Divine Improvisation [Moross Crusade]

[Ereza]

"She said..."

Amore took a moment to think on this. Not for forgetting what was said - that would never be the case - but for how to present it to him. Silencia had said much of him, and when she really thought about it, not much at all. The woman had a mysterious ability to speak at great length and yet remain completely vague. Never did she reveal everything about anything. Amore supposed it was what kept people asking for her.

"That you are very ambitious and your potential had no foreseeable limits. That you had a great deal you could teach me but also a great deal more to learn, yourself."

Offering him a placating smile, Amore hoped those words would not insult him. If he was as aged as she was told, it might sting to know that two centuries simply wasn't enough. Her eyes drifted to the floor as they walked, "She also said that you are very much your mother's son." She couldn't bring herself to repeat verbatim what Silencia had said about his inhereted traits from his father for they had not been particularly kind, but the saving grace was how relieved she had been that he took after Quietus in so many ways.

 

[Cedric Dorn]

Soliael let out a chuckle at her last statement, of course he didn't expect her to tell him everything. He knew that pieces of what Silencia had told her were unlikely unpleasant, perhaps even unkind. He was the first to admit that he was not perfect, despite attaining what some would call godhood Soliael still had many flaws, and he had much to learn. He knew this even when he stood against those he would consider lesser then himself. He could tell when someone had power, and where their strength lay. Of course he would never admit it to them, that would be stupid, but he knew there were others who were stronger than him, his mother and Oma being only two.

He smiled slightly at Amorella then spoke. “Perhaps you shouldn't believe everything she tells you.”

With that he began to walk again, his foot steps resounding throughout the great hall. He beckoned Amorella to follow him until they reached the very edge of the massive room. There he once again waved his hand, this time towards a nearby wall. The neatly decorated Marble shuttered for a second, shaking as if it would fall down, then the stone parted sending a massive beam of light into the Great Hall.

Slowly the doors opened to reveal the massive expanse of Exocron outside. The sun was shinning bright and it illuminated every crevice, every ditch, every last nook and cranny within the great hall. Outside was a massive set of stairs and down them were thousands if not millions of people going about their lives.

Soliael walked until he and Amorella stood between the massive double doors. He motioned out his arm in a grand gesture and spoke again. “Let me officially welcome you to Exocron, the home of Moross.”

 

[Ereza]

"It's beautiful," the words passed through a smile warmed by sunlight. Amore stood shoulder to shoulder with Soliael, blue eyes carving a path across the cityscape laid before them. It was a world marked by grandeur of faith and the mantra of solidarity. Every roving speck on the horizon was part of the realm of Moross - part of a turning clockwork that would only continue to further expand.

With every new breath that she took Amore began to feel her history on Kuat shrink, diminishing to just another cog in the mechanism of the galaxy. She felt insignificant, even when it was so far from the truth, but it was impossible now to comprehend just how big this really was. What Amore did understand, or at least was beginning to, was the purpose of her presence here. To experience these movements; see history in the making - things that could never be accomplished on Kuat.

"I suppose I should begin my search for a place to live. Any suggestions or shall I just..." the Princess closed her eyes and lifted a hand, letting her pointer finger wander across the landscape to land blindly in one area or another.

 

[Cedric Dorn]

Soliael looked at her for a few seconds, he wondered if she realized that everything she was pointing at was actually a store part of the massive market before the temple. He decided not to point this out to her since he figured it would make her kind of sad. For a few seconds he let this farce go on, and then finally he spoke.

“If you wish you could live with me. I often do not stay within my home here on Exocron. My travels take me elsewhere.” It was true enough. Although Soliael had a home here he didn't like staying there. It was too close to everything, too involved on Exocron. Sol far preferred staying on his ship in orbit or traveling about the galaxy. It was simpler for him, and he liked the freedom it allowed him. Slowly the Sith Lord looked at his aunt expectantly.

 

[Ereza]

Amore was somewhat aware of this, having gleaned a partial view of the market on her way in but she was in no way knowledgable enough about the layout of the city to know just how far it extended. Eventually, in any direction, there had to be housing. Whether or not it would be suitable was another story.

Her hand stopped at his words and her eyes opened, looking upwards at him while her finger remained pointed on the mark. She smiled, looking somewhat relieved and surprised at the offer, and nodded, "That..."

