Duel Forged in Fire

[Quinn Varanin]

//: Taeli Raaf //:
//: Jutrand //:
//: The Obscurial Reliquary //:

Power was never given in the Empire—it was earned, seized, and held with an unrelenting grip. Quinn understood this well. It was the same unyielding certainty that carried her up the stone steps of her Master's domain, each footfall a quiet declaration of her purpose.

Taeli Raaf had long been a force beyond measure, a sorceress and alchemist of unparalleled mastery. There was none like her, and none who could match the depths of her craft. For Quinn, Taeli was both a guiding light and an unmovable wall—one she must scale or shatter. But she was not the only one. Spencer Varanin, her birth mother, stood as another towering specter in her path. Between the two women, Quinn had shaped the path of her sorcery, seeking not just to follow but to surpass them both.

At the base of the long staircase leading into the Obscurial Reliquary, Quinn exhaled, steadying herself. The air was thick with the weight of knowledge and power housed within, an unseen force pressing against her skin. Taeli awaited her beyond those grand doors, the first true obstacle in her ascent. Spencer, as ever, was elsewhere—adrift in the stars, occupied with machinations that only Ashin likely knew. And after Taeli, there would be Srina.

The steady rhythm of her heels against polished stone was a quiet mantra, a reminder of her purpose. Since her last meeting with Ashin, she had gained new skills, tools sharpened for this very moment. Tactical, pragmatic—Ashin's lessons were invaluable, but they were merely stepping stones. There was still so much more to claim.

As she crossed the threshold of the Dark Councilor's domain, the difference in power was immediate. Unlike Taeli, Quinn kept her own presence repressed, an instinct drilled into her since childhood. The monstrous hunger that dwelled within her stirred, restless and insatiable. It had tasted freedom once before—just once—and that had been enough. She had learned then why her parents had warned her. The beast, once fed, would only crave more. Even now, it pressed against her restraints, its palpable desire curling at the back of her throat.

Through the base of the third tower, she pressed forward with focused intent. This was Taeli's sanctum, where knowledge was dissected and twisted, where new horrors were crafted in the pursuit of deeper understanding. Quinn had always admired her Master's relentless devotion—it was something she sought to mirror in herself.

As she navigated the gathered groups within the halls, she realized how long it had been since her last visit. That meeting had been far more pleasant, filled with tea and idle discussions about her entanglements with Taeli's other apprentice. But sentiment had long since faded, buried beneath battle and failure. The girl Taeli once knew had been tempered in fire, honed by war, and humbled by loss. Now, she carried herself with the quiet, restrained confidence of a woman who understood the cost of ambition.

The final set of ornate doors parted, revealing Taeli at work, ever consumed by her craft.

Quinn stepped forward. Only two weapons adorned her lithe frame—a lightsaber and a long knife, crafted by a Lupine, Gerwald Lechner.

She swallowed the lingering nerves that coiled in her stomach. Taeli was dangerous. She always had been. But this was a trial Quinn had to face, a challenge she needed to overcome—not just for her Master, but for herself.

"Master," she began, voice steady despite the tension thrumming in her veins. Taeli, the woman's power radiated from her like an unseen storm, vast and suffocating. Quinn lifted her chin. "I want your power," she declared. "I'm here to take it from you—to prove myself as your successor."

 

[Taeli Raaf]

Quinn Varanin
Jutrand
The Obscurial Reliquary
​

While Quinn kept her presence restrained in the Force, her arrival to the Sadow District had rippled across the staff and followers of Darth Arcanix, alerting her that one of her students had come. For some time, she had wondered which of her apprentice's would make the first attempt to try and displace her, to claim everything she had ever built and created. She had thought, given the state of things, that it would be Alina to try first as it had seemed Quinn was interested in other pursuits. But as time had passed, and Alina once again wandered away, the Lady of Secrets had noticed that Quinn was starting to assert herself, first as an instructor at the Jutrand Academy and then as the war drums began to beat.

She had watched from afar, waiting, to see what the young Varanin would do and what path she might take. And it had finally led her back to Taeli.

When the apprenticeship had begun, Quinn had been resentful that Taeli would share her time and experience with another. She had scoffed at the lessons then, but a respect had slowly been formed over the years. She had always sensed that Quin could become a powerful and dangerous force in the galaxy, but she had needed to want it first. To learn the lessons of the galaxy could teach first before she was ready for what Taeli had to offer. Today it seemed would be the beginning of that.

As Quinn entered her personal chambers, Taeli was seemingly absorbed in the scroll she was working on, a quill of blood and ink scratching away. The scratching of the quill would continue as Quinn announced her presence and her challenge, eyes still looking down at what lay on her desk.

"I had wondered when the first challenge would come," she would reply quietly.

The power that Quinn had felt since entering the district, since entering the center of her power base on Jutrand and within the fully annexed territories of the Sith, would slowly disappear, drawn into the form of the woman sitting at the desk until there was nothing to be felt at all. She would set the quill back into its holder, and violet eyes would finally look at the young Echani princess, at the young Sith Lady making her first challenge for power and influence beyond what her name carried. Eyes would study what Quinn had brought with her, assessing her equipment and attempting to read her body language although as an Echani Taeli would expect Quinn to either conceal or misdirect what that might be, just as someone raised on Lorrd could do.

