Don't Panic (Ignus)

[Niysha]

Oh, Niysha knew exactly what she was looking for. She'd never had time to do it at the Coruscant academy, and more importantly there'd been no reason for her to waste time on something she had to assume she'd never use. After being picked up by Adekos she'd never had the time, and then, wandering the galaxy on her own, she'd never had the resources. In fact, almost everything in the galaxy had seemed to conspire to keep her from fulfilling one crucial flaw in her academic résumé. Now that she had access to both the backing of a proper Sith and a library full of Sith lore, though...

Niysha quietly gave a bow to her new master and wandered off in silence. The first console she found took a minute or so to lead her to its search function, at which point she grabbed as many documents as possible related to ancient Sith history...written in Sith, with translations provided to Basic. It was shameful that a Sith apprentice had no idea how to read the very language she was titled after.

Fortunately, she knew plenty of Sith history already from her classes back at the academy. Marka Ragnos and Exar Kun, Darth Bane who initiated the Rule of Two and Darth Krayt who abolished it. Darth Plageius the alchemist and Darth Sideous the dominator. The Great Hyperspace War and the many wars of the Old Republic. She knew of the fall of the Jedi and the fall of the Sith in their constant cycle of death and rebirth at each other's hands. All of that gave her a fantastic reference point for both reinforcing what she already knew and fortifying it with Sith.

Left to her own devices, Niysha would likely study for hours upon hours. The time of day had no meaning to her, and while she was beginning to get mildly hungry, the lure of knowledge and the fortification of the Force would easily allow her to keep going without fail for far longer than any muggle could hope to achieve. The only real obstacle to her constant, zealous, and obsessive study was the fact that she had to focus intensely on the electrical pulses of the screen in front of her in order to read them. She developed a headache within the first hour, which progressed into a migraine by the second.

Not that that would stop her, of course. She'd known far worse pain in her life than a little mental irritation, and this was both fascinating and important work. Niysha would make do with what she had, feeble meat body be damned.
[member="Darth Ignus"]

 

[Kamon's OOC]

Hours passed. Between the two of them, they likely did more research on Sith lore than the library planet had seen in years. They didn't just read it for the sake of reading it, either. It was more like an absorption process. Each minute of study passed was another chunk of knowledge gained. This wasn't about looking for something in the big, wide galaxy. Most people came to Obroa-skai because they were looking for something. No, this was about gaining knowledge which could be applied to themselves, and that was something that Leos would always support doing. Besides, it kept them both busy for hours and she wasn't annoying him by calling him Master or Lord.

Within the time span that the two of them spent there, probably longer than they should have, they would both find much. He, at least, would. He grew hungry, but his stomach learned to ignore the hunger pains. He needed to use the refresher, which he did, but he always came right back, and even while he was gone he was thinking about what he'd learned. There was a wealth of information there to be studied. He even delved into parts of the Force that weren't strictly dark side abilities. This was purely for the sake of learning about it. The practical applications of that knowledge were not truly available to him.

After many hours had passed, and his eyes grew weary of looking at the screen, he pushed away from it and rubbed at his temples with a sigh. So much knowledge to be had. But he'd learned what he'd needed to begin his own practice, which was sufficient for him. Now it was time to see how [member="Niysha"] had done.

Rising from his seat, he went to find her. When he did she was still bent over the screen, engrossed in whatever she was looking up. He remembered what she'd said about the strain it caused her to read from screens. Considering how long they'd been there (at this point he actually checked the chrono and realized more than a day had passed, which was somewhat impressive and yet worrisome at the same time), he knew she had to be feeling the after effects of all of this. Walking over to her, he put his hand upon her shoulder and gave her a gentle shake in effort to draw her away from the screen.

"Niysha, you need to stop."

Hopefully she'd not turned herself into a husk of a creature. That would be troublesome.

 

[Niysha]

There was a Miraluka equivalent of bags under the eyes, but it was impossible for those without the Sight to pick up on. For hours, possibly a day straight, Niysha had been at a computer. Her head felt like it was splitting in two. Her hair, already frizzy and nonsense, was disheveled and chaotic. She'd taken to holding herself close to keep the hunger shudders from distracting her. It had, after all, been at least two days since she'd eaten. No need to take potty breaks when there is literally nothing in your system, either.

When she felt a hand on her shoulder, Niysha practically jumped. Her mind was beside her, so she didn't exactly think hard enough to consciously turn back to face Ignus. Instead, she simply replied in the raspy, course tongue she'd spent far, far too long researching. "Hyalatul nu saarai. Châts nu saarai. Dzowl nu sith saarai."

After that little outburst, she seemed to pause, head cocked to one side as if confused. A few moments later, her voice came back, much scratchier than it had begun. "...I could use a drink."

She was thinking in Sith. If she were to sleep, she might very well dream in Sith. If proficiency had been her goal, then she had certainly achieved it. Beyond the vestiges of sanity or any concern for personal health, Niysha had learned herself some letters. Lots and lots of letters. Also a refresher on history, but she really hadn't needed that.

The Miraluka stood on shaky legs and tapped the console screen twice, shutting the poor, overworked machine down. Her own poor, overworked body creaked and groaned in need. She continued to deny it. "I'm fine. What's next?"
[member="Darth Ignus"]

 

[Kamon's OOC]

"Don't lie to me. I know you're exhausted."

He motioned for her to follow him. Honestly he knew she was exhausted because he was and he was more in shape than she was. His body could withstand being awake for great extents of time, but it did wear itself out from time to time as he had seen. It wasn't as tired as his mind was, though. Mental fatigue was setting in more than physical was. Though he was hungry, thirsty, and could use a turn in the fresher.

Assuming she followed him they would head back to the ship. First stop was the mess where he grabbed them each something to drink. Eating before using the fresher didn't seem like a viable option but he'd leave that decision up to her. What he did do was down several glasses of water to quench his thirst. Granted that only made him need the fresher more.

"Drink, eat, get cleaned up, and then I want you to rest. Moderation is important even in learning. I'll meet you again later on."

He fully expected her to get some refreshment and then go back to studying, but he was going to rest. If he had to carry her out of the library later because she'd worn herself out then he wanted to at least have the strength to do so. So he took his turn to the fresher, had some foodd, and went to his quarters to sleep.

[member="Niysha"]

 

[Niysha]

Right. Eat. Clean up. Things that didn't involve books. Things that were essential to continued life. Niysha nursed her water for a few minutes after Leos berated her, actively fighting the urge to reply with a barrage of "I'm sorry for my weakness, my lord, I'll try to control my passions in the future." It was a moment of weakness, of course. Greater Sith than she had been consumed by their passions in the past, and there was nothing stopping her from falling to the same fate except the cautionary counsel of her new master.

Apparently she was expected to attend to herself first. Probably a wise idea, since the moment she was allowed to go back to her documents she'd be lost to the ravages of curiosity. Niysha cleaned up and wandered towards the mess for a quick meal. Better than protein paste, at least! She ate alone, bathed alone, and after Leos went off to get himself some shuteye, the Miraluka was left finding a place to sleep alone. She briefly asked a crewman where there were some unoccupied bunks, found a quiet and lonely room to sleep in, and hid her lightsaber before she did so.

Force of habit.

When she awoke, Niysha would have plenty of time to lose herself in her studies again. After all, now that she had access to the resources of an established Sith, things like blowing all of her waking hours combing through old historical records and dead languages were easier to justify. Apart from being stuck with a potentially insane (by Sith standards) Sith on a boat in the middle of nowhere, things were finally looking up.

~ Fin ~​