Don't Panic (Ignus)

[Niysha]

Of course he had another ship. Niysha seemed to be the only Sith in the galaxy who wasn't sitting on four corporate bankrolls, the beneficiary of three charities, with an inheritance from her rich uncle and a few government grants. It was bizarre just how readily Sith seemed to come by wealth, come to think of it. Prioritizing it made sense, of course; the Force was all well and good, but the real measure of power in the galaxy had always been and would probably always be resources. Still, it seemed as if the entire sect was just personally affluent...which was kind of off-putting for a girl who was wearing her only possessions.

Once again, Ignus seemed to have some sort of scheme in mind. Take one ship, not the other. This one at least made sense from first blush. Taking a warship into a dangerous area had been one part plan and one part prevention. Taking a warship into a peaceful, civilian world without any real excuse to do so would just be inviting trouble. Proving your strength was one thing, but there was wisdom in not drawing undue attention to yourself.

With a deep breath, the Miraluka nodded and stood to stretch. "I remain at your disposal, master. Whatever you might need of me, I'll be more than happy to provide it." As long as it wasn't more hugs. Physical contact had resulted in almost every one of the most horrible moments of Niysha's life, and she wasn't keen to invite more additions to that list. "If you don't have any immediate tasks for me, though, I have some personal needs to take care of."

Commanding a Star Destroyer and engaging in high-stress interactions with a Sith much more powerful than her all day long had left her a bit sweaty. Surely she could find a shower somewhere in this monster of a ship.
[member="Darth Ignus"]

 

[Kamon's OOC]

Leos could only sigh. It was a good thing she wasn't saying that to someone like Carnifex. That wouldn't go well for her. With him, it didn't really matter, though. He wasn't about to take advantage of her willingness to essentially do anything he wanted of her. He certainly wasn't that kind of monster. Quite frankly she disturbed him a bit with the way she acted. She was entirely too submissive for his liking. That really was unbecoming of a Sith. Apprentices were normally reluctant to do what their Master's asked of them, not offering to do anything at all that they wanted to do.

He drew out his commlink and raised it to his lips.
"Captain."

"Sir?"

"How long until we reaach the rendezvous point?"

"About two hours."

"Thank you."

He tucked the commlink back and then nodded his head to her.

"Go ahead. We've got two hours. When we change ships I want to have a discussion with you about the future of the galaxy. It'll keep us occupied until we reach Obroa-skai."

[member="Niysha"]

 

[Niysha]

Two hours was plenty of time for Niysha to get a shower, clean her robes, and otherwise center herself. She was much, much calmer than when she had arrived on this ship, and infinitely so compared to when Ignus had pinned her to a solid surface by her throat. After cleaning, Niysha spent the rest of the trip in meditation, practicing what had been suggested earlier. Calling on memories to incite emotional torque was...unsettling, to be frank. Still, she'd managed to disassemble and reassemble Lord Adekos' lightsaber with the focused despair of his absence, so that was something.

Eventually, the young Sithling could feel the ship lurch back into realspace. She stood and made her way to the bridge to meet with her master, as it was unlikely she'd be going anywhere near his ship without him. The two took a shuttle from the Mirial Accord to the Eidolon, which Niysha, of course, could not see from the viewports. Shapes were tricky things in space, and it was yet another reason that she hated flying. Odd, then, that she seemed to do it so often.

As the shuttle docked into yet another ship, the two of them and all accompanying animals made their way onto the Eidolon. Immediately, Niysha could notice a difference in the air. The Force was thicker here, as there was much more life condensed into a smaller area. The Accord had been huge, meaning that the emotions and life in the air had spread thinner. Niysha liked this ship infinitely more, and it might have easily been visible by her smile.

Now, back to business. "You said you had something to discuss with me, master."
[member="Darth Ignus"]

 

[Kamon's OOC]

It had taken long enough to reach there that he'd managed to catch a few minutes of sleep, which was much needed considering he'd been awake for a really long time. When the ship lurched out of hyperspace, he'd woken and gotten himself cleaned up before meeting Niysha on the bridge. They moved alongside the old corvette, the rest of the Ignus Black fleet looming in space beyond. Together, the two departed the destroyer for the corvette, Arus and Milan their only companions on the trip. When the ship docked with the smaller corvette, they disembarked and he took a deep breath. This was the ship he felt most at home on. The crew here were infinitely more disciplined than the crew of most ships, and the Captain didn't call him Sir all the time.

