of here, and those mines were critical for most manufacturing that was done here on Athiss. Without them one couldn't even build a Durasteel wall, much less a starfighter or anything worthwhile.

That was why Vrak was here.

"I have other business to attend to." The deeds to the mines would be easy enough to steal. "We'll meet back here when we finish."

This, of course, had never been a part of the plan that Neesa would have been informed of, even her Master didn't know. Yet it would further evolve Vrak's plan for this world and it's people.