Private Secrets Of The Forge

[Aris Noble]

"I alread-" Aris paused. No. Darth Carnifex didn't know he already had the key, did he? He'd been too distracted by the idea of simulacrums to properly think out his next words. Had that meant the skeleton him and Vera had met was just a copy to retain knowledge? How many were around? Just the two? More? Were the Catalysts Aris had already found laid out by these simulacrums?

He glanced to the bracer on his wrist for a moment, his brow furrowing at the thought. He wanted- no, he needed to know more. About all of this. What if Eryx was next to be picked? The triplets? What if his unborn sister was pulled by this?

"The catalysts are the key." He spoke the realization aloud. This key he'd been following, it wasn't to the Forge itself. It was to the catalysts to make the key. To open the door he'd found with Zaiya.

".. I have an orb that guides me to the catalysts. It lead me to Solomon, or one of his simulacrums if that's what that skeleton was. I've gotten one of the catalysts already, and I'm going to get the others and figure out what this Forge does. I don't trust you. I was made to be an escape from you. .. But I want to know what this Forge does. So, that's all I'll say for now. Where the door is that I found, where the orb is that leads me to the catalysts, I won't tell you."

Darth Carnifex

 

[Darth Carnifex]

The Dark Lord's face did not change once during their conversation, only staring straight at Aris with an unwavering, unblinking gaze. He seemed to look right through Aris, like nothing the boy did could hide his nature from those two bright, glowing irises. They were hypnotic, drawing Aris deep into their inky black wells; illuminated by halos of molten copper.

"You must do what you believe is right, Aris, just as I with all of my power endeavor to do the same. The Jedi once brought low our family once, and it shall never transpire a second time. Our great forefather, Solomon the Immortal, left us the tools to transform the galaxy. You need not trust in me, young Aris, but trust in the purity of our line. The same blood which flows through my veins flows through yours, and thus a sliver of Solomon's power dwells within you; untainted."

For the first time, the Dark Lord looked away from Aris, towards the aged woman on the bed who watched back with a careful gaze. "You are I are not so dissimilar, Aris. Brought into this universe to serve a purpose, only to escape it and forge a new path. Like you, I was always destined to be a tool wielded by another, never the hand that grasped it. It was the destiny foisted upon me by those who had squandered our inheritance, who had fallen out of connection with our great ancestry, and who had allowed the secrets of Solomon to slip through their fingers."

He smiled again, wickedly sinful. "Isn't that right, Grandmother Carys? Was it not your grandfather Calamus who broke with the ancient edict and invited ruin to our people? Had your father Hadus not done what was necessary, our family would have been destroyed. Just as it would have been had Hazael and Ashriel been allowed to continue their incompetent meddling." These names, these people, had no bearing on Aris' sensibilities, but he could tell they were important.

"You and I were not born, Aris, we were made. But we have broken those chains. Just imagine what chains you will break next."

Aris Noble ​

 

[Aris Noble]

Blood of my blood.

It'd been the term Solomon used often in their brief meeting. The pull of the very blood in Aris's veins, calling them to whatever greatness Solomon believed they'd have. It wasn't something Aris truly believed, but he couldn't deny the use of the catalyst he'd already gotten. The bracer on his wrist, the ability to disrupt the Force so he couldn't just keep being thrown around as he had been before.

But the reality that the man before him was made, even remotely similar to how Aris was, brought a chill down Aris's spine.

".. What happens now? Are you going to keep me here as your 'guest'?"

Darth Carnifex

 

[Darth Carnifex]

"Is that what you believe you are, Aris? Your focus determines your reality."

The Dark Lord led Aris from the chamber and into the room just outside, leaving the aging Zambrano matriarch to return to her listless catatonia. Doctors would eventually come to check up on her, to ensure that her condition had not been compromised.

"You did, after all, unlawfully trespass. By rights you should be detained, though I fear the sentence for trespassing into the Imperius Spire is death. Killing you would avail me nothing, you're so much more worth to me alive than dead. No, I surmise that whatever you've learned here you'll keep from my errant son and his vivacious bride. You would not be here had you told them your intentions, he especially would never have sanctioned you to come here; even in secret."

"You'll be allowed to leave, to return to your family and your ambitions. But I want you to remember that I know now. Never let it slip your mind, my grandchild. Together, we'll accomplish great things. All that remains is whether or not you accomplish them willingly."

Aris Noble ​

 

[Aris Noble]

Darth Carnifex knew. Aris couldn't think of something to say back, to deny anything that was suggested. He hadn't even told Vera Noble this was where he was going, to try and figure out more on the Forge, if the rest of their family knew. He frowned, just a bit. The only tell tale emotion he'd shown thus far before he looked away, back towards the woman who knew even more than either of them, it felt.

".. Fine."

Darth Carnifex