Turning his gaze to her, he caught the smile and that made him curious. What was she smiling about? He thought about asking, but she quickly reminded him that he'd indicated he wanted to talk with her about something. That distracted his thoughts away from the smile, though he was pleased to see her smile rather than being so stoic and trying to fight with her emotions all the time. Nice to see her actually be herself.

"Yes. Come with me."

He led her through the ship, to a room deep inside of it that appeared to have no door. They stood outside of it in the hallway. It was a special modification that he had made to the ship himself. The door was actually a hidden segment of wall that could only be activated by someone in tune with the Force. He reached through the wall and activated the door, causing it to slide inward and then to the side, which allowed them to enter. The room itself was dark, but for Niysha that probably didn't matter anyway. Considering all the artificial light on most ships, he'd found this room quite relaxing of late. It was just a meditation room, but it allowed him to escape where the crew couldn't find him.

Stepping in, he waited for her to do the same before sealing the door and taking a seat on one of the cushions in the space. No furniture here. Lots of cushions and pillows, though.

"Sit if you want," he said as he got comfortable and waited for her to do the same before continuing. "Before I tell you what I want of the galaxy, I want to ask you a question. How do you feel about the Jedi?"

[member="Niysha"]

 

[Niysha]

Light and dark, in the physical sense, were foreign concepts to the blind. The fact that one room was poorly lit while another was well lit meant little more to a Miraluka than clothes, color, or the time of day. She did, however, notice a change in the air. This room was meant to be peaceful, and peaceful feelings pervaded here. It was inherently calming. She could see it being used to calm emotions or channel them with equal efficiency. Naturally, this left her ever more relaxed. Her state of constant, low-key terror had begun to unravel.

When beckoned to sit, she straightened her robe behind her and knelt down, sitting on her calves, hands clasped in her lap. It was far more relaxing than lotus position, at least for her. Since she figured she'd be here for quite some time, it was likely a good idea to get comfy. Normally, this would also involve the removal of her blindfold, but...well, sighted creatures tended to find that the opposite of "chill."

"I don't, honestly. I've never met one," she replied simply. That probably required elaboration, though. "We were taught to hate them in the academy. They are the enemy. They represent stagnation and decay. They're cowards and liars who hide behind their false code, and on and on. It was part of the curriculum." The young Sith shrugged, then double-checked to make sure she was physically facing Leos. "After today, I've seen enough of them to know that they aren't as perfect as everyone who isn't Sith seems to think they are. But I've never known one for more than a few minutes."

She paused a moment, then cocked her head to one side. Her brow furrowed beneath her blindfold. "In fact, I've never Seen one. If I did, I could probably offer you a more sound opinion. It's possible but very difficult to mask your essence in the Force."
[member="Darth Ignus"]

 

[Kamon's OOC]

Good. Despite what she'd been force fed, she was open.

"What they taught you is a stereotype. One which is easily broken depending on the Jedi that you meet. I've met a handful of them now, and while most have seemed to show a great deal of disdain for me because of what I am, some have shown curious restraint. In point of fact, Jedi, too, are taught stereotypes about us. To be fair to both sides, the stereotypes exist for a reason. Someone fits the bill somewhere. On both sides, most seem to fit into the mold laid out, but whether that's because of being taught the stereotype, or because of their nature, is hard to discern."

He rested with his hands in his lap as he regarded her. She was a lot more calm here than she was on the destroyer. There was a brief lurch to disrupt them, as the ship jumped to hyperspace, but even that didn't seem to disturb her. This was good. If she was more at home on the Eidolon, then he knew where he should teach her. That was a good start.

"Personally I believe in forming our own opinions of individuals rather than relying on the stereotypes. If they fit it, then they're probably worthless. If not, then there's promise. I met a Jedi on Krayiss Two before we invaded the Caldera. I was trying to gain access to the temple and she came along without knowing I was there. We conversed, and I was pleasantly surprised to find that she was rather open minded. Our conversation went on for hours, and I won't bore you with every detail of what we said, but it all involved my vision of the galaxy and for it.