She had to think on how to accept the offer. Too eager might put him off, too listless could do the same. It was a hard wedge to cut between wanting to be near family and wishing to remain professional as her stature mandated. She decided that instead, maybe just this once, it was proper to speak from the heart.

"...I would like that," another nod as she looked finally to where her finger had stopped and her smile broadened, "much better than a textile mill I think."

 

[Cedric Dorn]

Soliael looked at his aunt and smiled. Well at least he would be able to keep an eye on her this way, she was as of yet a card he did not know how to play. He knew that she would be useful, probably more so than many of his servants. Yet she was still Silencia's daughter, and so Soliael had to suspect her of having some sort of ulterior motive, he couldn't help himself on that part. Still, despite all of this and the feelings of slight worry Soliael was still glad to have his aunt here.

He suspected that she would be someone to talk to, someone to speak with who would be ungrudging, something he desperately needed in his life. Quietly Soliael began to walk down the steps of the Grand Temple. His Apartments were not far from the Temple for obvious reasons.

“Then I will show you where you will be staying.” He said the words as he began his descent, the slight smile still on his face. As he began to move more thoughts came into his head, though these weren't curious questions like before. No they were stratagems. He began to think of how to use Amore. As long as she was here she would need to be of use, and having someone close, someone that was absolutely trustworthy was a very valuable thing.

Slowly Soliael wandered into the crowd, his aunt hopefully trailing behind him. As he moved into thick of the market the people spread before him like crawling waves. Some bowed their heads, others simple became quiet and stared. To his Credit Soliael did nothing, he simply smiled at his worshipers and nodded in greeting to those he made eye contact with. He was the symbol of a god.

 

[Vascious Relens]

@[member="Soliael Devin Talith"] @[member="Amorella Mae"]

How well the crowd parted so smoothly and silently as the revelers shied away from the presence of their god was a true testament to just how effective Soliael’s peaceful subjugation of the masses had been. However, there was another wolf that quickly began to stand out among the sheep.

A remarkably tall hooded man glanced back at the god and the princess as they parted the crowd before them. He did not lower his head or his body to the ground, nor did he back away to make room. Instead he stood where he was as the two approached.

As they got closer the man’s features came into view as he lowered his hood. It was an older human male with gray hair that seemed a couple weeks past a shave and a short military haircut. He wore the same hooded robe as many of the revelers, but underneath that was the obvious bulk of armor. This was made even more blatant by the metallic collar plating and his gauntlets that were exposed past the tattered ends of the rough fabric of the robe.

It didn’t take a trained eye to pick up on how lazy the man’s disguise was, but a well-trained mind might have picked up on the very subtle void of the flow of the force around him. He was masterfully masking his presence. That combined with how cold and lifeless his brown eyes were would lead one to believe that he wasn’t the run of the mill pilgrim or potential assassin.

Amorella of course would be able to recognize the man instantly as Vascious Relens. She was Sol’s great aunt, but the tall armored figure before them was Amore’s great uncle. It seemed that Devin was in for quite the family reunion today.

“Niece, what a pleasant surprise,” spoke Vascious softly with a warm smile directed at the princess that seemed out of place with the void of emotion in his eyes. Eyes that soon turned to her companion to gauge him.

Amorella’s uncle seemed to come and go in her life with no specific pattern, but he had always taken a liking to her and brought her an exotic gift and a story each time he had come knocking on Silencia’s door. If nothing else, Vascious cherished what little family he had left.

Luckily however, the situation wasn’t completely lost on Relens for long. Soon he took notice of his surroundings and lowered his head giving a stiff bow as armor didn’t provide great flexibility. “Oh my lord forgive an old man’s poor eyesight,” he added somewhat quickly. His heart wasn’t in the act, but it seemed enough to appease the half hidden shock of some of the closer pilgrims.

 

[Ereza]

It took Amore a few long moments to discern the face of her Uncle beneath the hood of the cloak. Cloaked as he was, it was his voice that gave him away completely. A deep tone rich with all the experiences of his life and a characteristic rumble of the r's and lishp on the s's.

(Cue Sean Connery)

"Uncle!" she said in great surprise, holding back the urge to greet the man with a hug.

"Soli-" and she caught herself again, casting a glance around at the crowds of worshipers. Amorella delicately cleared her throat, mind racing to the proper manner in which to speak to her Nephew in this particular public setting. The Princess recalled her many travels through Republic worlds and noted an evening in the palace of Naboo. Dinner with the Queen had meant hours of practicing courtly manners beforehand under the hawk-like-gaze of her own Queen Mother. That seemed the closest she could come, but Your Highness simply wouldn't do to address a God.

