Hour of the Wolf

[Riamah]

The woman was out of time here. By something like 800 years...She understood she could never return to her time, but so very much wanted to. These dark thoughts drew her to Dromund Kaas. To a place that had at one time been the shining beacon of the Empire. Ruled by the Emperor, his hand and Council.

In the shadow of a citadel from ages past, there was a lone cantina. Here the former Imperial sat nursing a drink alone.

For the moment, she was lost and totally alone. She didn't want or need friendship, everybody that got close to her had died. At least that is what she had decided so many years ago in another lifetime or more. For once though, she actually felt her losses and tried to bury them in drink. What hope did she have anymore?

Ordering another drink with a wave, she set a credit chit on the counter and starting in on this one as soon as it arrived.

[member="Darth Scuros"]

 

[Ghost369]

The battle of Commenor had just ended and Darth Scuros, who participated in the battle, desperately needed a drink as he didn't know what else to do with himself when he wasn't working. It was raining hard he walked in the and his clothing were wet and dripping as he approached the bar. He sat down next the Imperial, putting his menacing helmet, which was held in his right hand, on the counter before taking off his hood.

"Hi." is all he says to Sulen. "Whiskey. Now!" He barked at the bartender as he put the necessary credits on the counter. He sighed and looked back over at Sulen, not sure why he was talking to her, but he was already drunk before he had arrived at the bar. "You ever been in a battle so long you just need a drink immediately afterwards? I'm so exhausted." He put his head in his hands as he thought about it.

 

[Riamah]

While Sulen had done what she could get caught up on the history that she missed out on, she was still quite lost at times. Turning her head only when a man sat down next to her, she narrowed her eyes slightly. It seemed times had changed enough that aliens were welcome. In her time, the Empire was very xenophobic and racist. Things had just started to change before she went to her 800 year sleep, but somethings were still a part of her.

He broke the silence between them quickly with an almost friendly hi and ordered a drink. Without an offer a name or intro, he asked if she had been in battle so long that if the only thing she could think of was a drink after she shook her head.

"Sadly there wasn't much fighting for me."

Taking another drink, she set her half empty glass down on the counter next to the credit chit the bartender droid hadn't picked up yet.

"I do know what you mean about being exhausted though."

[member="Darth Scuros"]

 

[Ghost369]

The droid would return to take the credits and give Scuros his drink before departing. The Rattataki lifted up his head and grabbed it, taking a long sip before putting it down. He saw her squint as she looked at him and chose to ignore it.

"Not a soldier then?"

He took another sip from his drink and put it back down again.

"Yeah, I've been almost too busy lately. My name is Darth Scuros by the way. And you?"

He looked at the bald woman, his eyes turned from orange back to their natural white, as the drink was blurring his connection to the force. He waited for her to speak again.

 

[Riamah]

When he asked if she was a soldier and it brought up memories of her past.

"Never had the chance."

Finishing off the drink, ​another credit chit was placed on the counter. He said he been busy lately and she nodded. Remembering the days of her military training, she understood. At the offer of a name and that he was a Darth, she lifted one of her eyebrows slightly.

"Sulen Dewan, but people have called me Dee in the past."

A simpl​e sign of her humanity and an unacknowledged need on her part to connect.

[member="Darth Scuros"]

 

[Ghost369]

"Dee, huh. I think I'll just call you Sulen, for now. Anyway, it's nice to meet you." He put another credit on the table and spoke to the bartender droid, "Another whiskey. . . and whatever she wants. Here take your chit back." Darth Scuros reached out, grabbing the chit and returned it to her.

The droid walked away and as soon as it did Scuros' wrist communicator went off and a hologram came up. "Oh hi! Give me a minute, I'm in a public place." Scuros said to the person on the hologram. "Of course, my lord." They said back.

He waved at Sulen and said, "I'll be back. I have to take this." As he walked out to find a dark alley to talk in privately. A few minutes later he was back sober and meaning business. He had used to force to sober up and his eyes were fire orange again.

"I think I may have that chance you were looking for." Scuros says, sitting down, his voice turns to a whisper, "Rebels along with Jedi have foolishly decided to resettle on Voss. I'm going to kill them and if you wish to come, you may, but I'll be leaving soon."

 

[Riamah]

At their mutual introductions and his offer to pay for her drink (which she accepted), Sulen ordered her drink and nodded when he said he needed to excuse himself. It gave her a few minutes to think on a little of her past and where she was now. The change of politics and people. She also wondered just where she would wind up when everything was said and done. Forgotten name from a past lost to history. She could be thought of as a relic from ages past, a walking historian from a time when the Empire was gone.

These musings only lasted until Scuros returned though. When he did, she could tell his head had been cleared and he offered her a chance to go to war against some rebels on Voss. His sure attitude that he would be able to accomplish killing them impressed her and she nodded.

"What good is a single woman with only a blaster as a weapon going to do? Yes, I'll come along, test my wings and ability. A bit rusty at things."

​And there a part of her, she would try to deny. Her ability to use the Force. The woman was fully trained, but chose not to use that ability.

