Silhoutte (Complete)

[Kuzo]

[media]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fTvH0uTVdtA[/media]

P A N A T H A
Canthar

Beneath the mire, beneath the verdant explosions of slinking life, the facility waited. The sound of water dripping, echoing through the empty levels filled her mind with a hollow plonk plonk plonk. The metronome ever so slightly askew to the beating of her heart. If she tried hard enough, she could turn back the clock, and watch her father walk the hallways. Her father. The man who had created the Gideon Virus that had wiped out their entire planet.

The projection was easy. It was easy to see what had happened- the how if not the why. Of course he hadn't died of the virus. It explained so much about how she had found him. In that moment of grief, she hadn't gone beyond the obvious- there had been no reason to search for a cause of death when millions were dead from a single source. But if she had looked- what would she have found? A heart attack? A stroke? Whatever it was, his death had unleashed the virus inside of him.

It had been no act of deliberate genocide. He had kept the virus within him the same way she did- the same way he had taught her. He had used the technique to keep the virus at bay, and taught it to her to help her mother with the wasting disease. Could he have known that she would need it someday, to stave off the virus he had created?

How could he not have seen it?

Irajah was only all too painfully aware of how utterly selfish she was. What a coward she was. How weak. If she had the strength, she would have piloted a ship straight in to a star- removed this stain, this risk, from the galaxy. She had almost done it once, back on her homeworld. Almost taken her own life to prevent the slow, agonizing death from spreading beyond her world. But she had held on to a shred of hope. It was still there, sparking weakly. Just enough to keep her in doubt. But she knew, in the depths of her soul, that she was a danger to every. single. planet. she set foot on. The responsible thing to do would be to destroy herself, the last vestige of this plague.

But she couldn't. She didn't want to die.

Her father turned to look at her, his clan tattoos stark against his pale face. He opened his mouth to speak-

"Doctor Ven, we're coming in to Canthar airspace now. If you look out the port window, you'll be able to see the Capital city. We will be landing shortly."

The voice over the intercom startled her out of her reverie. She blinked owlishly, glancing around the otherwise empty cabin. She was alone on this flight (never a comfort, it left her too much time to think) to Panatha. Her expertise had been requested, and she'd been offered handsome recompense for the trip and her time. With leave from the medical center, and [member="Boo Chiyo"] staying at the academy (she had growing reservations, but talked herself out of them every time), coming to Panatha, so close to First Order space, was not a stretch.

She leaned over, hazel eyes flickering out the view port at the city as it yawned beneath them.

[member="Darth Prazutis"]

 

[Darth Prazutis]

Canthar, Panatha
The Hasi' Sulemi

The sun burned high and bright over the crown jewel of the Panathan Empire with not a cloud in the sky illuminating the round domes and high peaks of the rising spires that dotted its skyline. If the humidity was any higher through the continent it would've manifested as a thick fog. One approaching the homeworld of the Epicanthix would see just how orderly the system was, living up every bit to the reputation it held. Through the black armored and gold cloaked guardsman that patrolled through the city, the peace of the God-King was kept. These warriors enforced a strict rule of law and anyone who dared violate these laws was dealt with swiftly and mercilessly.

[member="Irajah Ven"] was immediately hailed upon her entry into Panatha's atmosphere. A pair of starfighters swept down from ships in the atmosphere flanking either side of her shuttle. The ship was guided down through the atmosphere as space traffic parted in Canthar for the ship. They were heading straight for the Hasi' Sulemi. The Hasi' Sulemi was a massive pyramid ziggurat situated in the center of the city, ultimately serving as the administrative center for the vast Empire. But the vast structure served a dual purpose: worship. Originally the structure served as a great religious temple for years prior to the arrive of the Zambranos. It has been retooled as the massive temple of worship for the God-King Kaine Zambrano, as well as his divine successor the God-Prince Braxus Zambrano.

The shuttle was directed towards a docking platform where a pair of gaudily dressed aristocrats stood awaiting her arrival. Once the ship docked they'd approach to welcome Irajah to Panatha. They'd ask if any companions would remain back at the shuttle requesting only her presence within the halls. But then they'd immediately lead her deep inside this massive and ornate ziggurat. While the bottom levels of the structure were filled with worshipers and men of religion most of the middle and top levels were filled with offices for legislature, a true nerve center integral to the swift direction of the great dynasty. She was led down these filled hallways and corridors and asked to step inside an elevator.

Once inside the ride to the top level would begin.