"Your Eminence," she began, voice soft and placating, "please allow me to introduce my Great Uncle Vascious Relens. Word of you and your fellow Gods might must have spread far to gain his attention. These are good tidings."

 

[Cedric Dorn]

Good tidings indeed. Soliael stared at the man who he now knew was his uncle, and he couldn't help but smile. It seemed that today was a day for reunions. His smile continued as he looked down at his aunt, apparently he had more family than he thought he did. For a split second he wondered how he was going to handle this. Of course it was good to have more family here with him, but explaining these two newcommers hanging around one of the gods so often would be...difficult. With just Amorella it would have been simpler, but with his uncle as well...

“Good tidings indeed.” His words mirrored his earlier thoughts. “Please, join us on our walk.”

He smiled at the old man and then looked at his followers within the crowd. They gasped slightly as he moved forward and touched his uncles shoulder in a gesture of welcome. They seemed to stare at the man with a sort reverence, and then Soliael looked at them again. He smiled at the crowd, and slowly they began to part again. The god began to move forward, urging his Aunt and Uncle to move with him.

Once they were at his home things could be far less formal, out here on the streets Soliael had to keep up appearances and he couldn't quite hug his long lost Uncle.

 

[Vascious Relens]

Your eminence? That did sound a lot better than 'my lord'. Vascious frowned slightly in thoughtful consideration. Silencia groomed Amorellia to be quite the diplomat. Her uncle would have to shed some of his rust off if he was going to play these social intrigue games. Then again it might not be a bad idea to hang up the brute force routine for a few months.

Then Soliael touched his shoulder and Vascious bowed lower to feign a slight cower. "My lord, i'm at your disposal!" He wasn't going to switch to 'Your Eminence' half way through just because she had a better line.

The crowd soon got over its gasps and awws. Relens again found surprise at just how well the masses parted before Amorellia's companion. There was certainly admiration rather than fear within their eyes. Vascious couldn't help but to fall in line with them to continue through the crowd so he could sate his curiosity.

Moments passed until they were out of earshot of the initial batch of people before their uncle spoke up again softly so as not to be easily heard by passerby.

"I had heard there was a lot of activity in this sector. I was curious, and so I came to check it out."

 

[Allyson Locke]

Spencer lingered, she had heard of the new group that believed they were gods. Deciding to investigate she had caught the face of the boy she had met not to long ago and there was another with him. Taking a deep breath she slipped between the crowds and moved towards them. It would be an easier time latching on to the small group since she somewhat knew the boy. It seemed she had missed the initial meeting.

Moving farther into the crowd she came up in front of them and waved towards Soliael and smirked slightly. It was odd hearing the other call him Lord. What importance did this kid have with the rest of the group and was it possible that he was part of this group that had the strange belief. Small prayer into the Force she waved and hoped that the man would recognize her.

@[member="Soliael Devin Talith"] @[member="Amorella Mae"] @[member="Vascious Relens"]

 

[Cedric Dorn]

Soliael spotted Spencer within the crowds, almost immediately his eyes shot open in shock. It was only for a fraction of a second and then they returned to normal. He regarded his aunt and uncle for only a split second once again, and then returned a low gaze to Spencer. He saw her wave, something that would not attract attention within the crowd. The God frowned slightly, and then turned to his Aunt.

“Amore” He spoke quietly, not wanting the crowd to overhear. “I need a favor from you.”

His words were quick, he did not want Spencer to come towards him. She knew who he truly was, what he truly was, something that was very dangerous here on Exocron. If she revealed him, well then he would have to kill her and that would be quite unpleasant given that she was far more powerful in the force than him. “There is a woman over there, a blonde. I need you to speak to her and bring her here.”

Soliael handed her a small datapad with a map on it, the map led back to Soliaels residence here. If Amore could head off Spencer and bring her there without any attention all would be well. Meanwhile Soliael could bring his uncle Vascious there and they would all meet up. Soliael smiled at her, trying to replace the confidence he had briefly lost at the sight of the Rogue Maste.r

 

[Ereza]

There was little else that might've quelled the excitement rising in the young Kuati Princess other than the sudden request from her Nephew. For a moment Amore stood there staring at the device handed her and then looked out to the crowd where keen blue eyes picked the blond woman within the sea of faces. She was the only one regarding their group with anything other than awe and reverence, so that was easily done, but what gave the Princess pause was the thought of leaving them.