[member="Darth Scuros"]

 

[Ghost369]

"Don't worry, there won't be too many of them and I'm guessing you're pretty decent with that blaster." He could sense her force power now that he had sobered up, "At the very least you get to watch a Sith execute some Republic allies and at most you can put your power to use against them. I'm guessing since you're on Dromund Kaas that you're no ally to rebels."

After saying this he got back up, grabbed his helmet and walked outside into the rain, "So what is it that you currently do anyway? You CAN fight, right?"

He threw his hood back over his head to block the rain as they approached a two seated speeder and he got in. "This will take us to my ship. Get in."

 

[Riamah]

What a contradiction Sulen was. At one point in her life, she was a rebel, but not in the same sense he meant. When she was learning about the Force, her friend had lead a rebellion against Luke Skywalker. Eventually he had been destroyed, Sulen had left Yavin IV and never looked back. Devoting her life then after she learned of her parents deaths to being in the military. An ancient Imperial.

She finished off her drink and almost spat it back out at what he had observed about her. Quickly swallowing it, Sulen hoped Scuros hadn't picked up on her moment of surprise. Finding her voice as they walked out together, she choose not give voice to what he said about her power.

"I'm alright with the blaster. Not top of my class, but not the worst either."

Shrugging her shoulders ​before answering his question on what she, there wasn't an easy way to answer that. At least not without sounding like a country bumpkin.

"Nothing, been out of the loop of things for a while. Just finding my place again and yes I can fight."

The last part was said wasn't said with any real irritation, but the tone changed slightly. A touch of humor and exasperation equally. If the chance had been given to her in her day, then she would have followed the orders of commanders. So when ordered her to climb into his speeder, she did not question him and hopped aboard.

[member="Darth Scuros"]

 

[Ghost369]

Darth Scuros activated the speeder and headed toward the hangar holding his ship. "Good, as long as you can fight, you can help"

He noticed something by Sulen's foot as she got in, "Can you grab that? There's a little green crystal by your foot. A trophy. I need it."

As he said this he grabbed a Jedi looking lightsaber hilt from his hip and put it in his lap. "I have a plan. We're going to pretend to be seeking help from these Jedi and their rebel allies on Voss then we'll kill them when their guard is down. . . Oh that reminds me I have another lightsaber and two sets of Jedi robes on the ship if you want to pretend to be a Jedi too or you can just use your blaster and be a rebel."

After he said this they pulled up to the hangar. Scuros got out of the speeder and walked toward his ship.

 

[Riamah]

After the climbed into his speeer he asked her to hand him a green stone that had fallen to the floor. When she did pick it up, it almost seemed to light up. Shaking her head slightly, she held it out to him. To her eye, there was no difference between a saber a Sith would use compared to that of a Jedi.

She listened to what he had to say and nodded slightly.

"I can do that, but keep my blaster as back up."

From what she could tell it wasn't uncommon for people that could use the Force to also carry blasters. Again her mind drifted slightly to her past. An image in her mind of a young girl holding a green lightsaber and when they stopped at his ship, it was gone. Shaking her head, Sulen hopped out of the speeder and followed him.

"How long will it take us to get there?"

[member="Darth Scuros"]

 

[Ghost369]

Scuros took the crystal from Sulen and put it inside the Jedi lightsaber with the force. As he walked toward the foot of his ship's ramp he activated it to test that the saber still worked, its green blade lit up his face and he smirked as he extinguished it. Darth Scuros remembered the Jedi he killed and took the lightsaber from. It made him happy to know that their lightsaber and robes would be used to kill more Jedi. His mind came back to reality as Sulen asked him how long the trip would be.

"It's two days to Voss."

Scuros walked up the ramp into his ship and headed toward a messy room with the Sith's trophies in it. He picked up two Jedi robes and a blue lightsaber. He remembered killing the Jedi these robes and this lightsaber were owned by as well. Memories faded as he gave one of the robes to Sulen along with the blue lightsaber.

"Here," He points down the right side of the hallway. "You can change and sleep in there. That's the guest room, nothing really in there besides a bed and holo. My room is on the other side of the hall. I don't recommend you go in there."

Darth Scuros heads to his room, putting down the Jedi robes and lightsaber and finally takes off his combat gear to get into his everyday shirt and pants. When he comes out he pilots the ship out of Dromund Kaas' atmosphere and types in the coordinates for Voss before entering the ship into hyperspace.

[member="Sulen Dewan"]

 

[Riamah]

Following him aboard his ship, she nodded at his answer and took the robes he handed to her. Watching as he tested out the blue saber before handing that to her as well, she listened to his instructions about where to sleep and to stay out of his room.

"Understood, Sir."

​Realizing just how tired she was, when she reached the designated room Sulen decided to just go to bed. That drink knocked her out for the rest of the night and she slept the most soundly as she had in 800 years. Like a clock though, her body woke up early in the morning. Luckily there hadn't been enough alcohol in her system to cause a hangover.

