Enemy mine – the CHAOS cut

[Corvus Raaf]

Corvus was travelling near the borders of the Galactic Republic – where they met the beginning of One Sith space. Rumours of general Sith activity near Gilthoniel had been reported – and as she was in the area she’d agreed to take a look – rather than mobilise lots of ships on a wild bantha chase.

The scanners showed little activity out of the ordinary and she was about to head back to Ossus when the storm hit.

A weird space phenomena, ion storms weren’t supposed to happen near here – but sadly nobody had told the storm that. One moment her ship was behaving normally and the next it was hit by a wave of magnetic energy. The fast-moving bursts of plasma radiated outward into the surrounding star system, immediately knocking out her shielding and the ship’s electrical systems. All she was left with was the ship’s current momentum and she had to go with the flow.

Grabbing an oxygen mask, she was aware she was pointing towards the surface of the planet and eventually was grabbed by its gravity field. With no propulsion or means of steering, all she could do was sit and spectate as the ship gained momentum as it entered the planet’s atmosphere. Even the droid she had with her had been disabled by the storm – so she had no choice but to sit it out alone and hope the Force would save her.

This was her second crash-landing (her third if you counted jumping out of the window of a skyscraper) and if she’d learned one thing – it was to trust in the Force. So she relaxed and meditated – pulling the Force to her – trusting in it to cushion her at the moment of impact. If she died, so be it – she was going to revert to the Force one day, why not today. Strapped into her harness, she adopted the brace position as she sensed the planet’s surface approaching quickly.

Trusting in the Force, she didn’t feel the impact as the ship crashed and large sections came away – at least dissipating some of the kinetic energy. She only had one thought – ‘Camellia Swift is not going to be pleased with me.’

Unconscious – but still alive…for now.

[member="[URL="http://starwarsrp.net/user/3259-avreet-zatarus/"]Avreet Zatarus[/URL]"]

 

[Darth Veles]

Gilthoniel. Such an inconspicuous planet, yet not an idyllic world one would ever want to settle on. At least Veles wouldn’t. After studying on the planet a bit, he found himself smiling. Not because of the planet’s caste system ruling one’s life, not because of the slavery; but because of the irony the Jedi were essentially sitting on a powder keg waiting to blow. Indeed, lesser social injustices have been the cause of violent revolutions that toppled entire societies. What if the slaves rebelled against their masters? While he had never been on the planet before, the Mon Cal Sith Master imagined the caste system bred hatred of the lower classes towards this society. What if someone gave the slaves weapons, boosted their courage with words and promised them better future? A small rebellion that ultimately led to a revolution; a classic story where the poor slaves overthrow their evil masters and live happily ever after. Veles liked that story; particularly because he sensed an opportunity to plant more seeds of a rebellion in the Republic space.

Right now, the Mon Calamari had no clear plan yet; first he had to see how the situation actually looked like before deciding if it was worth the effort. He still had to think how amusing it was that the Jedi often used freedom as an excuse to fight against the Sith, yet blatantly ignored slavery in their space because freeing slaves was suddenly not their duty. Then again, it hardly surprised him after seeing several Jedi commit atrocities that put even the Dark Jedi to shame.

The Mon Cal’s ship approached the planet, penetrating the atmosphere. The display of a radar in front of him showed a large anomaly. Before he could do anything about it, Veles saw the beautiful play of blue and white lightning through the window. A storm? The ship could easily withstand that. As soon as he flew through the branches of energy, the Sith realized he had made a mistake in judging this phenomena. He had not expected an ion storm to welcome him, immediately working on the ship’s destruction. The alarms rang out, informing the Mon Calamari pilot of the loss of the shields. Up until then, Veles believed he could save the ship, trusting the skill of the One Sith engineers who have designed the small freighter. Remaining calm, he cut the power to the engines and began descending, hoping to avoid crashing the spacecraft into the ground many kilometres below. While this blind descent posed great danger, he still found it better than waiting until the ship got disabled and nailed the earth. It was when the alarms suddenly died that Veles checked if he was strapped in the seat and hoped the altitude was low enough to allow for his survival. He could not do much else, trapped in the cockpit with the door closed and malfunctioning. Cutting through the metal with his lightsabers was out of option too, he believed he did not have much time left.

The ship stopped moving and for a second the Mon Cal’s body moved forward until being stopped by the safety belt. The violent yank hurt a lot, but what made the matter worse was when the window shattered. Instinctively covering his large eyes, Veles hissed as he felt several shards entering his body. Pain and concussion slowly threatened to take his mind into the land of unconsciousness, yet also reminded him of the fact he still lived. Closing his eyes, he moved his cybernetic hand towards the place that hurt the most; his left side, between the ribs. Instead of feeling a broken bone, his fingers found something different; a large shard sticking out of his body. As much as Veles wanted to let go and let his mind slip away, he focused on purging all his feeling and emotions, trying to ignore the pain. The Light Side of the Force slowly started to find its way into his body, giving him the energy he needed. One swift and strong pull and the shard was out, falling to the metal floor of the ship. Veles placed his webbed hand on the wound and remembered all Maya had taught him about Force healing.

