The Lost and Forgotten

[Adron Malvern]

There was certainly something about this woman.

Once she landed out of range of the Sith Lord, Malphas ran his hand over the activation pad his his blade. The low hum subsided into silence as his amethyst blade receded back into it's host. He felt no more need to combat this Jedi in the manner he had been. "You are a troublesome one." He admitted, having listened to her words and found them....worth thought.

"I'll make you an offer Jedi." He said, his hand running over the black mask that was held on his face. He adjusted it for a moment before a soft snap could be heard coming from it. Pulling the ebony mask from his face he would toss it to the ground, craning his neck a bit as he did. His features were revealed to her, as would his actual voice. It was like silk, flowing from his lips with a measured grace that suggested the silver tongue of the nobility. There was a tone of entitlement and superiorty which had dripped into his vocabulator but now was free to be heard more clearly.

"You come with me and I'll leave these people. However, if you do not then I will kill each and every one of them." Adron raised a hand almost absent mindedly, which caused the remainder of his battle droid escort to raise their blasters towards the towering mining colony. "I can use someone with perspective. You won't be harmed. However, I can make use of a Jedi who is not as jaded as the rest."

"Don't think too slowly, my deal does not have much longevity."

[member="Amilthi Camlenn"]

 

[Amilthi Camlenn]

The effect of her own words caused Amilthi no small amount of astonishment. A man she had only a moment before tried to kill, and who had tried to kill her, suddenly dropped his hostile stance and seemed interested in talking. Not that his violent streak had disappeared, considering that his offer of communion was presented with a threat to wantonly slaughter a mining village - but he was, after all, a Sith and it was unreasonable to expect more.

Amilthi examined the man who had revealed himself to her, intrigued and at the same time skeptical still. He was unexpectedly handsome, his face elegant, but not frail. He looked intense, driven - but it was not the simple predatory drive of a beast. Her head slightly tilted, she just looked for another second, then the hints of a smile began to play around her lips. She deactivated her lightsaber and adopted a more relaxed stance.

"Very well."

It was not clear to her what the man had in mind when he spoke of using her. Perhaps it was merely the way that his nature as a Sith compelled him to frame any peaceful contact with another being. It seemed he might end up under her influence just as well as the other way around.

"Who are you, and why were you harming these people, anyway?" Amilthi demonstratively looked at the corpse of the officer who lay dead on the ground, and then back at Adron. The hints of a smile had disappeared again and her expression was stern.

[member="Adron Malvern"]​

 

[Adron Malvern]

Once the Jedi lowered her weapon, Adron gave her a stoic nod. It was obvious he was not happy with the outcome of these events, yet they were necessary for the time being. He exhaled, running a hand over the back of his neck before summoning one of the Commando droids to his side.

"Sir?" He asked, with an inquisitive tone. Adron was sure if he had an eyebrow it would be arched in curiosity. Pausing for a moment of consideration, he looked to the Commando droid with that same look of disdain he gave every one of the soulless units. "Contact The Veil, tell them we will be arriving soon. The operation has ended." He said, before his eyes returned to Amilthi with an expectant gaze. She demanded to know why Adron had come here? To know why he had killed these harmless men and women.

"I'll answer your questions in time. For now just be content knowing you've saved these people's lives." Adron ran a hand through his hair, it was matted with sweat from his fight and almost seemed gelled by the time he was done. What remained of the villagers, stood in a silent expectation of the events to come. He could still feel their fear and it was amusing, but no longer something he cared about. His hand rose towards them, outstretched as if he reaching out to them. They cowered, fearing the rain of lightning that had befallen the Jedi, but instead each of them slowly felt a calm feeling wash over them, compelling them to forget his face, forget this night, and then...nothing. One by one each of them would fall into a state of unconciousness, where they stood blankly staring at Adron, as if he was not even there.

He exhaled, exhausted by his exertions over The Force. It would be a simple thing to regain his energy. A few hours of meditation and he would be fine, however it was still a noticeable drain.