 

[Kuzo]

"Well that's something you don't see every day," Irajah had breathed as the golden ziggurat came into view.

*****

It wasn't that Irajah was difficult to impress. A lot of things impressed her. Competence, loyalty, physical beauty to name a few. Usually, however, sheer wealth wasn't one of those things. Despite that, she'd had to suppress a low whistle a couple of times on their walkthrough. It had been a near thing. Of course, keeping her attention on where she was walking had also been a little hit or miss- the only reason she hadn't walked face first into that (probably very expensive) two meter tall urn was through the intervention of one of her guides.

The Doctor wasn't nervous, per se. After all, this wasn't the first time she'd been paid to consult on the rich and powerful (though maw only knew why that was). But she was happy enough to have her brief case to hold on to. It gave her something to do with her hands.

Irajah was clad in her typical attire- A long and flowing belted tunic, this time in a soft grey-green. With it's high neck and long sleeves, it covered her from chin to halfway down the back of her hands. Legs clad in grey leggings moved swiftly to keep up with her guides, the tac-tac-tac of her dress boots echoing oddly in the enormous space. Her short, dark hair framed a pale face, hazel eyes taking in every detail as they walked toward the elevator.

She looked up at the ceiling as the lift started its smooth climb upward, breathing in deeply and slowly.

When the doors opened, she actually froze for a moment.

"Doctor Ven? This is our stop."

Nodding, closing her mouth quickly, she followed them.

Apparently, she hadn't seen anything yet.

[member="Darth Prazutis"]

 

[Darth Prazutis]

[member="Irajah Ven"] would remain in the elevator for several minutes that might've felt like hours. In the meantime if she had any degree of access to her senses through the force, she'd feel a powerful, radiating source of dark side energy rapidly approaching. It was a swirling black maelstrom of power mixed with an almost uneasiness as the elevator climbed higher and higher. Finally the doors parted to reveal an equally stunning foyer. A desk sat at the far end where one of the elite Crownguard, the personal guard of the Imperial Family sat manning a terminal. A set of large black-iron ornate doors sat behind him. The entire room was adorned with stunning art some of which were famous scenes of wars throughout history. No expense was spared here right down to the pair of black doors that flanked either side of the chamber. Aside from the man at the terminal there were two guards on either side of the large room.

The man sitting down had his helmet off sitting on the desk his hair black and he had green eyes. Even from the small look she was given at his face she could tell from its chiseled structure this man was strong and highly muscular. Much like the other epicanthix she saw he was very tall. The tall man looked up from his terminal and stood "His majesty is expecting you, follow me." The guardsman said rounding the desk. He walked to the door that would be on Irajah's right punching in a cpmplex code, the doors shifted open then. The inside hallway was no different than the foyer a mix of black and white marble, art adorning the walls with busts, statues, and display cases holding varying jewelry and other items of war.

She was led down the hall that twisted and turned arriving at a single door. Throughout the entire complex she saw it was completely swarmed with guardsman who wore the same armor, all of them had the cerulean phoenix of House Zambrano emblazoned onto their chest. In fact one of these men stood in the same hall she was in now. When her guide opened the door inside was a fully stocked medical bay with everything she could possibly ask for including a portable terminal sitting on one of the dark counters.

 

[Kuzo]

To say that Irajah's force senses were underdeveloped would be an understatement. Despite that, it was impossible to feel nothing here. Because she was not in any danger specifically, she didn't register a sense of dread. But there was a heaviness- a roiling, indolent lassitude that she couldn't quite put her finger on. It was, for that matter, barely a conscious awareness.

What was a more conscious observance was how dang tall everyone here was. Irajah could generously be called petite, if someone were being nice about it. So here she felt a little like a child.

Going to get neck cramps before today is over, she realized with an internal grimace. Of course, she could look down instead.

That guy probably has great abs. She blinked. Then shook her head ever so slightly. Admire the architecture, Doc. Admire the architecture.

Stepping in to the medical bay, Irajah felt a little more at home. State of the art, very well appointed. But still, familiar. This was her comfort zone. And it was difficult to make a functional medical facility opulent. She let out a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding.

"His Majesty will join you momentarily, Doctor Ven."

She turned, clasping her hands behind her back (and banging her case against the back of her knees) and nodded. A familiar, professional smile emerged on her face.

"Of course."

"Please, feel free to familiarize yourself with the facilities. If you have need of anything, do not hesitate to tell us."

He turned to go, but-

"Actually? A cup of caf would be much appreciated?"