"You see, I believe that in order for the galaxy to achieve balance, both the Jedi and the Sith must return to their ways of old, before the dark siders were cast off Tython. Bringing together the two sides under one banner will create the force necessary to bring this galaxy out of the state of chaos it's in. By working together with those who cannot touch the Force, as they outnumber those that can greatly, the galaxy can be righted from this consistent cycle of useless devastation. In essence, I want to do what Palpatine started to do, but I want to see it come to completion. Working together, we can draw other worlds into our number through diplomacy thanks to the Jedi. If that doesn't work, we resort to force.

"If we conquer the galaxy in its entirety, we bring it together under the banner of a triad of leadership: a Jedi, a Sith, and one who has no force ability. They can create fair laws and punishments which are then applied unilaterally across all worlds, forcing a state of peace. The ultimate victory is not the galactic dominion itself, you see. It's the attainment of true, and lasting peace. The others won't see that. The reason I'm telling you this is because I think you have the mind capable of understanding why this is becoming a necessary course of action."

[member="Niysha"]

 

[Niysha]

Both sides of the Sith/Jedi equation tended to preach rather religiously about everything they did. Everything was spiritual, and natural, and for a righteous cause, and blah blah blah. Niysha had little use for religion; she could See the Force as clear as other people saw sunlight. It was no great mystery to her, to be unwoven through half-truths and superstition. This was probably a good thing. If she had been more zealous, she would have found what Leos just said to be openly heretical.

It wasn't heresy, but it was impractical. Niysha sighed and shook her head. "You're quite the ideologue," she began, probably not as carefully as she should have. "That would be a perfect galaxy, really. The problem is that reality tends towards chaos. The slide towards violence and selfishness is inevitable. To enforce peace on others is to go against how they naturally act." Hopefully he didn't kill her for disagreeing with him. She'd met a few who would have.

Okay, backpedal. "You're very right about one thing. The galaxy is caught in a cycle. Violence and destruction lead to temporary control which in turn leads to more violence and destruction. It's been in this state for all of recorded history, on every planet, in every system." Again, Niysha looked a bit overwhelmed. This was heavy stuff, and she was in no way qualified to speak on it. But here she was. "I don't know if the Jedi have some sort of magical solution to that. I'm not sure if that magical solution will appear when Jedi and Sith work together against the common enemy of inevitable decay and destruction."

Deep breath. The young Miraluka reached up to fiddle with the back of her blindfold, loosening it slightly. Her head was beginning to hurt. "I agree that the galaxy is a horrible mess of a place. I even agree that something should be done about it. But how could any number of people do anything to stop a perpetual cycle set in place by the Force itself? It's life and death, and it moves to ensure that both of those things continue in abundance."

She sighed and placed her hands to the sides of her head, letting it drop a bit as she fell into a slight slouch. "I...I don't know. It feels like you're shooting far too high with this. This is the kind of thing that prophecies are written about. And we've seen how that tends to work out. Maybe...start smaller? A test run?"

Niysha hesitated. If she had eyes, she would have blinked. She sat up suddenly, epiphany visibly striking her. "An experiment. One system functions as the test group, with the trilateral governance system in play. One system as a control group, with a government allowed to evolve organically. Introduce challenges to both, to see which one fares better. Record our findings, alter the design. Then re-test." Her hands returned to her lap, mostly because she was far too busy thinking and putting her thoughts to words to do anything else with them. "If we started small, and progressed from there, we would be able to see the viability of this model, and any deficiencies it might have could be remedied before they caused irreparable damage to the galaxy at large."

Who gave this girl her morning wheaties?
[member="Darth Ignus"]

 

[Kamon's OOC]

Oh good, she was thinking about it critically. That was more than he'd actually hoped for. He was actually rather pleased that she didn't just buy into it, considering she'd practically been throwing herself at him up until that point. Indeed, this kind of thinking was good for the Protectorate as a whole. If they could iron out all of these before things got too involved, they stood a better chance of succeeding in their goals.