[member="Corvus Raaf"]

 

[Corvus Raaf]

Corvus remembered it was daylight when she crashed and as she tried to open her eyes, the blinding light said it was broadly the same time of day. Whether it was the same day or not was a matter of conjecture.

She was remarkably well - all things considered. A few minor cuts, some bruising no doubt and no broken bones. But her first attempt to move brought an overwhelming sense of pain from her shoulder. It was clearly dislocated. And having relied on the Force to save her on landing, she found she could not tap into it's presence to help her now. Standing, despite the pain, she scanned the cockpit for anything useful. Nothing.

She slowly made her way to the small med-bay on the ship. Using the manual override, she managed to open the door half-way and squeezed in. Grabbing a med-kit, she opened it with her one useful hand and pulled a bacta patch out and, opening her robes, she slapped it on her ribs. That should take care of the colossal bruising she knew was going to come.

Next she pulled out a painkilling injection and stabbed it straight into her upper arm. She cried out in pain but the meds kicked in soon - numbing the agony she currently felt. She needed to get her shoulder back into place - and soon - but without the Force she knew she lacked the necessary strength to do anything about it.

She cast her mind back to her time on Alderaan - evacuating the front-line casualties. She saw medics perform this on soldiers there. Now, what to do?

First she bent her elbow to form a 90 degree angle between her upper arm and forearm. Thank heavens for meds. It was incredibly sore but bearable. Next she turned her arm so that it is faced away from her, with her hand sticking out to her side, then she rotated it upwards. Then she braced herself for the final part. Moving her arm from the shoulder slowly from her side to above her head, her shoulder slipped back into place naturally.

Actually the term slipped wasn't entirely accurate. It was like rubbing broken glass with lumps of concrete - but it worked. At the precise moment the shoulder popped back in she let out a primal scream of pain. No amount of meds were able to numb this sensation.

And at that precise moment she vomited and once more fell unconscious.

[member="Avreet Zatarus"]

 

[Darth Veles]

The impotent, sterile energy of the Light Side lazily poured into the wound, easing the pain ever so slightly. Veles had decided to not to treat other injuries until this one, the most annoying, became less of a problem. He could feel the warm, sticky substance between his webbed claws and did his best not to think about the loss of blood he might have suffered, all his focus devoted to filling himself with the Light Side and placing the energy into the gaping wound. If only he could use the Dark Side to heal himself! Pain was one of the great catalysts of the Dark Side, and he had plenty of it. Unfortunately, the young Sith Master did not have an idea of how to use the Dark Side to heal himself, and while he could try and pour the Dark Side into the injury, the fact he had never heard of a Sith healer stopped him from even trying. His mind desperately tried to find a way how to make this healing process faster, but the cold voice of logic told him only experience and stronger connection to the Light Side could do that.

After many more minutes that provided little results for much concentration and energy spent on the injury, the amphibian moved his hand away from the wound, too tired to give his body more energy to regenerate at faster rate. Sighing, he opened his large eyes and gazed at his body, looking for any and all injuries. Except for the many cuts that have ripped through his tunic and cut through skin, he felt fine for a person who survived a crash of a spaceship. The augmentations covering his muscles and reinforced skeleton have definitely played a major part in that, and he was very grateful for enhancing his body with cybernetics several years ago.

His attention turned to the greatest problem right now, the wound in his side. It appeared it had stopped bleeding, which was something Veles felt grateful for. It was still a source of pain, something that simply demanded his attention. Using Force heal remained a possibility if he devoted himself to a long meditation to regain the lost energy, only to pour it into the wound again, but seeing the healing rate, fully repairing his body would have lasted for at least two weeks, if not more. If only his favourite Zeltron Jedi healer was around; but then again, the slaughter on Zeltross might as well have built an impenetrable wall between the two.

Without Maya, the Sith had to depend on himself to recover. Instinctively moving his hand towards the belt, passing the two curved hilts, he grasped the ever-present medpac, a faithful companion on all his journeys. Opening the small box, he frowned, seeing one of the devices inside shattered. The broken medisensor was not lucky enough to survive the crash. Swiftly tossing it out, his eyes scanned the remaining instruments. The only flexclamp in the pack remained undamaged, but Veles currently had no use for it, as he had already stopped the bleeding. Letting it be, he took something else; one bacta patch, not as good as receiving proper medical attention, better than nothing. Applying the patch on the wound brought back the pain and Veles almost regretted his decision of not healing himself with the Force.

He was a Sith though, he knew how to find power in pain. It only made him stronger. Focusing on it, he cleansed his body of the Light Side, drawing in the raw energy of its opposite. While it made the pain worse, it also provided him with much needed energy. Letting out a soft laugh, the Mon Cal rested for a while, his orange eyes staring through the hole where a window used to be. The sea of sand let him know he had crashed into a desert, not the best destination for an amphibious Mon Calamari. He had survived Korriban though, he can survive this as well. Still looking outside, he returned the medpac to its place on his belt to not to forget about it. The hot air started finding its way in the ship through the shattered window though, prompting the Sith to unclip the safety belts and rise from the seat. The door resisted his attempt at opening it by the usual means, but not even the cold steel could resist the power of his will as he telekinetically forced the door open, walked through and closed again. This had undoubtedly destroyed the mechanism meant to open it normally, but this ship was not going anywhere with its cockpit window missing. The next step? Check the provisions and decide what to take on the walk through the desert. Easier said than done though, the pain in the side forced the Mon Cal to stop after he took a few steps. This would not be easy.