She was confident, or at least projecting confidence, and carried herself... with more composure than before. Quinn had grown and Taeli hoped to continue guiding that growth.

"I had thought Alina, but then you've ever been the one to actually go out and get what you want," she continued, blowing gently on the scroll to ensure the blood ink was dry before rolling it up. "To claim the mantle of my successor, to acquire the power I wield, will be quite the challenge, my dear. But if it's a proper challenge you wish to attempt... a change in venue might be in order."

It would be a subtle thing, just a few ripples in the Force and a snap of her fingers. Smoke of purple and black hues would form around them. For a moment they were in Taeli's office, in the next they were deeper into the facility itself, in a large circular room that was typically used for combat training or testing the various Sithspawn created by the Lady of Secrets and her followers. A lightsaber had appeared on her belt and armor had formed around her robes, summoned by its mistress.

"Show me what you have learned. Show me, Quinn, if it is enough to claim my seat, my title, and my power."

 

[Quinn Varanin]

//: Taeli Raaf //:
//: Jutrand //:
//: The Obscurial Reliquary //:

The Force ebbed and flowed between Master and Apprentice, a silent current thundering with tension and anticipation.

There was wisdom in the older woman's approach, and Quinn, unlike many apprentices in the Empire, respected her Master deeply. Quinn didn't come here to kill Taeli Raaf. She came to challenge her, to measure herself against the one who had shaped so much of her power. Quinn only desired the woman's power for her own. A Sith took the power they deserved.

Quinn's eyes lingered as the armor answered its Mistress's summon. She smirked, seeing that Taeli would give the girl an actual fight. She no longer saw her as the insufferable girl who had once thrown tantrums at the drop of a command.

"I look forward to the challenge, my Master," Quinn said, her voice light with amusement; her fire burned unashamed. "I'd hate for you to think you needed to hold back."

Her laughter filled the chamber of her Master. Quinn felt the power surge through her; the thrill of the upcoming fight filled her chest. It was like Woostri all over again, the intoxication of the awakened power of the Phobis Device stirring beneath the surface of her soul.

Quinn had learned to welcome the shift.

As the heart of the Dread Lords surged within her, Quinn Varanin began to shed what she had once been. Taeli would immediately feel the familiarity in her presence, a haunting echo of her mother; Spencer Varanin now reforged in something darker.

Black fog spilled across the chamber, rolling like a living tide. Quinn's quiet, carefully repressed Force signature was shattered. What remained was a raw power unmasked. Quinn was no longer content to hide in the shadows like so many of her Sith kin; the Echani stepped forward, raising one hand toward her opponent. As the fog thickened, swirling and coalescing into dense constructs of shadowy energy.

"I hope you're ready." The words were barely out of her mouth before several spears of midnight-black power surged forward, hurling through the fog toward her Master. There was no feint, no posturing. Her assault was direct, and with it came a heavy and oppressive pressure in the Force. The weight of Quinn's unleashed presence sought to slow Taeli down, to crush her beneath her sheer intensity.

This was no longer just an apprentice standing before her Master. This was a reckoning.

 

[Taeli Raaf]

Quinn Varanin
​

A small smile would tug at the corner of her lips, her body slowly shifting into a defensive stance as Quinn spoke. If her apprentice wanted a true challenge, a true test of her abilities and how they measured against her own, she would oblige. She wouldn't kill Quinn, she held far too much respect for the younger woman and she was pleased with the progress she had started to demonstrate and wanted to see her further growth.

"If that is your desire," she would reply quietly.

She could feel the power of the imprinted Phobis Device ignite as the younger Sith embraced her powers. In that way, Taeli was vividly reminded of Spencer during their brief interaction on Borosk so many years ago. Quinn had that potential to become just as strong as a mentalist, especially if her mother's Phobis Device, the essence of it, had fully imprinted on the Sith Princess. Her presence within the Force was now on full display, black fog summoned by Quinn into the arena they found themselves in as the dark side answered the call of the Echani.

Her smile would widen even more for just a moment.

Fully settled into the defensive stance she had adopted, her left hand forward, her feet spaced apart and braced, she closed her eyes. The current swirled with the dark side now, intoxicatingly so... and there was a ripple as Quinn spoke. Quinn's presence was prevalent throughout the currents around them, attempting to oppress and impede her own abilities. Her eyes opened as the spears of darkshear were launched at her, her left hand now surrounded in the green flickering flames that represented the Dathomiri magicks.

She didn't move from where she stood, and yet there was a dance of movement as her left hand shot out at in deflecting motions, as her body shifted into the flow. It would be in a rapid sequence as she struck each spear that neared her with her hand, shattering and dissipating the darkshear weapon into smaller shards that faded away. She would lean to avoid the last spear, looking directly at the barely perceptible dark side energy forged into the weapon of Quinn's mind. Her reflection could be seen briefly in it as it passed... and then her right hand would reach up and catch the spear.

She would examine the dark side weapon in her hand, an approving nod at its construction before she would dissipate it away and settle back into her defensive stance. "An admirable use of darkshear, my dear. But never just limit yourself to the shape of a spear. It can be formed into any weapon form you deem acceptable."

The entire time, her presence would remain completely constrained in contrast to the power Quinn was unleashing. Her eyes studying the Echani, waiting for her next move, her left hand still surrounded in the green energy of magick.