"Almost the same thing Teynara said about me."

He chuckled a little, but let her continue on as he listened. He didn't speak again until she'd finished. Her idea was interesting to him. It would have to be done somewhere backwater so they could avoid interference from outside entities, and they'd need worlds near to each other so that they could monitor them without having to traverse the galaxy in order to do so. That was going to take its own research, but he thought Teynara would like the idea, as it would help iron out potential issues with governance system before they instituted it. There were bound to be issues. He was already well aware of that fact, it was just a matter of what those issues were.

"It's impossible to enact real change if you aim low. If you don't aim high, you'll never get anywhere at all. Besides, I don't imagine full achievement of this in my lifetime. Perhaps my children or grandchildren will see it come to fruition. I do this as much for them as for my own desires. Besides, if no one ever aims for such a thing, the galaxy will eventually destroy itself. The Force is a powerful entity, but it doesn't control everything that happens in this galaxy, no matter how hard it tries. The galaxy will eat itself eventually if we let it continue the way it has. Besides, everyone dies eventually, so the Force gets its life and death, just not in the form of mass slaughter.

"Now, as for your idea, I like it. A lot. I want you to broach it to the others, and then I want you to oversee it if they agree to it."

Oh yeah. It was her brainchild, she was going to be in charge of making it a reality.

[member="Niysha"]

 

[Niysha]

Leos had probably said something. It was probably along the lines of "go big or go home." Something like that. Niysha hadn't even sort of heard him. She was too busy thinking her way through the task in front of her. Starting with a planet was probably overkill. What she needed was a couple of smaller groups. A world that hadn't yet formed a united global government would be ideal to test this on, or two different worlds with smaller populations. She'd need to topple the government of the test group, of course, and find a couple of functioning Force-sensitives of roughly light and dark aspect to occupy its loftiest points.

Installing them directly would be out of the question. If the people knew that they answered to a higher power, an absent power, then they wouldn't feel the need to listen to their chosen leaders. The easiest way would be to find an existing tripartite system and ensure that the next individuals in line were of appreciable Force aptitude and demeanor. Assassination and rigging the system would be preferable. She made a mental note.

Another option would be to descend from the heavens upon a more primitive world that had yet to conceive of space travel, and bequeath upon them a divine mandate. She could pose as a goddess or, more likely, a divine agent sent by their existing deity. A religious society would likely be the easiest way to indoctrinate the common man, but they were also prone to collapsing as rationalism took hold. It was a problem to be worked on when she had time, resources, and experts.

At some point in her frantic thoughts, Niysha had at least heard Leos say "and you're in charge." She returned her attention to him as visibly as possible. "I think that would be best, too. I could more easily react to and alter the test group with a conscious hand in it." She couldn't help the broad grin spreading to her face at the thought of it. "This is exciting, master. I've never had an opportunity like this before."
[member="Darth Ignus"]

 

[Kamon's OOC]

Leos could only chuckle. The girl was as lost in her thoughts as he sometimes got. Well, at least he could understand her like this. And there was less of the placating that annoyed the crap out of him. She even flat out accepted what he said about being in charge herself. She wanted to be in charge. Somehow he'd managed to get her to grow a backbone without even really trying. Apparently all it took was an ideal and a plan to institute it in order to get her focused. Probably helped, as well, that it was entirely her plan. It was a good one, too, so of course he would back it as long as the others agreed, which he was certain they would see the wisdom in testing it.

"Only because you've not reached out to seize the opportunity. The galaxy is open to you if you are willing to reach out to it."

The power of the room was strong. A calming, quiet atmosphere would really do you good when you were trying to think or just get a little bit of rest. That's why the room existed. He had plans for something bigger in the future, but that was just in his mind at the moment.

"I do want to be kept apprised of all of the details, however. You are smart. I have no doubt of that. But there are things you may not think of when planning this out that I or the others might. That's the reason we've opted for the triad system. Seeing things from multiple angles allows for proper planning for situations a single person might not think of. Plus it becomes more impartial, which should, in theory, help placate some of the people that would otherwise thing we were playing favorites.