"Let's go." He said, looking to Amilthi. In the skies above them the clouds would shift violently, as if something was demaning them to part. Nothing could be seen, but it was quite obvious something was there and it was huge.

[member="Amilthi Camlenn"]

 

[Amilthi Camlenn]

Amilthi gave a doubtful look at the man's evasive answer, but then reminded herself to be patient, and said nothing. She followed his actions closely, briefly alarmed when his attention turned to the miners, but she calmed down when she felt no violence coming from him. It took her only a moment's observation to become comfortable in the realisation that they were not dying. Presumably he did not wish for them to witness what was happening, perhaps was even trying to erase their memories.

The Jedi clipped her lightsaber back onto her belt. "I should commend you on your use of droids. It's easier on the soul to blow them up", she remarked.

The clouds above parted, perturbed at the edges of the rift that opened. It took Amilthi only a moment to put together the puzzle pieces. The Veil, he had said. "A cloaked ship, is it?" she asked with a wry smile. "It would be a waste to leave my fighter on the surface", she added, looking at Adron in expectation of an acknowledgement of her implicit request. Not that this came without complications - she would have to spend some time checking the systems for any tampering. But that seemed the lesser inconvenience compared to leaving it here.

[member="Adron Malvern"]​

 

[Adron Malvern]

The village would survive. Adron would leave it in a tattered shamble compared to how he had arrived, yet the villagers would keep their lives, most of them. His battle droids led the way to the only shuttle Amilthi had not managed to destroy. Her actions here had been beyond agitating and even the Dark Lord felt the sting of her prowess in combat. She was a formidable opponent and her defeat would have taken more time and energy than he was willing to waste. He arched a brow at her remark, shaking his head silently as if decided against responding to her words. He hated droids with a passion, they were efficient but they certainly had their own flaws.

Leading the woman towards the shuttle, Adron turned back to her when she spoke of her starfighter, the same fighter which had destroyed two of his own shuttles. His eyes narrowed as he peered over to the vessel with a considerable gaze. "Your wastes are not my concern. However, I'm sure you'll be much more tolerable with your fighter in tact. It will be recovered." He said nothing more on the matter before leading her into the shuttle he had taken here. The Commando droids kept their blaster rifles at a low ready, with their chambers aimed towards the ground, but not a single one took it's sensors away from the Jedi.

The shuttle ride to The Veil was short lived. As the Super-Star Destroyer loomed over the world, pressing into the lower atmosphere, it had been preparing for it's master's arrival. During the ride up, Adron's eyes remained tightly closed as he compelled the Dark Side to wash away the effects of his Sith armor. Blood had been spilled tonight so the dark powers possessing the armor were sated, however Adron was dealt a punishment of pain which he took unflinchingly. That deep burning pain coursed through his chest even as they departed the shuttle and into the main hangar of The Veil. The hangar was pristine and fresh, as if the ship itself seemed newly crafted for it's task. The interior design of the ship was a cross of the regulated, neatness of an Imperial ship and the elegance of a luxury cruiser. This created a well-taken blend that seemed to flow directly from Adron.

The expression on his face seemed to have lighten as if the burden of the night had fallen from his shoulders. A small team of B-1 Battledroids approached him, levying their blasters towards Amilthi. Adron raised a hand, halting their advance, his crystal blue eyes would fall upon them with an agitated glare. Even the droids could see he was in no mood to entertain them and quietly stepped back from the woman. "Now. We'll refresh ourselves. We will eat and then we will speak." His words were simple and curt, however kept the full weight of his station.

One of the Commando droids stepped beside Amilthi, it's crimson optics gazing down at her lifelessly. "CD-181 will escort you to the guest quarters. You can clean yourself up for dinner there. Once you are done tell him and he will bring you to me." He explained, turning away from the woman as if the past few hours had not transpired. She was getting an all too clear view of who Darth Malphas was, and who Adron Malvern was as well. Adron made his way out of the hangar before calling back to one of the droids that had accompanied them to the Star Dreadnaught. "And get her ship. I want to be out of this system within the hour." His orders were clear and none of the droids dare question them, even going against some of their base lines of programming to wonder if he was in his right mind.

