Shining Against the Light

[Isolder Arterius]

The shuttle had touched down no less than five minutes ago, but Isolder Arterius was already walking away with the cold air of Bosph hitting his face. He moved like an animal, ferocious and terrifying. Shining against the light was a Sith Temple, a place to congregate on The Sith Council homeworld.

He had only joined a few days ago. He had joined to learn and hone this power that dwelled inside of him. To learn to become a master of the Dark Side. He entered the hall of the Temple, adorned with markings of the Sith breathing in the emotions he felt swirling within. The power he felt.

@[member="Kralius Kol"]

 

[Kralius Kol]

Kralius Kol had one motive, his only motive, and that was to find the Sith Council. The Nautolan lived like a criminal. He had traveled through space by illegally boarding transport shuttles and stole anything he needed to survive. Now, he had reached the outer rim of the galaxy and had been exploring the breezy planet of Bosph.

Zipping across the grassy plains, Kralius suddenly brought his speeder bike to a halt. A feeling of relief, which was most odd to him, stirred within. Towering ahead, and hidden through a mass of black clouds was a Sith Temple. However, the only thing that separated him and his mission was a giant canyon.

Equipping a pair of binoculars, Kralius scanned the area and was able to spot a way around. He revved the engine a couple times and whipped his bike around. In a flash, he sped off and was long gone.

@[member="Isolder Arterius"]

 

[Isolder Arterius]

Isolder's footsteps rang out through the halls, the lights shining against the red walkway. He had come here to learn to take control over this mysterious Force that he held inside of him. He had spent years wandering the galaxy as a part of his mother's smuggling crew, but now he had a greater destiny unfolding in front of him. He had spent the last few days learning all he could about his new place in the galaxy. He had explored throughout Bosph, the homeworld of The Sith Council, where he would learn to follow the path of the Sith. He had began to read all he could about the concepts of lightsaber combat and forms, the history of the Sith, and the ways the Force could manifest within him.

Now, he stood within the Sith Temple, feeling the power of the Dark Side move through every inch of his body. He walked into a large training room, where lightsabers and vibroswords clashed while young Sith trained. Moving through the room, he found a room where he began to sit to meditate. So close to the combat, he could feel the emotions and strength move through him as he closed to his eyes and focused.

@[member="Kralius Kol"]

 

[Kralius Kol]

After a long delay, Kralius had finally reached the entrance to his destination. He sat on his bike and gazed upon the Sith Temple. There was a power that surged from the wondrous building. Something dark. Something terrifying. An aura that soothed Kralius with an invisible hand. How can something so void be so magnificent?

Kralius entered the Sith halls. He followed the guidance of his emotions. Or was it merely the dark powers that brewed within the walls- that swirled underneath the red coated floors?

Kralius made way to a large training room where many Sith armed with lightsabers and vibroswords dueled. He then observed the collection of training weapons that hung across the walls.

@[member="Isolder Arterius"]

 

[Isolder Arterius]

He felt like his body was floating in space. Cold and empty, like he was completely isolated from everything. He had reached the point of meditation most citizens of the galaxy aimed for. Calmness, peace, and tranquility. To Isolder, this was like a blade stabbing into his skull. He reached further. Into the planet. Onto Bosph and towards the Sith Temple. He reached out into the passion there. The rage and power that was building in the Temple. He felt a fire, like a sun, starting to heat him from the inside out. He felt like if he opened his eyes, rays of heat would extinguish everything in his path. This is what he craved. But he was new, untrained. He couldn't control this power building up inside him. The warmth was growing too hot. He felt like pressure was building up in his entire body. Like at any given moment, he would pop. Letting out a quiet whisper of pain, he let go and opened his eyes. The warmth he felt was gone, but it was replaced by the burning sensation and anger and frustration at his failure.

Rising from where he sat, he knew that he needed to move and release this anger, this ferocity. He moved into the combat chamber to find an opponent.