[member="Corvus Raaf"]

 

[Corvus Raaf]

Corvus awoke in the med-bay and with no windows, had no sense if it was light or dark outside. Not that it mattered as he had no sense of time and if this was still the first day, day three or even longer?

Her first thought was of rescue. No electrics meant no comms, so hopefully someone would come looking based upon her last known position. But that still left a massive rescue area. So finding help seemed the more logical approach.

The pain had abated and she felt in contact with the Force again, so gingerly removed the bacta patch. Grabbing a bag, she stuffed some essential first aid supplies and then moved to the dining area and found some dried rations and bottled water. Eating some food straight away and drinking some water she would have left behind, she considered what else she should take.

Spurning carrying too much in this desert world, she connected to the Force and meditated for a few minutes before leaving the craft. The sun was low in the sky, but she had no idea if that signified morning or afternoon.

Scanning the distance, Corvus spied something on the horizon. Probably quite a few kilometres away, but as it was the only feature on an otherwise flat landscape, she set off, pulling her hood over her head to protect it from the sun.

[member="Avreet Zatarus"]

 

[Darth Veles]

[SIZE=12pt]Needless to say, navigating through malfunctioning vessel has proven to be quite difficult, especially if one had to waste energy on telekinetically opening every single door. Of course, Veles had the lightsabers that could cut through almost every single material in the galaxy with ease, so cleaving through the ship would be rather easily, as it only took patience, but did he really want to permanently destroy the door? Before mapping the surrounding area, he could use the wrecked ship as a safe haven, hiding from whatever awaited him outside. That, and he decided to use the option of always coming back to restock on supplies if those ran out. Right now, the only thing he carried was a bottle of water. With his wound, he did not dare to go far and had no expectations of staying outside for too long. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt]The stab in his side started to hurt again, turning his pace through the ship into a stumble. The wound must have been more serious than expected, forcing the Sith to slump to his knees on the floor right next to the door that led outside. This was a bad decision, the impact sending a fresh wave of pain thorough his entire body. Gritting his teeth, Darth Veles commanded his mind to ignore the unpleasant sensation and swiftly stood up, using the metal wall on his right as a support before pushing himself off of it and moving towards the cargo door. The combination of pain and frustration gave his telekinesis much greater strength, which was evident when the Mon Cal tore the door open with ease, the Dark Side running through his veins. Pulling the hood of his heavy cloak over his large domed head, the Sith Lord jumped out, as he could not extend the ship’s ramp without doing too much needless damage to the spacecraft. This time, Darth Veles did not let the pain to force him to his knees, he embraced it. If he truly needed a relief, he could always use the painkillers in the medpac…[/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt]The sun appeared to be mercifully setting… or was it rising? He could not tell, unlike other presences in the Force. Closing his big eyes, the Mon Cal reached out through the vast ocean of the mysterious energy and searched his vicinity for beings, sentient or not. Nothing came up, thus he reached farther, the accuracy decreasing with range but giving him more of an idea of the amount of lifeforms in the desert. Indeed, by doing this, the Sith Lord sensed many things, most of them hiding in the sand. No city or settlement around the place, unfortunately. The cybernetic eye gazed around, zooming in all directions and offering the Mon Cal a greater view of his surroundings. Desert, sand, dust,… and something in the distance. No animal though, it looked too big, its shape artificial. This gave him hope and he quickly considered the distance between himself and the object. If he walked quickly enough, he might be able to reach it.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt]Powerful strides filled with desperation and purpose began carrying him in the desired direction, his booted feet leaving prints in the sand. The crunching sound dangerously reminded him of Korriban. Another reason for him to survive. He had survived years on the red planet as a Sith Acolyte, he would survive this as a Sith Lord. Just to give himself a boost in confidence, his left hand touched one of the hilts hanging from the belt, ready to take the weapon if needed. The crystal inside radiated a presence that did not belong to him, but to his old, beloved master. Thinking of her, Veles found new strength that allowed him to move faster, his pace now swiftly bringing him closer to the object in the distance with each step. The right eye took a look at it again, zooming the image, and the sight made the amphibian firmly grasp the lightsaber in his left palm. "Oh no,"[/SIZE] [SIZE=12pt]he muttered[/SIZE].

[SIZE=12pt][member="Corvus Raaf"][/SIZE]

 

[Corvus Raaf]

Corvus made steady and slow progress. It was like a metaphor for her life. She never rushed and remained patient at all times. She knew that if she kept going, she would reach her destination. Others might have rushed there, but what would have been the point?

Even here - and under these circumstances - Corvus looked to see how the experience would help her as a Jedi. On this occasion she focused on the Code. Conquer recklessness it had taught her. This walk would be a good teaching story for her Padawan. 'Learn to recognize when speed is not important. Race when being first is important; move at your own pace at all other times.'