"I'll take you to meet the others eventually. After we stop at Obroa-skai there's one other stop I want to make. It's on the way to where we'll meet the others so it won't delay us much. This will also allow you time to plan for the meeting."

[member="Niysha"]

 

[Niysha]

Hm? Oh, yes. Peer review. Niysha consciously slipped out of her reverie for a moment to give a quick bow of her head. "Your wisdom will be appreciated, master," she replied very simply. Not quite dismissively, but she wasn't Cerean. She couldn't think about two totally different things at once, and toadying showing proper respect to authority was taking somewhat of a back seat to all of the possibilities flying around her head.

What she needed to remember to do was to not try to work out the entire problem in theory before it was put to practice. Oversolving problems might lead to more problems and fewer solutions when she implemented her theories. She needed an outline, with some blocks in place for obvious and fatal errors. The Dark member of the tripartite would, for instance, be quite prone to seizing power. She could put countermeasures in place for that, but she'd receive much more comprehensive data if the flaws manifested themselves before she tried to fix them.

Knowing why something was going wrong was far more important than knowing how to fix it.

Ahem. Back to the galaxy. Niysha cleared her throat and offered another beaming grin. "Apologies, master. I'm simply eager to get started. What's waiting for us at Obroa-skai?" Also, what the hell was an Obroa-skai?
[member="Darth Ignus"]

 

[Kamon's OOC]

Leos could only sit and watch her as she was busy running through things in her head. She didn't have eyes for him to watch, but if she did he was certain that they would be closed and moving back and forth as she ran through scenario after scenario. Judging by her quietness, and the body posture, he was certain that was exactly what she was doing. So he let her do it. Besides, it wasn't as if they didn't have time. The Caldera wasn't extremely close to Obroa-skai, but they weren't across the galaxy from each other. She had time to do what she wished while they moved along through hyperspace.

Eventually she did come back to reality, opening herself up to him once more and asking what was waiting for them at Obroa-skai. He had to guess that meant she hadn't been there before, but that was logical. It was a library planet. Most people in the galaxy would never go to Obroa-skai in their lifetime simply because they didn't have a need or desire to do so. In that sense, they were anomalies. He, however, had been there before, and was aware that they had things hidden within their library system that the old Emperor and the Jedi had not scrubbed clean.

"Obroa-skai is a library planet. It's a treasure trove of information, and they have things hidden there that might be of use to you. Information on ancient Sith lore. You might find what you're looking for, that which will be unique to you, within the ancient tomes there."

Of course she couldn't actually read any books, but they were all digitized and kept in the archival system anyway. She could have them read to her instead of having to read them herself. More than once he'd done just that, occupying one of their little viewing rooms and just letting the system recount to him what was known of ancient Sith master's, Jedi master's, and others just to buff up his knowledge and help him to further plan his goals.

"We'll use one of their viewing rooms and you can use a line of reasoning to find what you want in the system and then have it read to you."

[member="Niysha"]

 

[Niysha]

Obviously, the blind had little use for libraries. Like many of her species' more gifted scions, Niysha had no problem with electronic writing, as it was energy pulses on a screen. She could discern letters from the shape of those pulses, though it required an inordinate amount of concentration and frankly gave her a headache. The Luka Sene, back on Alpherides, would have had quite an interest in her, if she'd been born and raised with the rest of her kind.

Ink on paper, on the other hand, was quite impossible.

No small part of her wanted to assure Leos that it would be unlikely she'd find what she was looking for now. It would likely be a process of years, but there were so many things she could learn from a library that she could actually access. In no sense was this trip going to be wasted, from Niysha's point of view. Whether or not her new master was satisfied in his results would be an entirely different story.

As the ship hurtled through hyperspace, the Sithling idly wondered if Adekos would have put this much effort into schooling her. Training, obviously. In fact, even with Leos, she was likely still far behind the expected curve when it came to raw ability. His generous forgiving of her failures so far was bound to have its limits, and when she found them, Niysha would have to be ready for whatever came. But schooling was one of those things that she'd never associated with the Sith. Simply learning more about the galaxy, coming to know and understand it in a new light...all of that sounded spectacular.

