In the mud

[Darth Ledgermayne]

Korriban.

There was a heap of knowledge to obtain in here. Searching through the library was always a humbling experience for the old Sith lord. A solitary crystal finger scraped against the outer bindings of the many books on a middle section of shelving. Ledgermayne was expecting a visitor which was why the Sith Lord had not yet begun his studies. This particular acolyte had pulled his interest. Now only the matter of personality type and motivation were in question.

Soon the Sith Lord would still have his answers.

@Dok Varuut

 

[Dok Varuut]

[member="Ledgermayne"]

Dok looked up and down the shelves as he walked the aisles, looking for the Lord, one Lord Ledgermayne, that had requested Dok's presence. Perhaps Dok's refusal to get political so far, he knew it couldn't last forever, but he wanted to avoid it till he was strong enough to defend himself, was no longer standing in the way of a master. He didn't know quite yet, but he knew he had been asked to meet him here on Korriban. Dok approached his master upon finding him.

"Lord Ledgermayne, you have requested my presence?"

 

[Darth Ledgermayne]

Ledgermayne was wearing a rather causal outfit. Normally adorning a mask, today he was without it. Light the shined and spanned through the room reflected brilliantly off his red hue crystalline face. Two dark bead eyes looked [member="Dok Varuut "]over. Traveling down his figure and back up. Three times this occurred before the Sith Lord spoke. " Darth." He blinked. " Darth Ledgermayne." he said balancing his tone of voice between stern and gentle, almost like the oceans waves.

" You do wish to grow. And you are looking for a master. I have requested you to ask you why I should spend my time training you and develop your powers. What makes you worthy of life?" He finally asked. The last bit of his question was tainted in his cultural views. Worthy of life had a different meaning but Ledgermayne wanted to see how Dok would respond to such a request. Walking away several steps and turning around he paused glancing back at the Acolyte.

A non-verbal signal to follow the Gutretee down the halls of sith knowledge.

 

[Dok Varuut]

[member="Ledgermayne"]

"What makes any of us worthy of life? Surviving, fighting on. I managed to survive three days in the wilds of Umbara when I was seven. The jungles of Umbara are rife with dangerous creatures, one of which is the Vixus, a cousin of the Sarlacc. Further, I have survived this far in this Emprie and this galaxy. My skills with a blade are not to be scoffed at, even if my other talents are somewhat lacking. It is not if I am worthy of life, it is if I am worthy of the knowledge you hold, and that is a question with no quick answer."

Dok followed after the older Sith as he spoke. His voice was even as always, not betraying his true feelings. His hands were tucked into is Shadowcloak, one of the few cultural symbols of Umabra he'd managed to get his hands on. After all, the Jedi occupied his homeworld, something he greatly disliked.

 

[Darth Ledgermayne]

Entire selves of tome, datacrons and holodisks passed them as they continued to walk and move forward. The deeper they got the more stale the air seemed to become. Primeval dusts of an era once long ago all to be inhaled or traveled into. Although Ledgermayne did not possess lungs to breathe he could infact feel the particles around him. A task he focuseded on while pondering [member="Dok Varuut "]answer. The young man did not understand. His mindset was still on Sith doctrine and proving oneself to be worthy. Ledgermaynes looked briefly back at the boy again but said nothing, it was a mere glance. Quickly his mind began to analyze the Umbaran.

He was rude or perhaphs hungery for power. Ambition was good. The Acolyte seemed to mention nothing about the Sith Lords correction about his name. It was a subtle after all, But even still no matter how rude it was it did in fact show the mans true intentions and motives.Titles were mere formalities to him, he respected power. Soon Ledgermayne entered a new room within the Sith libraries. The entirety of the atmosphere changed, the old dust remained but the feel of the room grew heavier and the taint of the darkside was stronger here. They had entered the Holocron section of the library.

Filled with what seemed like endless amounts of knowledge and potential power. This was a place not any acolyte was permitted without reason or proper company. " Knowledge is power." the Sith lord stopped at the center of the room, his beady eyes marveling the vast amounts of knowledge before them. " Where I come from... This notion of knowledge being power was ingrained in my kind from the beginning. On Isis my homeworld a we had many tribes, all were enemies at the start. When a clan met another clan they commenced in ritual combat to prove who was worthy of life." He smirked mentioned the reference again.

" The winner was rewarded with the copies of the memories of the loser. And afterward an alliance was made but I digress with my cultral origins." Ledgermayne shifted in posture bringing his hands up to his mid rib section. His crystal fingers pointed down as a stirring of darkside energy seemed to gather within him. All of it building but not spilling over to be let loose just yet.

