Private Reaching an Understanding

[Darth Voracitos]

Lorrd University for Applied Sciences​

Within two lifetimes interrupted only by assassination, Voracitos had ruled Lorrd for upwards of three decades as its governor. Throughout that time, he had employed at least two generations of native slaves to construct the innermost bowels of his personal palace. His presence was universal in the history of Lorrd since the 400 Year Darkness lifted and brought the world once again out of isolation into the waiting hands of the Sith. The Sith Lord left the world to its own devices otherwise, allowing it to rule itself with a reasonable amount of autonomy, so long as they understood the power structure here.

Once the Emperor decreed the formation of the Imperial Prelateship and the abolishment of Sith Governors, Voracitos had to establish a working relationship with the new bureaucracy on his favorite planet. After all, slavery was technically abolished in the empire, but there were always exceptions when it came to the former Shadow Emperor of Lorrd. He would not so easily allow a bureaucrat to tell him what to do on a world that by all rights was his.

When he heard, belatedly, that the previous Prelate had apparently flown himself into the Lorrdian sun... Voracitos found himself both simultaneously amused and frustrated. These natives were like mayflies with their lives, and now a new orientation would have to begin for whoever this replacement was. So Voracitos decided to give the new Prelate Sedith-and-Denrid Kabor-Dinn a visit and acquired information that he would be found touring the newly constructed University, built within the old Slave Pits.

Voracitos hovered on his throne alone, except for the dozen Lorrdians encircling the Sith Lord, each holding some implement used to please their master. A fan, or bowl or plate of food, a whip, whatever he would desire they would provide to him. He did not need them of course, but he was ensuring that his message would be received. The rest of the citizenry, recognizing his corpulence, gave the Sith Lord a wide birth as he approached the Unversity. Voracitos stopped a moment to admire the architecture the Prelate had commanded be constructed, and the Sith Lord nodded to it in seeming appreciation. It seemed he approved of his design tastes.

"Bring me to the Prelate, and do not inform him of my arrival. As the Triumvir of Knowledge, I would command an audience with the designer of this fine establishment of education, for a personal commendation, and a belated congratulations of his new position." Voracitos commanded the first person of authority he encountered within the University.

 

[Sedith-and-Denrid Kabor-Dinn]

At the center of the central pit was the Adjunct tower, a large building with a squat base that had several statues and an interstellar vessel docked to it in a way most artistic. Like the exterior, the interior looked largely like the rest on the inside; an office space, with potted plants and brutalist architecture complemented by uncharacteristically opulent furnishings and colorful decor. Interestingly, the walls appeared to all be made of metal, not a single surface was made of natural minerals; this, though it clearly tried not to look it, was a defensible location.

As the Sith Lord entered, movement came to a grinding halt, all now idle. None of them seemed to exactly understand how to interact with this situation; it appeared as though - at least up until this point - none of these individuals had ever seen a Sith in person before, let alone expected one to enter such an establishment. Aliens, humans, and even cybernetic life seemed to occupy this space without issue, as a bastion of science and advancement, it was visibly liberal with its application of the Empire's policies on droids in the workplace as these certainly appeared to work alongside the biological lifeforms present. That is, opposed to working for them.

A squirrelish woman with green skin and a small nose had the misfortune of being at the center of the Adjunct tower's front desk. She hurriedly lept to her feet, composed herself, then made her way over as calmly as possible. Her heels clicked against the suprasteel floor plating; occasionally skipping a step to repeatedly bow as she approached. "Th-the capitol sich is not directly connected to this building--" A moment's hesitation took her, her eyes considering her life choices before simply going silent and providing a guiding gesture toward an otherwise unsuspecting wall behind the front desk. With a single bow, she moved over toward the wall; not waiting for the Sith, rather, attempting to simply do as she was told as fast as possible.

Her hand slid over the surface of the wall and from within it, a series of glowing glyphs appeared in rapid sequence which she traced with a manicured finger. At the completion of this task, the section of wall she had been interacting with fell away into the floor to reveal a cavernous shaft with a single pod-like repulsor-aided vehicle. The woman rapidly turned on the spot to face the Sith, casting her gaze downward as she bowed her head and stepped aside. "This vehicle is programmed to take you directly to th-the Prelate's office." The vehicle appeared roughly the size of an industrial elevator; easily able to fit at least several individuals without concern. Why it was hidden behind a wall was anyone's guess; perhaps some form of exclusive entry for visiting Sith so that they could avoid having to enter through the front doors. Or. Alternatively. A means of rapid movement from the Prelate's office should some sort of crisis arise. Regardless of its intent, it spoke volumes about the man who had it commissioned; even the size of the pseudo-turbolift implied it had more uses than simply transportation of a single individual in a covert and timely fashion.