[member="Amilthi Camlenn"]

 

[Amilthi Camlenn]

Amilthi merely inclined her head in acknowledgement of the Sith's obliging of her request, but refused to thank him in words. She folded her hands in front of herself, her body language unassuming, yet not insecure. Unlike Adron, who was palpably still in turmoil, she seemed to be resting in herself - not by way of resisting the environment, but precisely because she had given up resistance. She had let go and surrendered herself to the flow of events, eyes open and curious where it would carry her. Her outward calm was deceptive, for she was full of electrifying expectation.

What was revealed to her was beyond anything she could have imagined, and it was frightening. If this was a military vessel, one of many, it was a shocking testimony to the might of the force to which it belonged - and if it was the Sith's private property, then what a truly exceptional individual had the Force thrown her together with? This raised complicated considerations about her apparent inability to kill the man. It was at the same time more regrettable, for she would have eliminated a powerful Dark Side influence on the universe, and more excusable, and gave her an appreciation for the fact that she had remained so unharmed.

To any living onlooker, if there was any, her dark robed figure must have seemed quite in place among the droids that subserviently walked her down the corridors. Amilthi had not spoken a further word, but a fine smile lay on her lips, and a quiet joy flowed through her in anticipation of the discoveries ahead. The individual who had brought her was most intriguing, now so confidently putting himself and his ship in danger. She wondered how he could have known that she would simply be too interested by the vast space of possibilities that had opened before her mind to take a rash decision and grasp one of the more immediate, destructive ones.

The giddiness that was taking hold of her was really quite excessive and for a brief moment she considered objecting to it. But soon enough they reached the quarters the droids had been instructed to lead her to. The lights went on as she stepped inside, and the door closed behind her, her droid remaining outside. Amilthi did not sense any threat coming at her, and still smiling, she left her arms fall limply by her side and closed her eyes. The intake of her breath fanned her inner flames into an explosion of energy and light, a feeling of rapture and bliss swept through her entire body from inward out. After a few seconds that felt much longer, they effect fizzled out through her arms and legs, fingers and feet. A happy calm now filled her, and her mind was no longer paralysed as it had been before, staring, as it were, in awe at the possibilities and yet darting from one to the other. Now she went about the business of beating the dust out of her clothes and washing her hands and face with tranquil efficiency.

[member="Adron Malvern"]​

 

[Adron Malvern]

It would take Adron far longer to refresh himself than it had taken @Amilthi. While she was likely only taking a few moments to scrape the grime off, he was cleaning himself from head to toe. He hurried, as fast as he could manage without feeling he was sacrificing his appearance, though it was closer to an hour before he stepped out of his chambers near the ship's cockpit. His hair, which had been matted and clumped from the sweat of their duel, was now straightened and pulled back into a tight ponytail that hung just over the back of his collar. He removed Crimson Dread and instead took on an ebony pinstripe suit. The lapel held a small pin, an ebony circle with a black wolf that had deep amethyst eyes, the sigil of House Malvern.

Rolling his shoulders into a long drawn out stretch, he made his way down the hall. He was curious to see if this Jedi was as easy to anticipate as he guessed. She was certainly a Jedi, and by extension a fool. Yet she did not seem as closed minded as the rest of her order.

It was almost ironic, Adron who had fallen from the Jedi path so many years ago, and even hunted them at one point was now inviting one on board his ship. The Force flowed around this woman in a way he could not understand, nor decipher. Perhaps her life held some significance to Adron's plans or even those of his own Master, [member="Darth Metus"]. Shrugging the thoughts from his mind he continued down the hall without dwelling on his thoughts. The hall parted to reveal a large open part of the ship, it was composed of an atrium with a view out into the stars and a small sitting area on the ground floor. A set of stairs led three floors up, winding around the atrium in a unnecessarily long staircase.