A fear of becoming lost in the crowd on this strange planet without her Guard gripped Amore and strangled her ability to speak. She struggled with this momentarily as he mind raced and she fought that innate need to remain near familiar ground - namely, her Uncle Vascious.

"I ... yes, of course," she glanced around again, wide eyes locking on the blond woman while her fingers locked around the device. Spencer, without ever being aware, suddenly became her anchor. Talk to the woman, bring her home. Talk to the woman, bring her home. Don't forget to address the God, "... Your Holiness," she bobbed into a quick bow and without another word stepped off after the woman.

"Hello, hello?" the flame-haired woman flashed an agreeable smile at Spencer as she approached, "I am Lady Mae, Prin-" she stopped herself. No, not a Princess - not here. Her fingers tightened reflexively around the book in her right hand and she quickly recalled the page of Inari the Healer. "-Priestess of Inari, you must be new here. On behalf of all the Gods I would like to welcome you to the Pilgrimage Miss ...?"

@[member="Spencer Jacobs"]

 

[Vascious Relens]

Vascious happened to be looking over at his newly found nephew when the younger man spotted Spencer in the crowd. The reaction Sol gave was subtle and quick, but it was enough for the older man to take notice.

The Mandalorian watched silently as Amore did as she was asked and moved to intercept the new woman. There was a nagging feeling in the back of his head that he should have went with his niece, but he knew Silencia was weening her off of the nest.

"Freind or foe," asked Sol's uncle softly as he looked out over the crowd in a different direction and smiled to a few worshippers that were passing by.

Of course friend or foe wasn't a simply answered question in their line of work. The lines were easily blurred and rewritten every day. Never the less he felt some level of responsibility for family. After all there weren't many left.

 

[Cedric Dorn]

Soliael walked next to his uncle. It was strange but already he could feel a connection to the man, perhaps it was because he was quite literally the only male member of his family he had ever met aside from Dissero, or perhaps it was because the man had something...fatherly about him, but Soliael did not care. After a few seconds they passed away from Amorella and Spencer, the two quickly falling into the crowd. He didn't bother looking back and instead answered his uncle.

“A problematic friend.” He spoke the words as if they pained him, though what he said was true. Spencer was no threat to Amore or Soliael. She would not hurt either of them, she had no reason or right to. The problem was with her revealing who Soliael was, he doubted she was aware of Moross or Soliaels involvement in it. All she knew was that he was Moridins son, and when they had first met Soliael had had nothing but questions about the now Dreadlord.

That in it of itself was dangerous, what she knew could ruin Soliael.

He chewed his lip quietly as he walked alongside his uncle. Even through the crowds they made quick progress towards Soliaels home and as they neared it the people became less and less. Soliders of Moross began to appear, priests and priestesses of the faith alongside them. They had now entered the part of Exocron devoted to the most zealous of worshippers.

 

[Vascious Relens]

Vascious continued to walk alongside Soliael. The answer that was returned to him made him laugh softly even though his nephew's facial expression and lip chewing obviously showed him to be in deep concentration on the subject.

"A problematic friend? Who isn't?"

The Mandalorian stayed silent for the most part afterward. Instead he was taking particular interest in how the crowds of worshipers thinned into soldiers and those of the clergy almost immediately as they entered the next area. He waited a few moments further before glancing around to make sure no one was within earshot.

"This is an interesting approach. I'm impressed by the religion's speed and efficiency."

Then Vascious paused for a moment. He was going to say his nephew's name until he realized that he didn't know what that name was. Amore had announced Vascious, but Soliael had been given grand titles rather than a name. He tried to think back on conversations with Silencia, but this particular nephew must not have been a typical dinner conversational topic. There was a couple names on the tip of his tongue, but he decided to keep them to himself for now and see how the conversation went.

"Though I'm curious what plan of action the gods of Moross have if a powerful Sith Master were to publicly humiliate one of them. These people are utterly devout, which means that would be all that much more crushed by such a show of power against one of their gods."