Not that it would keep less merciful Sith Lords from gutting her and leaving her entrails to dry in the sun for their amusement.

Probably should actually reply to him, come to think of it. "I can read electronic records if I focus. Physical books are just hunks of dead wood to me, though. It's another one of those 'color' problems." The Miraluka, as a whole, could understand the idea of color better than the truly blind could. Auras had different qualities. Two people could look otherwise identical, physically, and yet they'd be very distinct due to their aura's texture. Niysha had long since started using the names of colors that her peers seemed to associate with certain things - red for passion and fire, blue for calm and cold - with auras. A Sith's aura tended to be "red," to some degree. The Force-blind were "gray," a less intense "shade" of the same color she'd always seen. Niysha's own aura...well...
[member="Darth Ignus"]

 

[Kamon's OOC]

Color problems? That made him curious. She said she could read electronic text, but not physical text. Flimsi was still in use on some worlds, but not many. A lot of the tomes that the libraries had were written on actual paper, a product of wood pulp, oddly enough. Very archaic, but of the tomes he'd held in his hand, he actually found them somewhat appealing. The texture of the paper as he flipped a page was a nice tactile sensation. Until you got cut by it. Paper was surprisingly sharp due to its thinness. He'd found that a bit strange. It wasn't something you could use as a weapon, and yet it could cut your finger open with ease.

But anyway, back to the color thing.

"What do you mean by color? I'm not overly familiar with Miraluka anatomy or the way you see, but it would be good to learn."

They still had a bit of time, after all. Might as well make use of it and get her to stop focusing on her task for the moment. She was going to either end up thinking herself to death, or she'd over-analyze the situation to the point she'd be unable to effectively run the test at all. That wouldn't benefit them in any way. Besides, he liked to talk. Leos had a bit of the gift of gab, but he usually used it to learn something, so it could be worse.

[member="Niysha"]

 

[Niysha]

Huhboy. Here we go.

"Imagine attempting to explain flavors to a droid," Niysha began, letting out a quiet sigh. "You could tell the droid that chemicals in your tongue distinguish the minerals and acids in the food you eat. You could explain that each of those acid combinations produces a different reaction in your brain, one that is easily recognizable. You could explain that some are repulsive, while others are pleasing." Solemnly, the Sithling shook her head. "But no matter how well you articulated it, you could never explain taste so well that a droid spontaneously understood what sweet or spicy taste like."

Turning her head, Niysha looked to the dim lighting in the ceiling of the room. "I can See that there are lights there. I'm aware that when an electrical current runs through them, they produce a change in the air around us that is visible to people with eyes. But no matter how you explain it, I'll never understand what light or shadows are." She turned back to Leos, face still impassive as per normal. "Color is the same way. It's a thing that I'm used to other people mentioning frequently, but there's no way for me to understand it. You can tell me that red is angry or warm, but does that mean that all lights are red? They all produce heat. No, some are white, and some are blue or green. Blue is supposed to be cold. Why are lights blue if they're not cold?"

The Miraluka shrugged and smiled. "It's similar to how I could describe how your aura looks to me. I could explain that I See surprising temperance in you, or willpower. I could describe how each of the crew in that room behind me," she indicated with a nod of her head, "is feeling. Their emotional state, their physical health. But no matter how much I told you, or how I phrased it, you will not be able to somehow comprehend what I See."
[member="Darth Ignus"]

 

[Kamon's OOC]

Well, if she was trying to dissuade him from having her try to explain it to him, she was failing miserably. All she was doing was exciting his state of curiosity. Leos wasn't just an ideology obsessed Sith with a penchant for curiosity, he was obsessed with gaining knowledge in all its forms, even if he couldn't comprehend it. Why? Because knowledge was the ultimate form of power. Every little thing you learned might one day have a use for you. Even if it seemed useless now, a time could come where it wasn't. He sought to learn everything he possibly could so that he could use it if the time ever came for him to do so.

Telling him that he wouldn't understand was tantamount to telling an inventor that they would never succeed in creating their invention. It was pure motivation to press on, not to stop doing what he was doing. Though her analogy with the droid was fruitful, it wasn't a direct comparison to this. Droids could not eat, had no tongues, and could not process any form of sensation. They had no senses other than vision and hearing. While she might see without eyes, and see colors in way he didn't, he could still be made to understand because he knew what color and emotion was.