@[member="Kralius Kol"]

 

[Kralius Kol]

Kralius's train of thought was broken when a man barged through the sliding doors next to him. The two made quick eye contact as the man, whoever he was, hurried past him. A sense of caution tingled through the Nautolan's tentacles. There was a rage in the man's eyes. A rage for Power. For perfection. Kralius was not about to let him go undetected.

Eyeing the man closely as he walked away, Kralius began to feel the energy that radiated from him. He had a bad feeling about this.

@[member="Isolder Arterius"]

 

[Isolder Arterius]

He felt eyes on him. He felt another apprentice who sensed the tempest of emotions boiling inside him. He looked over to see the Nautolan standing there, his alien eyes staring at him intently. Isolder was a creature of rage, so he felt the need to remove his frustration. He also needed training. He was skilled in hand to hand combat, learning about the force, but he only understood vague concepts about lightsaber combat. Why not kill two ewoks with one stone?

He approached the alien, his intentions may be only to train, but he wondered if the other apprentice thought he may have sinister intent.

"Isolder Arterius." He plainly said as an introduction. Before the alien could even respond, Isolder simply said "Would you like to have a practice duel? I am in need of lightsaber training."

@[member="Kralius Kol"]

 

[Kralius Kol]

A response like that, respectful and noble, took Kralius by surprise. He expected a more ferocious tone from this one. Nonetheless, he didn't venture to the outer rim for a duel. "Kralius Kol." The Nautolan said, nodding his head slightly. "I'm not here to spar with you, or anyone for that matter. I'm simply looking for someone." Kralius looked around the room. It was true, he was on the hunt for the hooded silhouette that rescued him from carbonite. No luck however. There was none that fit the profile within the training chamber.

Kralius turned away from the man and grabbed the hilt of a training saber from the weapons rack. "I lack experience with these." He said, as he ignited the crimson blade. He turned back to face the man. "I'll take your offer. It seems the one I'm looking for is still in the shadows."

@[member="Isolder Arterius"]

 

[Isolder Arterius]

The alien was preoccupied. It was no matter. Isolder would find something in this temple to take his mind off of his frustration. He was getting tired of waiting for a master and needed to occupy himself. He was by no means a scholar, but had spent his time trying to learn everything he could so far. He had also traveled around to the nearest planets to get more acquainted with where his faction was tucked away.

Suddenly, Kralius seemed to change his mind after looking around the chamber. Excellent. Isolder was craving to become skilled with the lightsaber, so training with it would be ideal. His mind was relaxed when the other apprentice admitted he was also unexperienced with lightsaber combat. Isolder did not say a word, he simply walked to the side of the chamber and activated his training hilt which caused a blade to shine out the color of blood. The concepts of lightsaber combat that he had read flooded through his mind as he tried to figure out what exactly he needed to do. He gave the alien a nod, telling him he was ready to duel.

@[member="Kralius Kol"]

 

[Kralius Kol]

Kralius took a step toward Isolder, the tip of his saber pointing towards the ground. He wasn't afraid, or angry, or even hungry for power. He was merely lost, in a daze of soul searching. Unlocking the mysteries of his past, to find his true self, was his drive. It fueled him. It carried him. It also was a burden. Kralius had acquired the first piece of the puzzle. He found the Sith Temple. The second piece, to find the hooded figure, was hidden from him for the time being. Why not have a friendly duel whilst he waited?

Kralius glared into Isolder's penetrating eyes. He concentrated on this fight, and nothing more. He focused on the energy that radiated from his opponent. It was just them two now. Dueling Sith around him vanished from his attention, yet he felt their presence. Their every move. Every feeling. All of them, dancing around in their styles and twirling their blades to connect in perfect harmony. He sensed all of them. He watched Isolder carefully whilst he observed his surroundings with invisible eyes. Could this be the power that legend spoke of? Did Kralius tap into the force?

"No, no friend. The first move is yours."