 

[Cedric Dorn]

“That would be assuming a Sith Master could humiliate us in the first place.” He said the words with a smirk, though he knew it was all too true. There was always a chance that some wayward Sith or Jedi would try to ruin their little plot here on Moross. The fantastic thing about that of course was that none of the three gods were push overs. Cavil was a fantastically powerful combatant, the other as well and Soliael himself was no push over. All three of them knew how to fight, not to mention that they were surrounded by a literal army of loyal followers.

Even then however there were safeguards in place. The scriptures itself of Moross was very detailed in the facts of how the God's operated in the mortal realm, and part of that detail was admitting that they were indeed mortal.

“They would be crushed yes, but they would understand.” Soliael looked around for only a split second to ensure nobody was listening to them. “In the writings we created we ensured that the populace understood one thing. While here us gods are Mortal. We are flesh and blood creatures, essentially spirits inhabiting the bodies of very powerful force users. We can be killed, though killing us will only allow one of the other Pantheon to descend to the mortal plane.”

He explained the carefully crafted lie to his uncle, ensuring absolutely no one overheard through use of the force. “What sets us apart from other force users is our abilities, our willingness to help our people, and our resemblance to the gods they so love.”

It was really all that simple, people craved something divine, and Moross had simply filled that niche.

 

[Vascious Relens]

Vascious looked sideways at his nephew with a raised eyebrow at the response that was presented to him.

"Unfortunately there is always a bigger fish as the saying goes," added Soliael's uncle very softly so as not to interrupt the younger man while he explained how the religion could endure the deaths of it's figureheads. The full answer did seem to satisfy him however as he looked over again to give Devin an appreciative nod.

"For me that bigger fish was an armada of ships that left me to die defenseless in the cold depths of space. For you it could be a grand master of the force, or a kid that gets lucky with a blaster. Still it seems like you have it all figured out as long as all three of you weren't killed to allow the attackers to pose as the new gods. Truthfully I never could get a crowd to do this. Like I said I am genuinely impressed."

There was a lengthy pause then as the old Mandalorian seemed to ponder on something that afflicted his mind.

"Silencia sent Amorella here to assist you then?"

 

[Cedric Dorn]

Soliael led his uncle through the courtyard through a batch of soldiers and towards his home. Surprisingly the Gods dwelling was quite homey. It was not a massive palace or giant mansion, but instead a small building on the very edge of the plaza the two had been walking through. The house itself was almost tiny in comparison to the surrounding structures. It had only one floor that you could see, a few windows and a single door that stood in the front. There was no front or back yard and it seemed to have absolutely no defenses.

Surrounding it was a wall that reached up to about Soliaels shoulder, it wasn't meant to keep anyone out, but rather to mark it. All around the wall were inscriptions, a massive mural that told the story of Moross and where the gods had come from. In the middle of the wall stood two Soldiers, starkly standing guard even here in the center of Exocrons Military might. As Soliael and his uncle approached the small home the False God waved his hand.

A section of the wall simply fell away into the ground, disappearing and becoming part of the ground. As Soliael walked through this new gap he spoke to his uncle. “Of sorts. Though I suspect this is as much for her benefit as it is my own.”

He smiled at his uncle as he reached the front door of his house. Slowly the Sith grabbed the door knob and opened the door. When his uncle followed him inside he would find the inner sanctum of Neth the God to be equally disappointing as the outside. There were three large rooms that one could view from the front of the house, a kitchen, a living room, and a dining room. Beyond that was a hallway that lead to three separate bedrooms, each equipped with their own bathroom.

It seemed strange that one of the God's of Moross would choose to live this way, though of course, not all was as it seemed.

 

[Vascious Relens]

Vascious chuckled at the answer he was given about Amore.

"Even when you're my age you still won't understand Silencia's motives. Though she's certainly the woman you want on your side."

Then they arrived at Soliael's destination. It might have seemed strange to someone else, but Vascious didn't give off this impression. Truthfully he didn't seem impressed by the way his nephew opened the wall, but he did look at his new surroundings with a certain appreciation as they entered the house. The Mandalorian took his pilgrimage robe off, and hung it onto a nearby hook on his way in. Now the old ex-Sith had his old battered mandalorian plate armor exposed as he moved about the room and reached out to run his hand along a bit of the nearby wall.

"Straight to the point, defensible, and subtle. This is a refreshing surprise. Usually someone would be so mad with power they they'd have wasted precious resources on palaces. I haven't met the other gods yet, but i'm beginning to get very curious on how far you can take this religion."