There were a few rooms in the guest bay, however only one was guarded by a trio of Magnaguards. Each of them held a electro-staff across their chest, blocking access to the room. Even these droids knew the necessity of keeping the Jedi secure. However, as she was a "Guest" and not a prisoner their weapons should not have been out to begin with. A loud, piercing whistle echoed through the atrium, bringing their crimson optics down on their Master.

A quick jerk of the thumb was offered, a silent command for them to disappear. They heeded the order with the precision and unity only droids could pull off.

Adron made his way to the room where Amilthi was housed and tapped his finger on the door a few times. "Jedi." He said, not knowing the woman's name just yet. "Are you hungry?" His tone was completely different than when they fought and even after. Now, one would almost thing they were....friends.

 

[Amilthi Camlenn]

When she stuck her head out of her room, Amilthi was vaguely amused to find that it was guarded by droids with staves that she could only presume were made of phrik or a similar material. There was no other point in them. Had she put their mind to it, they could hardly have posed much of an obstacle. She couldn't quite see what message someone might have conveyed by putting them there - perhaps they had assumed such posts simply as a matter of automatic programming. As the droids showed no sign of being ready to lead her elsewhere, she withdrew again.

Adron found her kneeling in the middle of the room with her back to the door. Unlike many Jedi, she often preferred this position to a cross-legged seat, a habit retained from times when she would wear skirts. Her mind was pleasantly calm and empty, her thoughts quiet. No intense sensations disturbed the tranquility, and no speculations exercised her. She was prepared to be receptive and face whatever was to come with discretion and equanimity.

"Come in!", she called out when she heard a tapping on the door. She rose to her fee only once it had opened, unhurriedly, with very deliberate movements, and turned around. Her eyes scanned his figure, measuring and examining him. She noticed his attire as something she found odd, but deliberately refrained from drawing any inferences.

"Somewhat", she replied with polite modesty to his inquiry. "My name, by the way, is Amilthi Camlenn."

[member="Adron Malvern"]​

 

[Adron Malvern]

What came next was, perhaps, the oddest part of an already confusing evening. Adron would bend at the waist as his left arm came behind his back. "Adron Malvern. A pleasure." He assured her before looking around the room she had been escorted to. It was not as lavish or eccentric as his own room yet it was far from humble. The Queen sized bed was covered in pale, sky blue covers with off-white pillows. The room itself was a large one, with several dressers and stands to easily house up to three people. The corner of the room held a terminal and even a personal datapad, each of which were deactivated for security reasons. It came with a refresher and a small office-like area that was in a connected room. All in all it was comparable to a fine hotel room, even equipped with a holoemitter connected to the ceiling.

"Well, I'm hungry and could use a drink. Join me?" He asked, holding a hand out to her in invitation. If she agreed he would lead her out of the room, silently until they began to descend the large stairway that encircled the atrium. All in all he seemed to be a completely different person outside of combat. While Crimson Dread did enhance his ruthlessness, especially since he could not yet control the armor, the taint of the Dark Side never left him. He was no less the Sith Lord she had dueled only an hour before. He was just not trying to kill her in this moment.

[member="Srina Talon"] had learned a similar lesson about him some years ago. If the man was not in combat he often held any malice for his opponent, especially if they were a formidable one.

"Now you asked who I was and why I was hurting those people?" He asked, arching a brow at the woman. He did not bother to give her a chance to respond, it was more practical to just answer the question. "I'm a Sith Lord, doing a bit of independent research. You see for the research to take hold I need test subjects. Something you deprived me of this night. Of course, it was a necessary loss since it put you in my path." He said, the slightest hint of interest coming from his tone.

"I already told you my goal and you know I don't have qualms with hurting people. Honestly, my use for them is more scholar based than anything, at least right now."

They made their way to the bottom of the stairway and once again they would find themselves in the main spine of The Veil. Adron placed a hand on his chin before looking to the Jedi with an arched brow. "What were you doing on that planet anyway? I chose it purely because that entire situation should not have been possible."