Darth Voracitos

 

[Darth Voracitos]

"Curious, the Prelate is not touring this university?" The Sith Lord frowned and turned to a slave, holding a datapad. "Schedule an execution for me, will you? I will not suffer such misinformation." The bloated face of the Sith Lord then returned to the green-skinned girl. "It is so very difficult to harbor accurate information these days, I trust that you will say nothing of this embarrassment." Voracitos pointed to a pair of slaves beside without looking away. "See that she does nothing until I have returned." The pair of slaves cowered into a bow, as the hover throne carried the Sith Lord to the transit pod, where the rest of his party collected themselves upon, surrounding their dark master. The pod then sped off to the Prelate's office...

Sedith-and-Denrid Kabor-Dinn

 

[Sedith-and-Denrid Kabor-Dinn]

Without time to speak or truly even react - the woman coming to her senses significantly after the Sith had departed - she was left in the main lobby standing around. Others slowly returned to whatever it was they were doing but some still idled about; trying to process all that had just occurred.

The travel pod was a strange device, it sped at an astonishing rate from the ground floor of the building through a network of tunnels, some of which shared with the turbolift system. It featured strong inertial dampeners, if not for an indicator estimating 'time to arrival', it was virtually impossible to detect there was any movement at all. The rest of the pod offered no entertainment, there was no glass, no screens, not even a potted plant. It was a simple device to get you from point A to point B.

It took roughly a minute for the pod to navigate the internals of the tower then another minute for it to enter the Kabor-class via its hangar, move down through a designated shaft, then move along a track till it finally reached the office of the prelate. Opening unceremoniously without even the faintest hint of a 'ding', revealing the pod had taken a position inside one of the walls. Immediately beyond the pod was an ornate office, much unlike the brutalist architectural styling of the tower below, this area appeared to be decorated in an Art Deco style. Plants and greenery were abundant in the room, two droids encircled a small pit within the room that had an active holoprojection of all ongoing traffic in the Lorrd system, two glass terrariums that stood on either side of the room, and there was a large display table on a raised platform that had plants hanging over it. The prelate in question was sitting at a desk in front of a large window, typing away at the interactive surface of the desk but coming to an abrupt halt once the wall retracted to reveal someone had used the pod.

"Hello?" Came his call, unable to see from his position who had taken the previously 'secret' rout. Sedith, a typical Lorrdian male clad in a robe of gray and red patterning, hovered his right hand over the security ray shield; concerned that an undesirable presence had forced their way in.

Darth Voracitos

 

[Darth Voracitos]

"Greetings Prelate, I see that you have made yourself quite at home in short order on my world. I must say, that I do admire the architecture of your latest addition to my city, and your own office is no exception." Darth Voracitos entered the room with his procession of Lorrdian servants.

"You've no need to activate that ray shield, Prelate, though you may feel at threat I am not here to harm you. Commending you, actually, is my purpose. Your skillful disposal of my previous Prelate is something to be admired, it's the sort of deceptive gall I find most amusing in a person." He said casually as his Throne hovered closer towards a plant so that his fatty fingers could caress one of its leaves.

"Tell me, do you know who I am?" The Sith Lord spoke without removing his gaze from the leaf of the plant, seemingly captivated by its lush greenness.

Sedith-and-Denrid Kabor-Dinn

 

[Sedith-and-Denrid Kabor-Dinn]

Without fear and without hesitation, Sedith retook his original seated position and finished his work. He typed for a moment then sent whatever missive off to whomever. "Lorrd is under the control of the Emperor and his empire through me, his Prelate. You will find that it is his, not yours. Unless of course you are one of those many Apostates seeking to inspire insurrection, slay me in my chair, then proclaim yourself some frankly garish title like 'God-Emperor' or something similarly sanctimonious."