Climbing out of bed, she put her old uniform back on. It would still be another day and half before they arrived so she did not see a need to put the robes on. She headed into the kitchen to started the caf and rummaged around for food.

[member="Darth Scuros"]

 

[Ghost369]

After entering the ship into hypersapce Scuros realized he was tired as well and headed back to his room to sleep for the night. Upon awakening he walked into the kitchen, finding that Sulen was already awake and rummaging through his kitchen.

"Morning." he said as he sat down at the table and waited for his turn to dig through the fridge, yawning and rubbing his eyes.

Once she finished in the fridge he looked through it as well before sitting down again with his food. He took his first bite, chewing and swallowing before speaking, "Did you call me 'sir' last night? You can just call me Scuros. You're working with me, not for me. . . I mean you can work for me if you want, but you don't. Mostly soldiers call me sir. Were you a soldier?"

He took another bite of his food and washed it down.

[member="Sulen Dewan"]

 

[Riamah]

She was just about to boot the door closed when Scuros entered. Setting her food on the table, she got them both some caf to help wake up and then sat down to eat.

"Morning and yes I did. I will call you Scuros though since we are going to be working together."

He asked again if she was​ a soldier and she pushed some food around on her plate while thinking of an answer.

"I was going to be, but it never happened."

If he paid attention to her accent, he might notice it was different that any other imperial he might have heard.
​
[member="Darth Scuros"]

 

[Ghost369]

Darth Scuros drank a large sip of the coffee before putting it down, "Well that looks like a military uniform you're wearing. . ." he would look closer at it, "an old one too. How did you get it if it's not yours?"

He took another bite of his breakfast and another and another. After he took these bites he spoke again, "How about you tell me your story and I tell you mine? I won't judge, but we should know more about each other 'since we are going to be working together'."

[member="Sulen Dewan"]

 

[Riamah]

Looking at her companion as he ate and waited for her to answer, Sulen considered a few things. In the end, she decided to tell him part of her history and leave off some details.

"My parents died when I was a teenager. Pirates raided the mine they worked at and left me an orphan. So I knew I would not be able to live easily on my own. I gathered up a few of my personal belongings and sold the rest off. It helped to get me started in a military school. After I graduated I went to join the navy. Well, I was put through a training regimen and was going to be some sort of special forces. An accident happened and my career in the military never got started."

Everything she said was​ true, but it left off the important detail of when it happened.

"This is my military uniform, but maybe I don't have a right to wear it any more. It belongs to an Empire that is now gone."

[member="Darth Scuros"]

 

[Ghost369]

"Hm. Your story sounds a lot like mine. My parents died when I was. . . 12, I believe. Our town was attacked by enemy Rattataki. After that I escaped and stole a ship, before I left the planet to join the Sith. The teachers at the Academy and my master trained me to be a weapon for the Empire." He seemed to get sucked in by his memories, but was distracted when Sulen spoke again.

When she talked about her uniform he pushed a button on his wrist and a beat up looking droid walked in, with a hologram, setting it on the table before sitting down. The robot had come from underneath a pile of clothes and weapons in the trophy room and looked like it had been there awhile. Darth Scuros looked at her and spoke as he pointed to a picture of her uniform and some following details about it and how it was from the Galactic Empire.

"It says here that your uniform and the Empire it belongs to are from the era of Luke Skywalker and Emperor Palpatine. . . You were from this Empire? How old are you and how are you alive? I'm curious. You may know Sith want to live forever."

The droid spoke up in a friendly voice, simply saying, "It IS VERY interesting." It looked at her in anticipation as it said this.

[member="Sulen Dewan"]

 

[Riamah]

Their stories were similar. Both lost their parents around the same age. His done by his own race and hers by pirate attack. A small detail of difference, but not much. After that their stories differed. He had joined the sith and in her day that wasn't an option. The sith had fallen and weren't around anymore. However, as she had aged, Sulen had left using the Force behind and all but forgotten it now.

She had instead focused on being in school and training to be with an empire that died out in her day. After she had been put to sleep and forgotten. What happened, she would never know, but it didn't matter anymore.

"It is correct on one count, Scuros. Palpatine was dead already, but Skywalker was not. I am from the Empire that followed after that of Palpatine's. If I have done my math correctly, I am about 838 years old. However, if you were medically scan me, I would be 25."

Some sith did want to live forever, but she raised a finger to pause him before saying one last thing.

"Sith may want that, but they would want be aware, awake and not locked up in a sleeping casket to accomplish this."

[member="Darth Scuros"]

 

[Ghost369]

The Sith listened to Sulen's story and wondered how she could be so old. He thought she may have been frozen like Revan and Darth Malgus were in ancient times.

"Yeah, you do look 25. I'm around that age. How can you be 838?"

Scuros thought about how she was right and it didn't sound safe being stuck, defenseless, inside a 'casket' as she said. He'd be completely defenseless, but he was asking for other Sith above him who wanted to live forever, that wasn't what he would want.

"How did this 'casket' work? Did it freeze you or preserve you some other way?"

[member="Sulen Dewan"]