" I can teach you the paths of knowledge is several means, But know this is a journey few take and even fewer come back from. This you understand?"

@Dok Varuut

 

[Dok Varuut]

[member="Ledgermayne"]

"On Umbara, it's a caste system. Over a hundred levels, on only people in the top ten are allowed to leave the world, barring special circumstances. Assassination, blackmail, alliances, betrayal, and the like are natural ways to advance, as are carefully applied shows of compassion or mercy. Open fighting is banned, one must move in the shadows to survive on Umbara, It's probably why so many sensitive Umbarans become Sith, our native culture is very compatible with most of the various Sith variations. Personally, I find that the rejection of mercy and compassion by most Sith takes away a tool. As you say, Knowledge is power, but power is useless if you do not wield it properly. One could have the power to destroy an entire fleet alone, but it means nothing if they waste their days tilling soil on some agricultural world."

Dok spoke evenly still, his control of his emotions was very good, and he rarely if ever gave away if he was upset, curious, disappointed, or anything else aside. It was natural to Umbarans, their famous Shadowcloaks, the fashion statement not stealth field, were partially designed to obscure body language. Dok was calm and composed always, even under the most stressful of situations.

"However you teach me, I have no desire to borrow or steal power, I want to make it my own. It is not just the dark side I seek to understand, but the force as a whole. Light, Dark, The White Current, and everything else besides. It is foolish and arrogant to say any one branch of the force is inherently superior to the other. It is not the tool, it is the wielder and how they use it. I chose this path for myself long ago, I am not afraid to die in my pursuit of it. However you teach me, if you teach me, I am prepared to risk everything for what I may gain. Darth Ledgermayne, if you are prepared to teach me, I am prepared to learn."

Dok dropped the Lord for Ledgermayne, which he personally considered an insult. Any Sith may claim to be a Darth, but Ledgermayne was acknowledged as a Sith Lord. Still, he seemed to take offense at being called Lord over the Darh honorific. Regardless, perhaps it was just a cultural thing. Umbaran Councilors were considered royalty and called Lords and Ladies, Dok saw no reason not to consider the Lords of the Sith to be the same.

 

[Darth Ledgermayne]

A smirk, small in size but progressively growing appeared on his crystal facial structure. Transforming into a wide smile next and soon a chuckle. " Acolyte, Dok. Your displays of rudimentary knowledge of Sith tradition and of the darkside have captured my attention. Tell me boy, Do you find solace in insulting me?" Darth Ledgermayne's sudden question was brought up with a subtle but stern tone. What had just happened? Where did the conversation strike a rough patch to warrant a question such as this? These were the basic questions the Sith Lord were looking for now. Reaction. As of yet the Acolyte had shown ambition and hesitated adaptation in reference from the title shift of Lord to Darth but that was all. Umbarans were a well guarded people and very challenging to read physically. This was a special case which meant more was required.

In theory this was all a test but that was not fully true.

This boy bordered on a philosophy that outright disgusted Ledgermayne. To deny the power and superiority of the Darkside arrant foolishness. To have the will to learn Light, Dark and all spectrum's of the force between was wishful thinking but in practice was something one could not truly do. Not in a single lifetime, perhaps even two or three. A foolish apprentice made for a foolish master and Ledgermayne was not to be made a fool of. Tilting his crystalline head the Sith lord stepped forward one step.

" You have the desire to learn all the facets of the force. Admirable, but mistaken. You say you have the drive to fully dedicate yourself, even unto death... to my teaching of the Darkside of the force as well. Explain this contradiction to me, Acolyte." Furrowed brows arched awaiting a response. A look of amusement.

@Dok Varuut

 

[Dok Varuut]

[member="Ledgermayne"]

"Insult you? Never intentionally I assure you."

Dok browsed the shelves as he spoke, though he was clear to look at Darth Ledgermayne when he was actively speaking. He simply spoke the truth, in Dok's mind it was better to show respect by not obscuring true feelings than it was to lie to a master above ones self. Probably part of why Dok was still an Acolyte, but he continued this pattern nonetheless.