He brought up another issue that needed his attention and began drafting a response to it. His eyes flickered up toward the bloated Sith, briefly glancing to the faces of his procession but just as swiftly returning to the man leading them. It was impossible to get a proper read on the man, his mind was . . . Clouded. A smog - lung-chokingly thick - obfuscated his thoughts while impressive physical control led to his body acting only as dictated. Not a bead of sweat rolled from his brow, not an involuntary twitch, not even a raised heart rate. He was calm, cool, and collected; they very definition, one could argue. He was, if his appearance had not given it away, a Lorrdian of significant training in their mysterious arts.

"You've no need to activate that ray shield, Prelate, though you may feel at threat I am not here to harm you. Commending you, actually, is my purpose. Your skillful disposal of my previous Prelate is something to be admired, it's the sort of deceptive gall I find most amusing in a person."

"You have caught me at a loss. My Lord. I have no idea what you are talking about." It was true, though, difficult to tell if he was telling the truth. "The previous Prelate suffered a complex mental health crisis where he entered a manic, schizophrenic state. Grandiose delusions prompted him to seek out prophecy and oracles which only fed back into a sort of paraphrenia. His death was unfortunate but avoidable; I blame myself for not being able to get him the psychiatric help he so desperately needed." There was, as with all things Sedith said, an element of truth. However, whatever it was that he was leaving out seemed to be missing from his own personal recollections. He finished this newest missive, sent it off, then folded his hands at his lap. Staring across and up toward the Sith.

"Tell me, do you know who I am?"

"I am afraid, my Lord, I do not."

Darth Voracitos

 

[Darth Voracitos]

The Sith Lord smiled grimly.

"What is his and what is mine is difficult to distinguish, you shall find, as while the Sith Emperor has great authority... he and I have a... history." The Sith continued to fondle the leaf, raising it and inspecting its structure with an eye of intensity. "Something you seem to be sorely lacking, which I must say, is unbecoming of a Lorrdian." Voracitos then plucked the leaf, and still his gaze not breaking from the tiny bit of shrubbery, turned his throne to face the busy bureaucrat.

"Like this leaf, I knew the Emperor when he was little more than a sprout, when he was merely Kaine Zambrano, an Imperial Agent bereft of any gifts of sorcery or the force, in the first Sith Empire that arose from the ashes of the 400 Year Darkness. Do you know who he served?" The leaf became strangely greener.

"When Darth Moridin became Emperor, and Kaine Zambrano was his Vizier, who managed this sector and this world?" The leaf began to grow, larger and more intricate.

"When the Sith Empress Darth Desmius," Voracitos said the name with derision, "was assassinated, " again he said the word as if it pained him to speak it openly, the old wounds of that particular failure leaking out of him, "Who sat at the head of the Dark Council where Kaine Zambrano merely presided in, and Kaine Zambrano later would sit beneath his Imperial Emminence?" The leaf was beginning to get out of control in his hands, sprouting tiny little tendrils or roots stretching out into the air.

"Who, after returning from the death of his own assassination," Voracitos continued to become sourer, the octave of his voice dropping as the volume rose. "Became a founding member of the Sith Ascendancy which preceded the Empire Kaine Zambrano has constructed?" It seemed now that the leaf was becoming its own plant, and new tiny leaflets sprouted on the tendrils of roots.

"And lastly, who serves him now as his Triumvir of Knowledge, lest he forgets his humble origins?" Now the eyes of Voracitos, both his organic eye and the cybernetic red pupil of his other eye now locked on the Prelate, as without warning the whole of the plant in his hand completely withered into dust. His hand falling once again at rest to his side, the corpulent one awaited the bureaucrat's answer.

Sedith-and-Denrid Kabor-Dinn

 

[Sedith-and-Denrid Kabor-Dinn]

The Lorrdian listened silently, his face unwavering from the calm state it had been molded into by a lifetime of rigorous exercises. The Sith had done exactly as anticipated - they were a reliable lot in that way - and delivered the information Sedith was seeking to form his next move. It was clear now to him the extent of this Sith's involvement with Lorrd itself, his awareness of its history and its people. The additional information was unexpected, but, welcome.

'A Sith Emperor bereft of the Force-Gifts archetypical of any Force User? His origins unknown to me, now, a sense of clarity cometh.'

This Sith, on the other hand, was clearly quite proud of his own gifts and his talents. Resurrection from death was not a small feat, admittedly. It also served Sedith; informing him more of the exact state of power he was dealing with. 'Was he always this way? Is his bloated, elephantine-form, aided by unseen forces something that developed or something that existed? Questions, more now.'