"Blue is cool and cold simply because of the emotions that are associated with the color. It's not a physical chill produced by a blue light, it's the one created by chemicals in the brain when exposed to it that illicit's the chilling effect."

He leaned forward towards her.

"Even if you don't think I will understand, I want to hear it."

[member="Niysha"]

 

[Niysha]

Another long, drawn-out sigh.

"It's language that's insufficient to describe it, Leos, not your capacity for understanding. There hasn't been a language in recorded history that had the ability to magically impart sight on the blind." Niysha shook her head and frowned a bit. "Galactic Basic doesn't even have words to describe the qualities of an aura. I'd have to revert to my native tongue just to be able to properly convey what I'm Seeing, and even if I were to teach that to you it would be impossible for you to understand without Seeing it yourself."

Deep breath. Leos was likely going to be stubborn about this, and she would inevitably have to find some way of conveying what was literally impossible to convey. Freaking Sith. Always so entitled. The Force-blind were so much easier to interact with. When you told them no, they generally listened. Force-users had no concept of "impossible." Niysha exhaled her vexation and tried to think of some way to describe auras in a manner that this blind man could understand.

"...Alright. Auras come in four basic varieties, though there are as many oddities and curiosities as there are anything else in the galaxy. First, the Force-blind. Those who can't manipulate the Force, or simply aren't attuned to it in any measurable way, tend to be..." The Miraluka growled. "Basic is insufficient. I guess 'muted' would be the best term for it. They're still distinct, but they don't stand out. A trained Force-user is an explosion, while the masses are more like a single blaster shot. Distinctive, but not overbearing."

Good. Relating it to another sense that they both shared might work. Niysha continued. "The second kind of aura I ever Saw was that of a Sith. I assume this is true for all savants of the Dark Side, but I wouldn't know without meeting one." She rolled her shoulders a bit and sat up straighter, searching for words that might be used. "They're...vibrant, but harsh. It can hurt to concentrate too deeply or for too long on a Sith aura. I guess...in this sound analogy, Sith auras would be the shrieking female lead from a horror holovid. Clearly noticeable, but slightly uncomfortable for anything more than a few seconds."

Hm. "I've Seen a few people who fit a third category. They have a spark of the Force within them, clearly more enlightened than the masses, but they have little in common with the Sith. It's generally easy to tell when I'm Seeing one of these. They aren't indistinct, but they don't affect me nearly as hard as other Force-users. I suppose...the sound of a speeder passing by. They can be loud or quiet, but they're never terribly pleasant or unpleasant." Niysha shrugged. She knew more than a few like that, actually. Fable Merrill and Irajah Ven had Force talents, but no real training or measurable alignment. They were simply a presence.

"Finally, I've only Seen bits and pieces of what I assume to be Jedi auras. I assume that because I know the words for them in my language, and those words accurately describe my feelings of what I've Seen. I haven't ever met a Jedi, though, so I can't really give a good answer there." Her lips scrunched up a bit. "Calming, I guess. Smooth. A quiet orchestral horn." The Miraluka paused, searching her thoughts. This was far more difficult than she was expecting. "But at the same time...a bit staid. They aren't simply peaceful - they actively resist change. They're just as clear as a Sith aura, but out of rigid stability rather than uncontrollable life."
[member="Darth Ignus"]

 

[Kamon's OOC]

For not thinking she could convey it in terms that he would understand, she did a surprisingly good job of it. The analogies are what sold it for her. They were easy for him to comprehend and gave him a mental picture which conveyed the emotion she was going for with the aura. Not perfect by any means, but far more effective than just trying to tell him about the aura's. And here she'd doubted her ability to give him an answer. She really was far too full of doubt for her own good. Clearly if she put her mind to something she was capable of figuring out any problem. The other Sith really had been stupid to pass her up.

"The analogies make sense to me so I get a vague understanding. I'm sure it's nowhere near perfect, but it's more than I had before."