"As for my desire to understand the rest of the force, it is not because I view the Dark Side as weak Darth Ledgermayne, it is because of one thing. My studies of the force itself, Dark Side in particular may be lacking, but my history is not. The superiority of the Dark Side can't be denied, but knowing more than that is a tool of many of the greatest masters the Sith have ever seen. The Light Side may be weaker than the Dark Side, but it has many tricks we struggle to replicate. It's ability to heal, especially oneself, is stronger and faster than any but the strongest of Sith Magics. If the other philosophies of the force hold such secrets, studying them can only make us stronger, so long as we do not forget that the Dark Side is the strongest the Force has to offer."

Dok pulled a tome from the shelf, nothing to fancy, just something to flip through when Dok wasn't speaking to Ledgermayne. Dok hid not the truth here, a Sith Lord above him as Darth Ledgermayne was would surely be able to sense that he was lying, so it was better to tell the truth. If Dok did not believe in the power of the Dark Side, he would not be an Acolyte, he would not be pursuing further knowledge of the Dark Side.

"The simple fact, to me anyway, is that even knowing the basics of how others use the force, reveals to us new ways to use the Dark Side. There are force users that can turn themselves wholly invisible, not just in the force but the naked eye. They can do this without potions or magics, but we need our Sorcery to do the same thing. It is not because we are weak, but because there is so much still left to learn. The Force is ever evolving, and we must study it as such, always knowing that there is something we do not know, but should. I intend to crack the secrets of these other traditions, even if it takes me a lifetime for just one of them, and pass them on to my own Apprentice or Apprentices one day. More knowledge can only help us, our enemies do not rest and stop learning, and neither can we."

 

[Darth Ledgermayne]

Honesty. A man of straight forward intent. With [member="Dok Varuut "]explaination now in full Ledgermayne could now see the entire picture. The Acolyte and Sith Lord were very much alike. Seeking to grow in power and knowledge but not strictly from the cultural teachings and traditions of the Sith. This young man had much potential and his flawed views could be shaped and even transformed in time to something that could benefit him greatly. " I over-stand now.." The Gutretee said simply. Overstand. It was a odd term to use but stood to the point.

" I respect your honesty. So in kind I will return it." Joining the acolyte in looking at the countless shelves and holocrons Ledgermayne continued. " Honesty is a rare thing to see and hear within the grasp of the darkside. The darksides greatest weapons are low cunning and deception. You are right though, Sith culture and tradition can learn greatly from the other force based cults, groups and sects. And while I myself have the luxury and privilege to not worry the direct applications of healing myself. I have found another way that fits my mineral biology well, just as I am sure you will find a replacement too."

For a Sith Lord to admit he was wrong and a mere Acolyte was right was a rare feat. The Gutretee hoped his returned act of honesty would not overly puff the young man up.

Raising his right leg up high and slamming it down the Sith Lord grunted on impact as the ground shook. Dust that had settled on objects in the library vibrated and lifted into a weightless flight. Between the two sith rose a pillar of earth roughly the thickness and height of a human. The piece of summoned earth was shaped perfectly in a rectangular shape. Sand and dirt shifted and fell from the outer coating. An oddity to behold through narrow eyes but Acolyte Dok was not of narrow sight. His perception was much wider.

" Back on Isis the Shamans of my people were masters of what the galaxy knew as Earth Shaping. Growing up and learning their traditions I learned how to master this exotic art." A smile formed. " Through this I can teach you how to harness power within the force and the elements itself."

" I Darth Ledgermayne accept you Acolyte Dok as my apprentice." The smile remained on the Gutretees face as he said his final words. Realesing the Darkside reserves he stored previously in slow amounts of power into the room he filled the quarters with his presence like a dense fog.

 

[Dok Varuut]

[member="Ledgermayne"]

Dok turned to his new master, and kneeled, bowing his head to his superior. He had listened quietly to his superior throughout his response to Dok's own rambling, for that is what he had done. Dok had a penchant to ramble, even if his voice and demeanor were calm.

"Darth Ledgermayne, I am ever at your service as your loyal apprentice."

A master had finally chosen Dok. An odd one, but a master nonetheless, and one that at least somewhat accepted Dok's slightly strange views. Despite his views, he was loyal to the Empire and The Sith, he would actually say it was because of his views. The Sith did not restrict themselves in their studies of the force, nor in the application of that strength. Dok would have it no other way, and while he had yet to raise his sabers in service of the empire as a whole, but he still had plenty of time to do so.

"I will learn whatever you are willing to teach my Master, I will not fail in my studies, or I will die trying."

With where Dok kneeled, one hand gripped at the tattoo ever hidden under his cloak and shirt, his only connection to his past life, and the worlds beyond the Empire. He had gotten it years ago, but it kept him centered. Reminded him why he did what he did.