Glancing over his shoulder, he nodded once and turned to head back down the hallway. Turning back to the large room, Irajah looked over it critically. She couldn't find a single thing wanting. Placing her case on the desk beside the small portable, she started moving through the room.

[member="Darth Prazutis"]

 

[Darth Prazutis]

A mere few minutes passed and the guard was back with a hot cup of caff "If you need anything else ask the man outside." Just like that he was gone back down the hallway. [member="Irajah Ven"] was left to her own devices in the medical bay. About ten more minutes went by before a tall man unlike anyone else swept into the chamber. He easily stood at close to seven feet tall with paling tan skin and black hair.

Nearly every time Prazutis had some sort of medical issue he discussed things with the medical professionals who were on call at his home of Vain Hollow, but this was different. The dark side both gifted those with the will to access it with virtually unlimited power, but it had a dark price. It was almost too powerful for the corporeal body to handle, when the darkness grew to such a powerful level within it started to erode you away from the inside out. It wasn't anything new to him he saw it happen several times with his nephew, [member="Darth Carnifex"]. In recent times it was one of the greatest concerns the two had to address. The dark side was a fickle beast to those who mastered it.

Any intelligent Sith Lord needed to learn restraint when they reached the level of power he and his master had achieved, such wanton use of the dark side sped up the increased corruption through ones body. Through gifts brought upon him by [member="Soeht"] years prior the dark side actually flowed through his veins, it merged with his blood cells and empowered his body at a price. Braxus's veins were far more visible to the skin then they should've been even for a mountain of muscle like he was. "So you are Irajah Ven. I've heard a lot about you Doctor Ven. I am Braxus Zambrano." Braxus said.

Braxus wore a double breasted black tunic with matching trousers, a pair of black gloves and combat boots.

 

[Kuzo]

She heard the door open behind her as she was setting up the portable scanner. It wasn't a difficult task, and she could get the device to start calibrating with just a few pushes of a button. It kept her other hand free for the steaming mug of caf. She was perched on a wheeled stool at the edge of the counter, head bobbing back and forth every so slightly to some mental tune she couldn't remember the name (or any of the words) to.

Despite knowing just who she was here to see, she didn't turn around immediately. Sharp hazel eyes were focused on the read out from the machine, waiting for the calibrations to beep properly. She was here as a doctor- not a suplicant- and she wasn't going to-

She almost spilled her caf when his voice filled the room. The petite woman turned around so fast she almost couldn't keep the steaming liquid in the mug. She had to lean back slightly, putting her other hand up to keep it from splashing out, scalding her hand in the process.

"Chit," she muttered as she raised her hand from the cup- nothing serious, it just smarted- and then immediately regretted it.

As if a voice like burning honey wasn't enough-

It was a very, very good thing she knew who this was. Who she was meeting. It kept her from saying something even more inappropriate. Barely. She opened her mouth, then shut it again with a snap.

Hurriedly, she put the mug down and picked up a towel, wiping her hand clean. At least it was her left hand. The cuff of her sleeve was wet. Fantastic. This..... was not how she usually made a first impression. Clearing her throat, she stood up and straightened her lab coat, as if that needed her attention.

"A pleasure to meet you," she said, then stopped.

"Rather than do a very awkward dance here, I'm just going to be upfront- what is the appropriate form of address? I'd love to know, rather than stumble between sir, your majesty.... and making this mistake of referring to you by your name, despite you giving it to me directly is not-"

She was rambling.

Maw take it.

Irajah breathed in deeply, then stuck out her hand.

"A pleasure to meet you," she repeated. "Can we just start entirely from before you walked in to this room? Because I'd rather erase the last few moments from existence entirely."

Well, except for the first time hearing that voice.

[member="Darth Prazutis"]

 

[Darth Prazutis]

​Amusement.

​It was quite amusing to watch [member="Irajah Ven"] stumble over her words and herself. Clearly who she envisioned she would be treating and who she was actually treating were two entirely different concepts. Braxus received reports on the brilliant record of Doctor Ven from his extensive intelligence network, someone as influential as himself could easily acquire hospital data from a hospitals personnel records when his network was put to task. So it was that he made the decision to bring Irajah in as a personal physician her tenacity, and innate curiosity could help the Sith Lord discover a way around what was happening to him. In truth he was dying albeit slowly. The dark side enveloped him, surrounded him and flowed through his very veins through his efforts. But so much darkness could barely be contained within one persons body. It was the one drawback all Dark Lords knew well the ultimate price of power.