It wasn't always so with Corvus. Back on Corellia she was always seen as the daredevil - the reckless one. The one to rise to the challenge. But her Master had recognised this and forced her to go slower than necessary on purpose - until she recognised the lesson for what it was. Rushing in, without any consideration for unseen dangers or other options, was not the Jedi way. Yet so many of her comrades seemed to think so. But how to educate them without appearing patronising? When she had tried to help, she was seen as old-fashioned and stuck in the old ways. Yet the Code had survived intact for millennia - and continued to serve the same purpose. Why did Jedi with under thirty years on this planet suddenly decide they should rewrite it? Vanity? Ignorance? She shook her head and then looked up.

She sensed something. Nothing specific - but it was vaguely familiar. So she connected consciously to the Force and closed her eyes. Her Force Sight was developing - its range growing. She could see organics under and on the surface of the hard sand. Most innocuous enough - worried about their own lives no doubt. Some were much larger and under the surface but they seemed dormant - for now.

Opening her eyes again, and looking forwards, she put a hand to her brow - to shield her vision from the intense sun. Her shoulder was still sore but back where it should be and time would take care of the rest of the healing process. Her ribs, however, were still painful and the effect of the bacta patch and painkiller were wearing off.

As she looked, she could have sworn that there was now a second shape. Much smaller than the first - and closer to her than the other. And was it...moving?

[member="Avreet Zatarus"]

 

[Darth Veles]

A Jedi? What would a Jedi be doing on this planet? Veles quickly considered many options, none of them made much sense to him since there was no way for the Jedi to have found him so soon after the crash of the ship. Unless the person in the distance was one of their assassins. Or not a Jedi at all. The cybernetic orb soundlessly moved a bit, observing the person’s clothing. The apparel suggested either a Jedi or a poor sentient; Jedi wore the clothing of the poor, after all, as many beings could not afford anything better than those cheap robes. Focusing on the person with his mind, shifting all his attention to the young woman in the distance. Much to the Sith Lord’s dismay, he could feel her presence in the Force. The appearance coupled with Force sensitivity of the figure left no more room for mistakes. A Jedi!

Studying the signature further in an attempt to get an idea of her power, Veles realized he had felt a familiar presence somewhere… It had to be quite recent, as the memory of Zeltross came to his mind. Quickly thinking of the Jedi he had encountered, his gaze shifted towards the young woman’s head. Brown hair. Now he remembered encountering her quite clearly. She had not attacked him at the first possible chance, which was more than Veles could say about the majority of the Jedi he had encountered in his life. It still did not explain her presence here, meaning he had to be careful, more so with the injury.

Wrapping the cloak tighter around himself, the Mon Cal concealed the gaping wound in his left side. He had no intention of letting the Jedi know he has been wounded, as that posed too much of a risk of appearing weak, something he did not want to be when dealing with the Jedi. Of course, he had the option of turning back, but she would have found him in his ship anyway. Best to confront her, learn more about her mission on the planet and get into her ship; provided she had escaped the storm. Then again, what was the probability of the two of them getting caught in the same storm and crash-landing? As a Sith, Darth Veles did not believe in the will of the Force or fate; the option she had safely landed nearby after the storm had dispersed seemed like the most probable way to explain her presence.

The heat of sand and air irritated his sensitive skin as he continued to walk straight towards the incoming Jedi. No doubt she could see him now, sense his presence he did not bother to hide. The Mon Cal’s signature was neutral, unlike grim dark some might expect from a powerful Sith. Raising his right hand, he waved at the female Jedi, still too far to hear his words, but close enough to see his friendly greeting. The left hand remained under the cloak, webbed claws holding the heavy cloth to cover the wound and tightly grasping one of the curved hilts. The distance between the two of them was too great to even dream of a fight, but Veles expected them to meet after a while, and wished to be ready for that moment.

[member="Corvus Raaf"]

 

[Corvus Raaf]

As the distance closed, Corvus was now sure the second object was in fact a figure - walking towards her. Or was she walking towards it? A coincidence? In her experience there was no such thing, so she applied logic to the situation.

They could have both been impacted by the ion storm. Possible but the odds were against it. Why did she have to mention the odds? Her Corellian blood coursed with the prospect of defying the law of probability. Maybe it was following her? Saw her crash and decided to help? But if that were the case, why land so far away? Local sentient? Sith? Fellow Jedi? None of these made sense due to the distance between them. Unless it was a local and the shape was some sort of hut? OK, so she'd narrowed down the options.

Then the figure waved a hand. Well not exactly a hand. It was a Mon-Cal. Clearly not local then. Logic suggested another crashed ship. Pleased the long-shot paid off, she focused on the individual. She could sense the Force. His aura suggested he was more powerful than she - but then his aura was bigger, so therefore easier to read. These things had a habit of cancelling each other out. And she could detect no Dark-side presence - which was the most positive thing since she'd landed.

Waving, she pulled back her hood - wishing to show she was not looking to conceal her identity. And she trusted in the Force.