[member="Amilthi"]

 

[Amilthi Camlenn]

It was a curious transformation indeed that the Sith had undergone - but he must have a similar impression of herself. Gone were the unflinching resolve and cold calculation she had displayed in their confrontation. With her simple clothes and modest demeanour, she might seem almost meek now as she inclined her head at his invitation and followed him.

She let the Sith speak without interruption. Now it was not unexpected that he showed her the courtesy of answering her earlier question. She listened attentively, considering his every word, but spoke only once he directed a question of his own at her.

"The Force has a way of nullifying one's choices, doesn't it?" She looked at him with an enigmatic smile. These coincidences that it tended to involve one in were a strange thing and could wreak havoc on many a plan. It was not trivial to develop a coherent theory of why they should favour her over him, at least if one did not subscribe to an overly literal and reified conception of the Light Side, the Dark Side, and what some Jedi called the Will of the Force. But Amilthi had a notion of why it should be that she had had her way and the Sith had not. It was not because the Force had intentions and preferences, but because, as a matter of natural law, it made things and actions effortless when they flowed from intentions with a particular structure. Felicitously avoiding conflict was not something that was in proper alignment with a user of the Dark Side - their whole mind was filled with conflict constantly, with others and, Amilthi suspected, themselves. How could one believe that Peace is a Lie and expect to be able to go about one's own business in peace?

"Idle exploration is not part of your goal. The world is not a playground for your amusement." The calm confidence with which she said these words was altogether absurd, and yet she spoke them so naturally that one might almost forget to notice it. "What is your research about, and why do you pursue it? Are you quite sure that it warrants such a disturbance in the order of those people's lives?"

[member="Adron Malvern"]​

 

[Adron Malvern]

The Force did indeed have a knack for halting the plans of those it flowed around. In that regard, perhaps Adron should have expected his plans to be interrupted. It did not seem to bother him much as he knew it would be a simple process in going somewhere else and securing his subjects later. Of course it was his Jedi guest who stated the galaxy was not a playpen for his amusement. He let a soft smirk come to his face before responding evenly.

"The galaxy is not a playpen. More like a chess board. I decided to move a pawn, sadly it was taken but I assure you it is not a loss I cannot correct." He said, gesturing down the next hall they were turning into.

"Ask the right questions." He raised a finger to accent the point to be made. He would not tell her everything, this would be the first time since she stepped on board that he would deny her information though it was not likely to be the last. "Anyway you still did not answer my question. What is a Jedi doing in this part of the galaxy?" He led them into a small, rather cozy, study with a table set with a variety of exotic foods. The table was small, almost humble in comparison to the room they had left. It could easily seat four or five people but not nearly as eccentric as one would expect. "Ah, Nelvaanian wine." He took a small black bottle into his hand, holding it up in a silent offer to Amilthi before reaching for a glass on the table.

"You're not a member of the Silver Jedi Order. Another renegade? Traversing the galaxy to bring justice?" His free hand gave a small wave, pushing into The Force and commanding the chair closest to Amilthi to become available to her. He pushed his own chair to the side before resting down into it. The room surrounding them was little more than a study, Amilthi may take notice of the books that lined the room. Many of which were on prominent Sith Lords and even a few names belonged to the Jedi Master's of old.

[member="Amilthi"]

 

[Amilthi Camlenn]

Amilthi briefly surveyed the room as they entered. This cloaked battleship was starting to look more and more like a private yacht, which was really quite absurd and begged for some sort of explanation. She considered for a moment rejecting his offer of a drink, but realised that it was unnecessary and unwise to perhaps injure the Sith's vanity by rejecting his hospitality. And so she obligingly took a seat at the table.

"Justice? No. I'm not very fond of that as an ideal, in fact I think it's quite a silly way to miss the point", said Amilthi with a wry smile. This was a bit of an exaggeration, but it was quite true that she was suspicious of those who named justice as their mission. It was, if anything, more of a manner of pursuing a goal than a goal in itself.