@[member="Isolder Arterius"]

 

[Isolder Arterius]

Isolder let the blade rest at his side while he kept his eyes fixed on the alien. At any given moment, there would be an explosion of power between the two. Isolder kept himself calm, but it was like his emotions were swirling inside the pit of his stomach, ready to leap out at any given moment. The few times Isolder had dueled or studied lightsaber combat, Djem So had become his form of choice. He was physically rather athletic and strong and his animalistic passion all made this the best route for him to fight with. The one thing Isolder worried about was the strain Djem So places on the hilt of the lightsaber, so he didn't know if this training blade could withstand the pressure. So, he made sure to keep himself ready to reach out to grab another one if needed.

Finally, Isolder allowed the emotions and power rising inside him to culminate in a single spot, before he finally let out his first move. Grabbed the blade with both hands, Isolder brought about a strong swipe towards the alien's right side, which the alien brought his blade up to catch the powerful strike. Isolder let out a series of swipes similar to the attack, setting up from the start a powerful offensive where he was trying to keep Kralius on the defense.

@[member="Kralius Kol"]

 

[Kralius Kol]

Any rookie would have been consumed by Isolder's raging offensive. Yet, Kralius matched him evenly with a strong defense. He stepped back as he parried off a couple more attacks. He moved smoothly, ducking, dodging, and weaving around his opponent's crimson blade. How though? It was like something else took complete control of him.

Without warning, a sharp pain tore through the alien's head. It wasn't the stress of combat, nor the singe of a saber that caused this major discomfort. No, it was something else. Something deeper. Whatever it was, it forced Kralius to lower his guard, and he dropped to the ground. With one knee up and one knee down, the Nautolan glared at the man.

Kralius clinched his jaws in agony. He held it in. This wasn't over. It couldn't be, but with this new found headache though, it was only a matter of moments before it really was. He focused. His senses were now amplified. Kralius slowly rose to his feet, trying to push the pain to non-existence. He steadied his breathing. Did Isolder spot his sudden weakness?

He deeply hoped not.

@[member="Isolder Arterius"]

 

[Isolder Arterius]

Isolder's smuggling background had taught him to take notice of every detail. So, when the oddest of things happened, it was a red flag to him. This alien, who had been matching him blow for blow, suddenly had let his guard fall crashing to the ground when Isolder had done nothing. It was something strange. Unless it happened again, Isolder didn't think it would provide him any type of advantage, but it was certainly something for him to keep in mind.

For now, he had to focus on the fight. And between the frustration of Kralius and the typical growing battle rage of Isolder, Isolder was beginning to feel the emotions start to move through the battle like he could physically see them. Like leaves floating through the wind. Isolder let those emotions, both his and Kralius', empower and embolden him. So much so that, he began his attack again on Kralius and it was with a ferocity that Isolder had not yet experienced in the few duels he had. This would be his strength in the fight. Using the art of Djem So, mixed with the beast-like power he radiated, he needed to use his strength and wear away the alien's defenses. Isolder was too unfamiliar with lightsaber combat to be able to figure out what type of form Kralius was using, but there were many ways that he would be able to take out Isolder. He had to focus. Focus all the rage and power building in him.

OOC: Sorry. Had computer problems, but they are all fixed now.

@[member="Kralius Kol"]

 

[Kralius Kol]

Isolder's rage was ferocious indeed. Kralius felt it strike after strike but it wasn't anything to intimidate him. Isolder was aggressive and relied on his anger to fuel his fight. Kralius, well aware of that, formed a counter plan. He would let his opponent tire himself out and that's when he would move in to bring him down. Simple enough, right? Wrong! Isolder wouldn't quit. There was no stop button.

The two strayed across the chamber as they dueled. Then, without warning, another pain ripped through Kralius's head. He fell to his knees once again, this time with his head in his hands. Dropping his weapon, the red saber retracted as the hilt clang to the floor. Everything around him turned black. He heard voices, more so screams of dying soldiers. Finally, when Kralius opened his eyes all he saw was an image. A morbid picture. A memory.

There was a being in this vision, one who stood before many, many mutilated bodies. Men, women, and children all victims. Kralius recognized this person very well. It was himself.

Kralius released a loud scream of horror and dashed for the exit. He fled the chamber. He fled the fight.