[member="Avreet Zatarus"]

 

[Darth Veles]

Seeing the Jedi return the gesture of waving, the only difference being the addition of removing the hood from her head that only confirmed Veles’ suspicion of recognizing the young woman, the Mon Calamari Sith chose not to take off the dark hood off his large head, if only for the practical reason of not exposing more of his skin to the sun than necessary. More steps from both of them and the distance between the two closed a bit again. He wondered if the Jedi already suspected him being the Sith Lord from Zeltross, and if so, what did she intend to do once their paths collided.

To remind him of still being there, the wound suddenly started to hurt, forcing the amphibian to forego holding the lightsaber as he planted his left palm on the cut instead. He feared the worst at first, but his finders luckily felt no blood coming out. This sudden reminder of pain made him think of the Jedi’s condition, provided she had crashed due to the ion storm as well. His small ship contained the bare minimum of required medical supplies, which consisted of several medpacs like the one he carried on the belt. If she required medical attention, his supplies could only provide a temporary solution. Then again, if she walked, she must have decided her body would be able to search for help. Or was it just desperation, an attempt to search for civilization while she had time?

Once the two got even closer to each other, the Mon Cal decided to break the silence. “Hello?” the Sith Lord called out, his Imperial accented voice carried over the desert, hopefully far enough for the Jedi to hear. “Is your ship nearby and working, Jedi?” If she truly heard him and answered, her words would determine his next actions. He did not want to fight, not only because of the injury but also because fighting was not in his nature. If she did have a working ship, he’d do anything to get off the planet. Of course, two beings, both fighting for the opposing side – though Veles had left the One Sith, he still considered himself to be a Sith – and only one ship.

[member="Corvus Raaf"]

 

[Corvus Raaf]

As the gap closed, Corvus felt that familiar presence again – the one she’d felt when she’d first exited the ship. But now it was stronger.

It was the Mon Cal. He was the Sith Lord from Zeltros. She was sure of it – but his aura wasn’t Dark – as she’d expected. Wary now, they hadn’t exactly parted on great terms and he was a Sith – however honourable.

Pulling the Force close, she trusted in it to warn her of any uimpending danger and carried on walking without breaking stride.

Finally he called to her and his voice confirmed her suspicions were correct. He wanted to know about her ship. Was he planning on stealing it or just ascertaining if she was in the same position as him?

Unsure what to do – her natural instinct was to just talk – but recent taunting she was in some way a weak Jedi had stung and she wondered if she should initiate some sort of combat out of a sense of honour. She dismissed this thought immediately. If killing a Sith was one end of a continuum and joining the Dark-side at the other end, there was a lot of leeway in-between.

“Hello.” She bowed formally to him. “Jedi Knight Corvus Raaf. My ship was caught in the ion storm and all of the electrics are dead. What about you?”

[member="Avreet Zatarus"]

 

[Darth Veles]

Frowning, the Mon Calamari resisted the immediate urge to shock the young woman with Force lightning. Not because of anything she said; no, there was nothing wrong with her words and Veles appreciated her willingness to talk. What angered him was her bow. As his old Master had taught him, bowing shows submission, and a Sith should therefore never bow or kneel in front of others. Just as Darth Zarrah, his old teacher, Veles punished all Acolytes who bowed to him, sending a painful stream of a pure manifestation of the Dark Side into their bodies. Since Acolytes were the only Force sensitives to bow to him, it became something of a habit to shock them when they made the mistake.

This habit almost caused the Mon Cal to punish the Jedi Knight in the same fashion, which would have undoubtedly resulted in combat. Luckily, the Sith controlled himself rather well and resisted the initial temptation. At least he knew her ship had no use, meaning there would be no point in fighting her over it.

“I am Darth Veles, Sith Lord of the O...,” he started and quickly stopped himself, as he no longer belonged to the One Sith. After the slaughter on Zeltross, Veles had decided to abandon them for the time being. He still burned for the Sith and Imperial ideals, refusing to fight against the One Sith despite the alarming number of Dark Jedi poisoning the ideals and ways of the Sith.

“Nevermind. My real name is Avreet Zatarus. Call me whichever way you prefer, Knight.” The Sith offered no bow, standing straight, his large amber eyes staring at the young Jedi. His tone was polite though, he did not want to appear too arrogant for not bowing. “It appears we have suffered the same fate, then. My ship is also damaged. Electronics of no use. Shattered cockpit window. Possibly more.” The eyes of the Mon Calamari continued to study the woman, realizing she was about as tall as him.

“Are you injured, Knight Raaf?”

[member="Corvus Raaf"]

 

[Corvus Raaf]

Corvus wasn’t bothered that the Sith did not bow in return. She was ignorant of their ways – but even many Jedi chose not to nowadays. ‘The old ways,’ they referred to it – as if that was what it was about.

A Jedi bowed to demonstrate service in Corvus’ opinion. Respect yes, but their desire to serve too. She sometimes wondered if this was why so many chose not to bow. She mused that the Sith choose to command, not follow – but it was just a guess on her part.

In fact she was sure he frowned when she did so, but respect only went so far when dealing with the Dark side.