​Legends told of the exploits of Darth Plagueis the Wise, a powerful Dark Lord of the Sith who discovered the secrets of midichlorian manipulation and biologically discovered the secrets of immortality. Through his work he would have lived forever had it not been for his apprentice who ultimately killed the powerful dark lord and without learning the secrets of manipulation. A part of Braxus hoped she was as good as her resume said she was, while he could transfer his essence into another body becoming one of the first Sith Lords to rediscover this secret was far more desirable. So Braxus put on his best fake smile at her rambling "Certainly Doctor Ven. Your majesty would be the proper address."

 

[Kuzo]

Not a hand shaker. Well, that made sense if she had thought about how inappropriate that gesture probably was for even half a second. Irajah withdrew the proffered hand, stuffing it in pocket and thoroughly ignoring that moment, maybe forever.

Instead she inclined her head slightly, and retreated hard into hospital persona- which was the only one she had on tap, in fairness. Normal situations didn't allow it, but she was here, after all, as a Doctor. Not on a social call. Despite how she'd acted so far. Mentally, she grimaced. The whole thing was ridiculous after all. His status or title wouldn't have shaken her- those things rarely seemed impressive when someone was daily tinkering with the inner workings of sentient bodies, life and death- so get it together Irajah. Guy was handsome, sure, and that voice, but everyone looked the same on the inside, it was nothing she hadn't seen before, etc something something.....

In a few minutes, she'd discover that she was wrong about that too.

"Your Majesty, of course. Shall we get started? The details in the message were vague-" Vague nothing, they had been virtually non-existent. But it wasn't uncommon these days for Irajah's patients to be a little.... cagey.... until they were speaking to her directly. "Perhaps you can tell me what has been troubling you and-" she paused for a heartbeat. Allow me to examine you did not sit entirely as professional as she would like at that moment. "And we can start the examination?"

[member="Darth Prazutis"]

 

[Darth Prazutis]

"Certainly doctor."

​Braxus swept into the room pulling off the black gloves concealing his hands and setting them on the counter next to a rack to hold any articles of clothing. It almost felt odd to reveal such secrets of what afflicted him to anyone outside the Vain Hollow physicians. But [member="Irajah Ven"] wasn't like the zealous and intelligent doctors, they weren't gifted with the art of the force either in the way that Ms. Ven was, even if she didn't know it yet.

​The tall titan then began to unbutton his top glancing down at his blackened fingernails and paling flesh. A byproduct of the dark side was his paling of the skin, one of many issues that always seemed to get worse. Braxus's veins were were clearly visible through muscle, bone and flesh as well as darkened. But the mans fingernails were black and charred from the constant use of lightning. There were many afflictions about the Sith Lord through his continued use of the dark side. They were easily concealable through state of the art technology, but hiding them wouldn't solve the problems he was having.

​"I believe the problems will become evident to you quite quickly Doctor Ven." ​Braxus said hanging his shirt on he hangar and moving over to the table where he'd sit. Irajah would first notice the warriors physique, and his powerful rock hard muscles, his body was marred with scars from countless years of battle.

 

[Kuzo]

She had only met one group of patients with the kinds of scars [member="Darth Prazutis"] had criss-crossing his torso. The roadwork of tissue told a story, if only someone could read the words there. The language was foreign to her, but only because she had worked so hard to not immerse herself in it, just on the edge of understanding the scrawling letters.

Force User.

It wasn't that she didn't notice his physique- she wasn't dead or blind after all. But the literacy of his scars and the unfamiliar black in irregular places drew her professional attention like a moth to a flame. She frowned slightly as she stepped forward, all trace of the awkwardness from a moment ago vanished.

"May I?" She asked before reaching out and taking his hand in her own. Her hand was tiny against his, but she turned his palm over firmly, studying the aphotic tendrils creeping up his fingers.

Sitting on the table, he still towered over her, but she didn't seem to notice any more. At least for now, while she was so engrossed in the task before her. Even if she didn't know yet, just what that was to be.

"It's obviously not necrosis," she said slowly, picking up his other hand to compare the two. The flesh was cold and pale, but not dead- not rotting. It took a moment for her mind to cycle through the potential candidates. The list was short.

"I am going to assume that you didn't call me here to tell you to lay off the lightening?" She asked, looking up at him. The tone was the same way another doctor might say 'lay off the dessert'.