"I wasn't doing anything in particular on Svivren. It was simply, as fate would have it, the only place in the right direction where someone would take. Then I found that starfighter, which simplifies things a bit and allows me not to impose on others for passage - though it seems I've fallen back into old habits all too quickly." There was no more than a twinkle in her eyes to accompany this perhaps unexpected moment of facetiousness.

"I daresay it is very much the right question to ask", she stated, abruptly taking up their earlier topic of abortive conversation. "Perhaps what you have set out to do is altogether pointless or unnecessary. Now if that turned out to be the case, I should imagine we would both be quite happy."

[member="Adron Malvern"]​

 

[Adron Malvern]

Adron would pour the both of them a drink of the Nelvaanian wine. It was an eerily ebony liquid with a sharp odor that clung to it. However upon taking the glass to the lips, it was surprisingly sweet. A closer eye would show this ebony liquid was indeed a deep shade of red and tasted as such. Downing a bit more of the wine, Adron considered Amilthi's words before giving his lips a brief lick. "You do not impose on me, I assure you. In fact you are more than welcome." He said, still hosting a rather even smile. Adron's hands fell over a small bowl of grapes, plucking a few of the green fruits from their stem and biting into one of them.

"Perhaps it is pointless and unnecessary. But you still won't know what it is." He retorted, flashing another of his superior smiles over to the woman. Rather than continue the subject that was heading towards a brick wall, Adron took a moment to point back towards the door they had entered from. Hanging right above it was a banner that matched the pin on his lapel. "My family is from Serenno." He explained. "During the second Sith occupation most of my family was slaughtered and what was left was banished from our planet for fighting against the Sith." His hands came clasped together over his lap, all while one leg was crossed over his knee. "That is why I became a Sith Lord. Well not entirely why, but you get the gist. Vengeance and reclamation, that whole deal." He attempted to simplify the matter, however it was quickly obvious that his emotions ran deeper into the subject than that.

"So what motivates you, [member="Amilthi"]? Why become a Jedi?" The question came with an interested tone, one that Adron often had when inquiring about others and their own history. He was interested in seeing just how much he could learn about the woman. He took another shallow sip from his glass before eyeing her expectantly.

 

[Amilthi Camlenn]

Amilthi crossed her arms and leaned back in the chair as Adron once again refused to engage her question, but momentarily she reached out with one hand for her glass, keeping the other as it was in front of her chest. The pungent odour of the unfamiliar liquid, indicating that it was quite strong, did not make her look much forward to drinking it, and so it was all the more a surprise how sweet it revealed itself to be when she tasted it. It was typically the sort of thing that was absurdly expensive to produce and prized by people who considered themselves refined by virtue of having managed to trick themselves into enjoying it. If this man was a member of the displaced nobility of Serenno, that explained much.

It irked Amilthi that behind such high-minded professed ideals as waging a war to end all wars and bringing order to the universe, naive and misguided as they were, emerged an essentially personal desire as the ultimate driving force. There was a temptation to make light of the situation by remarking on how curious an approach it was to join one's enemy in order to fight them, but she quickly though the better of it and nudged her feelings down the right path. Not everyone had the same almost unnatural detachment from others as herself and it was important to be compassionate with them. "I'm sorry for your loss", she said with a genuineness that was perhaps unexpected.

From a certain point of view, the very fact that the Sith was caught up in such a personal quest for satisfaction and power was grounds for pity. For much as he might delude himself about it, as about his enjoyment of the wine, he would never know happiness and contentment, only the temporary elation of success that subsided all too quickly. Amilthi had studied the code of the Sith and come to the conclusion that it was the mirror image of the Jedi code in even a deeper way than immediately met the eye: while the latter seemed paradoxical on the face of it, but expressed a consistent truth, the Sith code presented it as a logical and necessary progression, but contained a deep contradiction at its heart. It promoted a fight for victory to gain freedom, making one sneakily forget that at its very outset it had already admitted that such victory was futile and freedom impossible.