“Darth Veles. We meet again.” She winced as she said it – it sounded so clichéd. She was on edge – but her trust in the Force allowed her to appear as natural as possible. And what was it with Sith and their two names?

“I have minor cuts and bruises” Never one to lie, she was reticent to explain the full extent of her injuries to someone who could no doubt cut her down given half a chance. She could defend herself and run away – she’d used this approach with a Sith Lord before. But here there was no Academy to run back to.

“Are you injured yourself?”

[member="Avreet Zatarus"]

 

[Darth Veles]

"No," Veles said, decisively shaking his head, his tone not betraying the small lie in the slightest, "I have suffered no major injury, Knight." The big amber orbs of the Mon Calamari continued to burn holes into the young Jedi's skull, the expression now completely neutral, no sign of his distaste for the Knight's bow from earlier. Before Avreet's's glare became awkward, the amphibious Sith looked up, noting the sun had considerably risen, its beams now destroying the little shadow the hood offered to his eyes. Hot air brushed against the amphibian's gills, bringing some dust and sand that stuck to the Sith's moist skin. Avreet lowered his gaze again, looking at the ship on the horizont in the Jedi's back. The cybernetic eye quickly judged the distance before he turned around, doing the same with his own craft.

"We should not linger around," Darth Veles firmly stated as he turned back to the younger Jedi. "Your ship is closer than mine. I suggest we seek shelter there and wait until the sun sets and the heat is not so intense. I have not spotted any signs of civiliazation around, so I suppose it will be necessary to venture further. That, and I'd like to hear more fom you," the Sith Lord admitted, "Jedi who do not attack Sith on sight fascinate me. It must take strong will to follow your beliefs and resist the great temptation to kill your hated enemy. I respect that."

Starting to walk again, the Sith paced past [member="Corvus Raaf"], heading in the direction of her fallen ship. "And before you accuse me of trying to make you fall to the Dark Side by talking to you, poisoning your mind with lies and whatnot as most Jedi claim when I talk to them, know that I have no intention of supporting your fall. Quite the opposite. I hate Dark Jedi." Avreet expressed his distaste for those he considered to be Dark Jedi, even saying those words as if pushing the worst of all insults out of his large mouth. In fact, it was an insult among the Sith, and for a very good reason.

 

[Corvus Raaf]

Corvus listened to Darth Veles' words. He spoke with logic but she was still uneasy. Perhaps he thought her ship was operational? It mattered little - once he reached it he'd know the truth of the matter.

"It is curious to hear that I fascinate you. I know little of the Sith other than you follow the Dark side. But it is clear your understanding of the Jedi is not complete. I would kill only as a last resort - and I do not hate you, just what you stand for. You can be redeemed, the Dark side never can. But I have beliefs, you are right - and I trust in the Force to keep me on the right side of temptation."

"And as I understand it, the only person that can make me fall to the Dark side is me. Only the weak fall to the Dark side. I have remained strong thus far - despite...challenges. But tell me, how do you differentiate between Sith and Dark Jedi?"

She was an academic at heart and the opportunity to learn from this situation was overwhelming. But she remained on her guard.

[member="Avreet Zatarus"]

 

[Darth Veles]

Smiling after hearing her words, Veles did not even look at the woman, hiding the expression away from her. It definitely appeared the Jedi Knight believed in her words and did her best to follow the Jedi beliefs, which was actually a good thing, as it indicated there would be no need for the two to duel. Veles certainly appreciated this, believing intelligent and modern beings could solve their issues with words, not with weapons. And when the diplomacy failed, he was there to prevent the problem from spreading and causing more damage. A Sith Assassin, working as a precise tool of the Sith, a scalpel damaging the body to cut out the tumor and allow the body to heal. Rebels cells, terrorists, pirates, Jedi, Republic military and civilian personnel, corrupt Sith,... He had killed thousands in his life and had little doubt thousands more would join them in the Void. It did not bother him; when fighting in an actual battle, he had to prevent the enemy forces from slaying his comrades and friends, but when on his own, Veles had always eliminated his targets only, offering others who stood in his way a chance to surrender. Not a single innocent died by his hand, which he was quite proud of. It meant he was not a ruthless killing machine like so many others, Jedi and Sith alike. Never feeling bloodlust and taking no pleasure from taking lives, quite the opposite, he slept peacefully at night and could look at himself in the mirror.

The Mon Cal pondered about this [member="Corvus Raaf"]'s words for a bit before speaking up. He had studied the Jedi ways to know more of his enemies, only to find not many Jedi actually followed those. He had actually met only one such being; a certain Zeltron Jedi Healer. Would this Jedi, stranded in the desert with him, be one following the beliefs and not just repeating empty phrases?

"You know, Jedi," the Sith Lord started slowly, "I do not believe you understand what I stand for. Your ilk usually thinks the Sith stand for evil and have nothing better to do than to terrorize innocent citizens. Now, I understand where this perspective comes from. Events such as the one on Zeltross give the Sith a bad name, but please, try not to judge the whole Order based on the actions of few individuals who have clearly succumbed to insanity. Imagine that we actually want peace," Veles suggested, "Do not cite the first line of our code yet, I will get to that later."