Always worth it to press for information. Now he had a basic understanding of how she saw people. That could be useful to know in the future when they traveled together. If she could judge someone's Force alignment, even remotely, through the aura she saw of them, then she could probably pick out people that were trying to hide among the common rabble, or potential threats before they identified themselves as such. It would be useful with The Protectorate, as well.

For the moment though, he chose to leave it at that and allowed her to relax as he did the same. They had several hours of that before the ship lurched as it came out of hyperspace. They need not go to the bridge, as the Captain knew what he was doing and didn't need direction from them. He'd been with Leos for several years now. When his order to fly to Obroa-skai was relayed, the man set everything into motion. Upon their arrival, he notified the local authorities and had the ship piloted down to their assigned landing pad. They went to one of the northern reach libraries because Leos knew that the last purge had failed to get everything there.

Once they were settled, he stood and opened the door again.

"Come. We've arrived and it's time for you to begin digging through the knowledge stored here while I do the same."

[member="Niysha"]

 

[Niysha]

Hours of meditation were a pretty good way to keep one's mind focused. Niysha would definitely need that if she was going to be spending literally hours reading electrical signals. A few minutes, as she'd done up on the bridge during the Ziost incident, was entirely doable. This was considerably more intense, and she'd need to be very centered in order to prevent headaches. Well...delay headaches. They were largely unavoidable at this point.

Eventually, the ship lurched back into realspace. Standing up to follow her master out of his meditation room, Niysha didn't have much to say. And, to be frank, they were going back into a public setting. Courtesy, protocol, and habit demanded both titles and deference out of her. Mostly habit. It was slowly becoming clear to her that Darth Ignus seemed to prefer a more casual setting, but it wasn't for him that these societal norms had been constructed. All of the Sith social order for thousands upon thousands of years had followed a specific mold. To break that now would be to undermine the authority that came with being Sith, and while Niysha did understand that Leos' entire thing was subverting social standards, hers was not.

Frankly, this whole experiment he'd talked her into (which admittedly hadn't required much convincing) was more of a curiosity than a cause for the Miraluka. Passion was the enviable goal of any proper Sith, right? So naturally he was doing what was required and expected of him. Yet another deficiency for Niysha to add to her list of accomplishments. At least she was excited about something, for once in...honestly, months. Apart from the choking and the unholy terror, this was a pretty good day.

"I'm sure we'll find plenty to keep us occupied here, my lord," she replied as the two of them returned to the ship's corridors.
[member="Darth Ignus"]

 

[Kamon's OOC]

And there was the my lord business again. He sighed, lifting a hand to rub at his temples for a moment, but chose not to say anything of it. Given that they were around others, it would do him no good to argue with her, especially since he'd said nothing about what she should call him in public circles, and the honorific she used was practically expected among the Sith. He still hated it, though. It felt archaic, and annoyed him to great end. Well, she'd certainly figured out a way to get under his skin, which was impressive since most people didn't manage to do so. He always found he annoyed most people that tried to get a rise out of him because it never worked out for them.

He grumbled a bit, but led her through the ship and out into the cold morning. The planets sun was just peeking over the horizon as they approached the domed facility and entered. They were immediately greeted by a service droid, which asked them a series of questions in regards to their visit. Leos answered them as he customarily did, and was led to the same chamber he always used when he came to the world. No surprise there. It was the chamber with access to the information that he and [member="Niysha"] had come there in search of. The droid left them in peace and Leos removed his outer robe before walking to one of the rooms terminals and activating it.

"Feel free to use whichever terminal you like. As a suggestion, start by digging into Sith history at the earliest entry possible. Don't just read what it says, feel it. If you come across something that seems right for you, you'll know."

Green fingers tapped away furiously at the holo keyboard.

"I'll be over here looking into something specific, but if you get lost ask."

For his part, Leos was looking for information on illusions and their use by ancient Sith Lords. He knew there wouldn't be a whole lot in the archives, since most had already been scrubbed clean years ago during the age of Emperor Palpatine, but it had been more than eight hundred years since then, and he anticipated that other Sith between then and now had likely made use of the Sith art, and that someone would have recorded information about it. Anything he could get from whatever was there would further his knowledge on the subject, and subsequently further his efforts to learn to master it.