"I believe the answer you are searching for is 'you'. Yes?" Sedith rose from his seat and moved toward the window. This did not seem to be an apostate, but one's life was always at risk when dealing with Sith and their ilk. He observed the desert landscape of Lorrd; blessed Lorrd. The sun beat and battered the world but like its people, Lorrd never surrendered. Lorrd never relented. If this was to be his last view of it, he was glad that he could see the additions he had made to this glorious little world. With a hand's wave, the window was dismissed, revealing itself to be merely an elaborate projection on a wall. The Lorrdian turned on the spot to face the Sith once again.

"You must forgive my lack of subtly, my Lord Triumvir. But I have found little use for it among your people. Might I ask why you have come? Usually at this point, I would expect to be forced to kiss a ring, a shoe, a foot; something to reinforce the dynamic of power and put me into a place of subservience. And yet... You seem more keen on reinforcing the notion that His Imperial Majesty's power and authority on this world are not supreme." The man's words were like honeyed silk, an invitation for more insight. It was true, in his mind at least, that this Sith seemed already beyond confident in his own authority over this world; entertaining Sedith's words and actions out of some desire for the same amusement one gets out of a trained circus animal.

Darth Voracitos

 

[Darth Voracitos]

"Good, so you can be taught." Voracitos smiled at the Prelate's answer.

"Your wisdom is commendable, and your deduction superb." The Sith Lord nodded proudly.

"You are correct of course, I have no intention of forcing you to commit to any overt displays of fealty to me. I have two generations of Lorrdian Slaves in my palace to do that for you." Voracitos tried to observe any reaction in the Lorrdian's body but knew ahead of time he would not likely find one, given their excellent control over their own bodies, a trait he admired deeply in them. It certainly kept them alive for longer, being able to keep their secrets from showing through their skin. "You know, of course, that slavery is illegal in the Empire, but such measures will never be sanctioned against me. That is because, even in the Empire where only its Emperor may reign supreme, there are those with power who are the exception." The hovering throne carried the corpulent body of Voracitos closer towards the Prelate.

"If you serve the administration of Lorrd as cooly as you have participated in this conversation, then you too may be an exception... for me. As long as you stay out of my affairs, I will stay out of yours... and neither of us will need to worry about the acquisition of a third generation of Lorrdians." Voracitos placed a meaty hand upon the Prelate's desk, his eyes admiring its craftsmanship.

"Do we have an understanding, Prelate Sedith-and-Denrid Kabor-Dinn ?"

 

[Sedith-and-Denrid Kabor-Dinn]

"Good, so you can be taught." Voracitos smiled at the Prelate's answer.

"Contrary to the popular belief of my tutors." Sedith retook his seat as the Sith spoke, his eyes fixed displayed he was clearly paying attention; his adroit gaze doing its best to study every twitch, wrinkle, and fold of the resurrected man before him.

"If you serve the administration of Lorrd as cooly as you have participated in this conversation, then you too may be an exception... for me. As long as you stay out of my affairs, I will stay out of yours... and neither of us will need to worry about the acquisition of a third generation of Lorrdians."

The desk itself was invariably of Lorrdian make and design; like everything in the man's office save the strange terrariums which each held vile, disgusting, and aberrant flora no sane man could fin beautiful. Transparent material allowed for viewing of the purple-hued lizards that called this detestable environment home. One might consider themselves lucky that said terrariums were so finely crafted; to think what the inside of them must smell like was a most revolting prospect to say the very least.

The Prelate sat quietly, the notion of Lorrdians enslaved at all - worst of all to a sorcerer so abdominous - churned his stomach and set fire to his throat. Like the Lorrdian he was, he gave but a simple nod with his fingers steepled astride his lap.

"Do we have an understanding, Prelate Sedith-and-Denrid Kabor-Dinn?"

"I am astounded a non-Lorrdian even knows me as such. Aside: I don't imagine our paths with cross again; I haven't the heart for diabolism, you see." His voice rang out like a deep bell, clear and resonating throughout the elaborately decorated office. If this was his attempt at humor was unclear, his face did not crack to reveal any sort of smile, but, perhaps it was internal; he certainly was not going to allow a Sith to see him sans sabbac-face, not if he could help it.

Darth Voracitos