"True Sith like myself kill people not because they want to, but because they have to. As I have already stated, we want nothing more than a peaceful galaxy. But there is a problem. A certain group full of zealots who believe they are the ultimate force of good, which gives them right to impose their will upon the galaxy and eliminate anyone they see as a threat, or for religious reasons. A group that wishes to exterminate the Sith and their followers." The Sith paused and let his words sink in. "Now, what choice do we have? What choice do I have? I cannot stand and watch as my people get killed and oppressed. You might argue the Sith were the ones to attack first, but you need to go deeper to see who truly started this pointless war. Your hate bred more hate. Your fear of the Dark Side was the thing that started this endless conflict thousands of years ago."

"The Dark Side. Just as you said, only the weak fall to it. A true Sith like myself who has never tasted the Light Side before starting his training cannot fall, which makes redemption impossible. A true Sith does not succumb to the Dark Side; he controls it, using it as a tool. Much like fire though, you have to be careful or you will get burned. That is what happens to the Jedi who embrace the Dark Side. Without knowing how to control it, it the sudden increase in power corrupts them and they give into the feelings and passions they have been repressing their entire lives. After a drastic decrease in intelligence and disappearance of any compassion, they become nothing more than insane, wild animals that need to be put down. They give into their basic instincts, those that lie in all of us. While you, Jedi, try to ignore them, we, Sith, face them and shackle them." Darth Veles sighed softly, the thing he was about to mention brought back very unpleasant memories and for amoment, he was overcome with sadness.

"Sith who rush through their training are vulnerable as well. A good friend of mine... she wanted more and more, until it was too late to save her. She became a monster...," the Sith said no more, stopping and turning to the Jedi.

"I hope that answers some of your questions. I apologize if my ramblings bored you."

 

[Corvus Raaf]

“Your argument sounds compelling – from a certain perspective. Anakin Skywalker wanted peace. Peace in his Empire. He believed he could make every decision and it would be right and just and that would bring about peace.”

“In a perverse way he would be right. Dictatorships tend to have lower crime rates, are invaded less often. But there is more to peace than just a lack of bloodshed. Personal freedom for a start.”

“I do not wish to impose my will on anyone. If I have a philosophy in that direction – it is to stop others imposing their will. In an ideal galaxy there would be no Jedi – as there would be no need for us. I can speak with my hand on my heart and say that I believe the Code is perfect – it is sometimes its application that is less than ideal."

“And I am aware of the history and also the fruitless task of trying to establish who started what first. My focus in is the here and now. It seems we share common ground with regards those that choose to join the Dark side – although I suspect we will never agree on how to deal with them.”

The concept of a Sith with friends seemed at odds with what she understood. And she was appreciating gaining a better understanding of the Sith and decided to press on.

“With all of this talk of resurrecting the Army of the Light, what is your view on the Rule of Two?”

[member="Avreet Zatarus"]

 

[Darth Veles]

Veles carefully heard out the Jedi's words, listening without interrupting the woman. She deserved that for doing the same before, and it was also a sign of respect, to show he acknowledged her opinion. What [member="Corvus Raaf"] said about Vader was certainly true. The man believed he could bring order to the galaxy devastated by the Clone Wars. Then again, wasn't his what the Jedi have been doing as well? Making decisions for others, raised to believe they are the forces of good and can do no wrong, constantly being told they are the keepers of peace and protectors of the galaxy. If such individuals got to power, enough to shape the state to their vision of a perfect galaxy, they often became dictators. In a way, the Republic was as much a dictatorship as the One Sith.

The question Veles pondered about was the difference between the two. Both ultimately ruled by one person, both sending their subjects to slaughter. While this young Jedi used personal freedom as something the Sith did not have, Veles seriously doubted she had ever visited the Sith space, not as a conqueror, but as a visitor. Average citizen would not see any difference between living in the Republic or in the One Sith space. As long as they obeyed the law of the state, they could do whatever they wanted. More often than not, those using the lack of freedom as an excuse were criminals who worked beyond the law used their fight against a tyrannical government only as an excuse to somewhat justify their crimes.

Avreet knew exactly what to imagine under the words "Army of Light". A group of fanatics who used fight against evil as an excuse to embark on a crusade to kill anyone who disagreed with their opinion. The Rule of Two, though, the Darth Lord had no love for it either. "It cannot work," Avreet stated as a matter-of-fact, "The concept is that when the apprentice is strong enough to challenge their teacher, the two should duel to the death. The stronger one wins and takes an apprentice... But what if the master kills the apprentice? Then all the years and resources spent on the student's training have been wasted for nothing. What if the apprentice does not kill the master through honorable means? Then it means the next generation of Sith will likely be weaker. As I have told my former Master, if we did the same thing and fought until one of us lied dead, the other one would gain absolutely nothing and the Sith Order would lose one of their own." The Mon Cal smiled, remembering the old Togruta, the greatest person he had ever met in his life.