This, at least, was Amilthi's academic perspective on the matter. She had long asked herself how this contradiction played out in the minds of living individuals. Perhaps now she would have a chance to see.

"A Jedi is what I am. The person who became one almost two decades ago was a very different being in many ways. Charitably, you might say that it was curiosity and a desire to develop her talents that motivated her at the outset. Things have changed, though now perhaps something similar is true again of me. I would call it a striving for spiritual perfection."

[member="Adron Malvern"]​

 

[Adron Malvern]

"I'm not." Adron responded, leveling his glass in his hands with an even smile. "I'm sorry for what happened to them, but not for what happened to me." The admission was founded in truth. It would be a cold day in hell before Adron said he did not miss his family or his home of Serenno, yet he appreciated the power his loses have given him, power he could not have had if he was restrained by the Jedi codes as he had been before. "You think being a Sith and being miserable are synonymous. A Sith is driven by their passions, both good and bad. And while my revenge for my family does drive me...there are things that motivate me even more so."

He took the sweet red to his lips once again, enjoying the refreshing feel it gave him as well as the sweet taste that ran over his tongue.

"You may not be narrow minded, but you still have the standard Jedi mindset." He explained, setting his glass back down on the table before gesturing to the books surrounding them. "From the Jedi General Lord Hoth to the Jedi Master Yoda, you're all the same."

When she spoke of herself, Adron could not help but scoff at her final words. "You may strive only so long as you realize perfection is an impossibility."

[member="Amilthi"]

 

[Amilthi Camlenn]

While Adron spoke, Amilthi's body language loosened up again. She put down her glass and leaned forward to reach for a piece of fruit.

"So are victory and liberation", she retored to the Sith's final remark, alluding to the second half of the Sith Code. There was a fine smile of her lips, amused and perhaps teasing. There was so much to be said about the difference, but this conversation, more of a verbal sparring match in character now, was not the place for it. Not only was what she had carelessly names spiritual perfection a highly complex concept that needed to be unpacked, and which she had her peculiar views on - it seemed to her that the path leading to it was also structurally quite profoundly different from the striving of a Sith, being, as it was, a matter of inner circumstances rather than a battle with the external world. Not to speak of the fact that she would quite simply deny that it was unattainable to begin with.

"I find it difficult to discern any difference between one Sith and the next, too. But what sets us apart, it would seem, is that I know I'm wrong in that perception."

She took another sip from her glass, then set it down and leaned forward, her hands resting on the table, but her back straight as ever. "I also think most people are miserable, one doesn't have to be a Sith for that. But I'm sure it helps." There was no smile now, but still a sparkle in her eyes. "Now what are these other passions that drive you? Tell me about them. Especially the 'good' ones."

[member="Adron Malvern"]​

 

[Adron Malvern]

"Victory is a fact of life. It's impossible for it to be permanent but it is very possible." He assured her, taking another few grapes into his hands and enjoying the sweet taste of the fresh fruit. "Of course each victory is only worth anything in the moment of it's inception. After a victory becomes history it is no longer consequential. It impacts the future but you can easily tamper with it's results."

"Well, I suppose that is true. The average person and even people of significant uniqueness are often overtaken by the galaxy. One way or another." He conceded her point before arching a brow at the woman before a subtle smile came over his lips.

"Most Sith would say the things that drive me are a weakness that could be used against me. This is not untrue, but that does not mean I will cull myself of this weakness just to make myself invincible. Because, that too is an impossibility." He explained, before clearing his throat and breaking down the wall between Amilthi and what he deemed a weakness. "Family. My passion for my family is what drives me. Just as that was what set me on this path, that is what will bring my book to a close."

"I'm not a good man. Far from it, but I do have the things I love and wish to protect, all the same."

"And the best way to protect them is by making myself unchallengeable." This notion was one that was laughable, even Adron knew it. When he took the Sith title of Darth it became an open invitation around the galaxy to be hunted and challenged by both Sith and Jedi alike.