 

[Darth Prazutis]

​"I am going to assume that you didn't call me here to tell you to lay off the lightning?"

​A grin formed in his face as [member="Irajah Ven"] carefully picked apart his corrupted hands and blackened nails, figuring out exactly what was wrong when doctors before her were only left guessing. It was a rare thing when rumors turned out to be true, not that Braxus made a habit of listening to rumors.

​"Very good Doctor Ven, it isn't just that." ​Braxus said reaching up to the comlink still hooked around his ear, he chimed the security channel twice, a signal pre determined before her arrival. Approximately a minute after another one of the guardsman stepped into the chamber with a small box. They approached Irajah and opened the lid revealing it was refrigerated, and inside was a lone vial of dark crimson blood. "Test it and you will see." ​Braxus added. In truth his blood and its cells were empowered by a noticeable, unknown dark presence. It was the power of Soeht, or Darth Apparatus flowing through his very veins. Additionally there were signs of degradation on the cellular level from the slow, and gradual decay of the dark side.

 

[Kuzo]

Irajah stepped back, frowning slightly as the sample was offered like a head on a platter.

"You understand," she said slowly, as if trying to decide exactly how to put it, "That, typically, blood samples are drawn fresh, yes?"

There were many reasons for that. But, primarily, because she had to trust that this sample was a) his, and b ) not tampered with. It would seem self evident that a patient would want the most accurate results, and therefore not tamper with a sample. But Irajah had seen too many times someone try to alter the results to their own desires- usually without success, but it wasted everyone's time.

But if that were the case, why would he have called her in anyway? What would be the point? It seemed like a lot of trouble to go through. Still, something about this made her uneasy.

Despite her words, she accepted the vial, heading over to the analyzer on the counter. It only took a moment to prepare a slide from the sample and feed it in to the machine. Hazel eyes glanced back at [member="Darth Prazutis"] for a moment before the sound of a soft ping pulled her attention back to the display.

What.... was she even looking at?

Her brow furrowed and she leaned in closer, head tilting slightly to the side. Reaching up, she tapped the screen, once, twice, enlarging the image.

"Unbelievable," she breathed. She still didn't know what the dark, but translucent threads twinning between the erythrocytes were. At first glance, zoomed out, she had assumed they would look like cells of their own when magnified. But it was more like a slow moving river surrounding islands of white and red blood cells. Yes, there was the plasma, as it should be- but the ichor's tendrils curled through it, slicing chasms of shadow across the sample.

 

[Darth Prazutis]

While [member="Irajah Ven"] analyzed the sample of his blood Braxus stood from his position and slowly approached the doctor. Braxus knew all too well what she would see when observing the rare piece: the dark side. It flowed through his very blood, empowering his body, it surged within every muscle, cell, and bone within his body. But it was understanding them and perhaps using the expertise, and force potential of Doctor Ven to dig into the marrow of these strands. To find out what he never could on his own as of yet, and discover the secrets to beat the corruption of the dark side.

​So the Sith Lord crept up to the doctor his hands sliding onto her shoulders like the soft caress of a warm blanket, while his voice slid through like silk. "That is why you have been called here, Doctor Ven. Impressive hm?

 

[Kuzo]

Normally, Irajah's 'doctor cloak' was a tight, nearly impenetrable defense. She wore it like an armor when she was on the job- professional, distant but friendly, competent and confident. She could let it carry her through uncomfortable or confusing moments with aplomb and, if not grace, at least a certain gravity.

It was the only thing, perhaps, that kept her from bursting out in surprised profanities by the sudden touch and appearance of [member="Darth Prazutis"] at her shoulder. By the whisper of that voice so close to her ear without warning. So focused had she been on the strange sight before her, that she had almost forgotten for a moment that she wasn't alone. It wasn't merely professional fascination, it wasn't simply Doctor Ven's attention on the scanner. It was something more than that.

It was not enough however to prevent the physical startle reflex. Breathing in sharply, her body jerked. She would have stood straight up, but the weight of his hands kept her in place. One of her hands collided with a flask someone had left on the counter, sending it skittering and over the side. Irajah flinched, waiting for the sound of the crash.

It never came.

She glanced over as she flask floated back up, tinking gently against the counter top. Irajah turned halfway around, looking up at him- it didn't take a doctor to figure out from the look on his face that he'd caught the flask with the Force. It took a moment to actually parse the words themselves beyond the voice. She shook her head sharply, once, to clear it.

"It is," she agreed, surprised to find her mouth dry. "Very impressive indeed."