"My Master and I will never fight against each other in a real duel. I'd never be able to kill her, she is like my mother and I am like her son. That, and she is a very kind and wise woman. Losing her would be a great loss for the Sith." Avreet said, his tone losing its neutrality and it became apparent there was a strong bond between the Master and apprentice, although their official partnership was long since over.

"Tell me, Knight Raaf," the Sith Lord's voice slipped back to the tone that gave nothing away, "The Jedi often say their reasons to fight the Sith are our usage of the Dark Side, deaths of the innocents, lack of freedom... then why don't you fight against the Silver Jedi? They use the Dark Side, are not above killing innocents who get in their way, impose their will upon others by force, brutally extinguish any resistance, invade planets in the same fashion as the Sith do... and yet you treat them as allies. That means the Jedi either don't really care about the innocents and all their talk is just an excuse to wage war against others... or it means you are willing to side with what you se as evil if it helps you destroy other evil."

 

[Corvus Raaf]

Corvus had recently been part of a discussion on the philosophy of the Jedi and its Code. Aside from a few notable exceptions, some ridiculous viewpoints had been shared. And she’d also been aware of the debate with regards the Army of the Light and the debate as to who the true Jedi were.

Yet this conversation with Avreet was more enlightening than any of them. And she was aware she was now mentally using his given name, rather than his title.

His insight on the Rule of Two was useful and suggested there was little appetite to return to this way of thinking. It was one of the reasons she wondered if the Army of the Light might actually resurface. The current Jedi structure was set up to deal with either no Sith or at most two. History had dictated that when faced with an army of the Darkside, an army of Jedi was required to combat them.

His questions were searching in a way she’d never been challenged before. “My knowledge of the Silver Jedi is even less than of the Sith. Publicly they say they follow the Code and are as we are. On that basis, I never understood why they would choose to leave and start an alternative Order.”

“I was not aware, for example, that they use the Dark side. That…fact, if proven to be the case, would certainly change my perception of them and would need to be raised with the Grandmaster. And I’m sure I’m not overstepping the mark when I say they are not allies. And what I mean by that is – we serve the Galactic Republic. If the Senators chose to ask the Silver Jedi for help, it would not be my place to question that decision. But I can understand how it would create a dilemma to fight alongside someone if they practice what you speak of.” The Mon Cal may have been doing this deliberately or he may just have been stating the situation as he saw it – but Corvus found his questions – or rather her own answers – disturbing. She was not going to join the Sith or the Silver Jedi – but it made her reflect on her own beliefs and how congruous they were with her role in the Jedi Order and the Galactic Republic. Despite her extensive knowledge, she was still a young girl and not as worldly-wise as she might first appear.

Looking therefore to change the subject, she looked towards her ship. “Nearly there – is there anything in particular you’re looking for? Who knows when, let alone if, someone comes looking for us. Do you have any ideas?”

[member="Avreet Zatarus"]

 

[Darth Veles]

Veles nodded to show he acknowledged the Jedi's answer. It had to be expected, the fact she did not know that much about the Silver Jedi. Why would she? The Republic was at war against the Sith and the Silver Jedi were nothing more than another group of Jedi. A group of traitors, truly, but still peacekeepers, right? And that was the reason they posed much greater danger to the galaxy than the Sith ever could. When someone said Jedi, most citizens on non-Imperial planets immediately imagined great heroes from stories and books. Naive Force sensitive fools believing the lie joined the Silvers in hopes of helping the Jedi destroy all evil when in fact they have unknowingly joined even greater evil than they wanted to eliminate. Veles himself had believed them to be just another group of fools, at least until the battle of Teta where he finally witnessed their true face.

Just thinking about it filled his heart with anger, which fortunately only helped the Sith to recover more energy. Perhaps this young Jedi might be interested in seeing the evidence of their crimes, something he always carried with himself? [member="Corvus Raaf"] raised another interesting point when she said it was not her place to question the decisions of senate. Did she serve the innocents, or the Republic? What if her government turned out to be the worst of all dictatorships? Would she also follow it without a question? Before he could pursue the topic and speak up, the Jedi raised a question that was, indeed, more relevant to their current situation. Quickly pushing all other thoughts and feelings aside, Avreet focused on their survival again.

Raising his gaze from the sand towards the ship that came much closer than when their paths crossed, the Sith Lord shrugged. "I only seek the shelter your ship offers. We should not venture outside while it's this hot. As I have already said, once the sun sets, we will have more time to explore the desert and find some signs of a civilization. Someone might have witnessed our crash. My or your Orders are definitely not coming to help either of us, as nobody knows I am here, and your friends probably expect you to stay for a while, no? Right now, we will have to wait. I suppose I will meditate." He chuckled softly, already knowing he was about to use the Light Side of the Force, as he imagined the young Knight's reaction to it, further surprising her that a Sith could use the Light Side, despite the popular belief. The wound in his left side still needed more treatment anyway, and he took it as a good practice of Force healing.

"You know, Knight, I have to wonder if there would be any conflict at all if all Jedi and Sith were like you and me. Both of us seek peace, and if we solved our issues by words and came up with a compromise of how to bring peace to the galaxy, this entire pointless war would have never happened. Billions of lives on both sides wasted because others refused to listen. It is quite sad."