[member="Amilthi Camlenn"]

 

[Amilthi Camlenn]

Things were finally coming together to some extent. It seemed that the Sith's initial voicing of seemingly high-minded ideals of bringing order to the galaxy had not been entirely pretence, even if it was a bit more self-serving than he had made it sound. But it also was a deeply, deeply wrong-headed approach to securing what he professed to care about.

"You realise that victory is fleeting and unsustainable, and yet you seek liberation from an endless chain of battles if you wish to become unchallangeable. Fortunately for the rest of us, it would seem that Sith Lords who attempt to rule the galaxy, and even those who succeed, have a very poor track record of unchallengeability."

"You know what I would do if I had a family and their well-being were my greatest concern? We would be living pastoral lives on some unimportant planet, and we would be among the happiest, most contented people in the universe. You should consider it", she said with a provocative smile. "Of course, they would think it a dreadful prospect, but that is just because they do not know how to be happy. Nobody has taught them and it's not so easy to figure out on one's own."

"Unless what you are really after is not actually the well-being of the individuals who make up your family, but more impersonal notions of status, prestige and influence. But I don't see why you should care about that, and if I were your sister or wife, I would be quite upset to learn that that's what is important to you rather than my happiness."

Amilthi was beginning to feel the effects of the sugar and alcohol in the wine she had been drinking. They were by no means unpleasant, but unfamiliar, and she didn't trust them. She set down the half-empty glass on the table and put her hands in her lap, one cupped in the other. A shift in her attention made her aware of the current of the Force flowing through her body, and it was with a deliberate mental action that she increased its intensive. The wave of energy she had conjured swept through her, and she shuddered and rolled her eyes involuntarily as if she might be fainting. But her body remained sitting stably and upright as ever, and after a mere second she was looking at Adron again smiling faintly, savouring the afterglow of the pleasurable sensation, the clarity of her mind restored.

[member="Adron Malvern"]​

 

[Adron Malvern]

Adron could not help but audibly laugh at the Jedi's words. The thought of him retreating to some fictional life on some backwater planet was too much for the man to comprehend. Not even once had he considered such a thing, which showed the difference between the two. "That's a very Jedi answer. I don't run away from what the galaxy is. I can, however, defend myself from it." He explained.

"Like I said, I'm not a good man, Maybe a good man would take his family away from all of this. I won't and never will, because I assure you one way or another I will create the stability I seek." He said, with no short bit of confidence. Adron ate the final grape in his hands before looking to Amilthi with an arched brow. He could sense her focus drifting away from their conversation and moving inward. She extended her will over the current that flowed within, allowing the effects of the alcohol to apparently fade away. This too caused Adron to chuckle a bit before he gestured to her glass.

"Perhaps you'd prefer water?" He asked, before smiling softly at the woman.

"You may be skilled but I sense The Force still has much to teach you." Adron said, his tone rather low as he peered at her searchingly. "Not turmoil but....You're so internally focused. Amusing. It's my belief the Dark Side still has lessons for me as well and for whatever reason you are placed among them."

[member="Amilthi Camlenn"]

 

[Amilthi Camlenn]

Amilthi was amused at the confusing effect of her idea on the Sith and laughed with him, but there was still a mischievously challenging twinkle in her eye that made it clear that she had been quite serious.

"Anyone would be a fool to think there is nothing left for them to learn." She seemed confused that such an obvious fact even needed to be stated. "Or do the Sith believe that there is exhaustive knowledge to be attained in a lifetime? If so, then you have a problem, because either nobody has ever achieved it, or it's simply not enough. Nobody has ever succeeded in creating permanent stability."

"I still don't understand why you want that in the first place - or indeed what exactly you want, anyway. I'm not sure what you mean to convey when you proclaim not to be a good man. Most people who say that mean that they are egoists, but your pursuits do not make sense from that perspective. You would have to be a very confused egoist. Perhaps you are." The provocative smile from before was gone, and Amilthi spoke with perfect equanimity, punctuating her statement with a shrug.

[member="Adron Malvern"]​