The Path of Revenge

[Darth Abyss]

Bespin

Cloud City

Betrayal. Since the lose of coruscant the path of the one sith had been marked by it. First Darth Ferus and those aligned to the dark lord, had switched sites, and joined the black empire. They attacked the strongholds on mindaabal, a battle that left scars both on Darth Abyss body and mind. Even the man he stood besides the day coruscant fell had turned out as a traitor, and therefore had been the first on a long list of individuals the sith knight would have his revenge on.

But first there was another man worth his attention. Once a acolyte loyal to the one sith, he was now a part of the first order. He only had disgust for the first order, and while they might were those who followed in the footsteps of the Empire, they had one weakness that made then stand even below the black empire. Many sith had joined their ranks, but the first order itself had no sith, only their knights of ren, a group that followed the darkness but was far lesser than the sith.

Darth Abyss wasn't to surprised when the one sith intelligence informed him that the man he was hunting had turned into a businessman while he had been occupied with fighting a intergalactic war. It was a smart move by the man, creating a second stance in galaxy in a state of chaos.

The old and ragged robe Abyss normally was shrouded in had been switched out with the attire of a nobleman, and a jacket he got from the black market that looked exactly like a part of original empire uniform. Beforehand he had requested a meeting with the man, not under his real name, but as Atton Cook, an alleged businessman and investor from a long lineage of men and women loyal to the empire. His face was less grey and corrupted due to the power of cosmetics, applied by experts for infiltration of the one sith intelligence. The yellow of his eyes would have been harder to hide but with the lack of corruption it seemed more like he had a hint of inhuman heritage in his blood instead of being a sith.

Sitting in a small meeting room Darth Abyss once more checked if his weapons still remained where they should, the slughthrower openly hanging on his belt, the lightsaber hidden in the inside of his jacket and the small poisoned knife hidden in his boot. Without his robe he had struggled to hide anything else so he had to fall back on his most effective tools. With a deep breath he focused on the force, damping his presence in the force to the point were he seemed like a minor darksider, not a sith or dark jedi, but just a normal man gifted with a hint of talent for the darkness.

[member="Asharad Graush"]

 

[Asharad Graush]

The Sith Hybrid's shuttle had touched down on the landing pad gently, expertly, even.

Climbing out of it, the High Colonel of the First Order waved off several of the guards that were approaching him after he descended the ramp.

Another day on Bespin, but fortunately for him, he wasn't needing to travel down to the planet itself to the cortosis mine down below. That place was poison, a slow poison that took time to kill you, but killed you nonetheless. Rolling his shoulders backwards, he looked from side to side as one of the attendants stood by the landing pad to bring him inside.

A business day.

How he loved them so.

Treading carefully, making sure to not make his tread over the feet of his 'peers' obvious, but meaningful all the same.

"Atton Cook," he said in greeting as he entered the meeting room. Golden orbs of corruption were within his gaze. He did not smile. He had learned that it was unsettling, and at times it was good to unsettle, he reserved it for those beneath him within the First Order's Military. His gaze however, remained the same. He may have learned to create facades and falsehoods in the presence of other Sith, and Imperials, but he cared not for the man's lineage, and he cared even less so for what he thought of A'sharad himself.

"Have something to drink," he waved his hand and his attendant had rolled in a cart with an array of drinks. Anything and everything expensive. It was a large cart. Today, he didn't wear his Imperial uniform, instead he sported a coat. A coat taken from the One Sith armoury caches before he had departed from his Father's estate on Prakith. Not that he really needed it, though he imagined strutting into a meeting covered in heavy armour wasn't the best course of action.

"Speak your piece."

A'sharad Graush never sat down.

Not even when he had been in the presence of [member="Natasi Fortan"], the recently made Grand Moff, had he sat down in her presence. Antsy? Certainly. Movement was a necessity, and sitting didn't allow him enough.

[member="Darth Abyss"]

 

[Darth Abyss]

"Mr. Graush, it's a honor to meet you today."

Darth Abyss face showed no hint of anger or darkness, only professional expression of a wealthy businessman or politician. His right hand extend over to the drink, going for the one that looked the most expensive. With a smile a credit chip was given to the attendant, and one with a reasonably high amount of money on it.

"You don't seem like the type for small talk, so lets go straight to business alright?"

From the pocket of his jacket the sith knight reached for a datapad, that he handed over to the other man. On it was a investment plan and documents about his wealth that the one sith intelligence forged on Darth Abyss command. Without an exact examination by an expert he had no doubt that they would seem legit to almost anybody.

"Lets make it clear from the beginning. I have neither interest in your product nor do I need the money you are making Mr. Graush ... but what I need is support. I see my future self as political force to be reckoned with when people think about the first order, I want to bring order and prosperity back to the galaxy. And for that I need the help of those who really have influence, those who keep the gears of our economy running. The thing I can offer in return is money, more than enough to expand your business."

It was a long con, the one sith even created several entries about a "Atton Cook" that inherited several large businesses across the first order space as well as respectable wealth. While less legit than his documents they still would make his cover appear more realistic until the point he would break it.

[member="Asharad Graush"]

 

[Asharad Graush]

[member="Darth Abyss"] was in luck, for A'sharad Graush did little to any research.

That was what his attendants did for him.

Naturally of course, the One Sith were situated within the Core and up to the Unknown Regions still. So far from home, how could the falling One Sith Intelligence hope to truly forge true credentials? Still, A'sharad Graush appeased the... 'Help.' He was offering... Money? His company, originally known as Tantorian Industries had been one of the sole companies that worked with the One Sith. They had paid much for the Tantorian Company's products. That, had been in his Father's time.

In his son's time, A'sharad did it with the First Order.

"Curious," he said drily. "You offer me money, yet, I, without a doubt, grew up richer than you could imagine." Arrogant, obnoxious, and most certainly a proclaimed know it all. But it was all within his rights. He was raised that way, to not have to want to be better... For he already was better. The Sith Hybrid clasped his hands in front of him, he hadn't taken the DataPad, he wasn't interested in that. He wasn't known in the First Order for being kind. He was known for producing results on the battlefield. Hundreds of Resistance soldiers had been killed by him personally in combat.

A hand brushed over his leatheris belt.

"You'll have to do better than offering me money."

However, the blatantly statement of needing him was curious.

It screamed to be paid attention to. It was practically saying he was desperate, or at least, honest in his wants.

A trait he could respect, since he himself was as abrasive as they came.

"Enlist within the First Order's Military. With this money you profess to possess, whether you are gifted with the skill to command or not will mean nothing if you're capable of bribing your way through an Officer's Academy." Yet, he did think it was completely impossible. A'sharad's own rise in the Imperial Order had been quick, but that was because he had an aptitude for almost all forms of combat. Space, primarily, but his bloodlust left him as an ideal warrior on the battlefield.

A hand rose to brush at a scar that had healed since Zarnathea, thanks to modern day medical technology, he bore no scars.

 

[Darth Abyss]

"Well than it is unfortunate that I wasted your time Mr. Graush. My offer wasn't meant to offend you and your wealth that is undoubtedly far above my own. I just thought a brilliant businessman like you would be interested in the possibility to expand his wealth without using his own resources."

If the path of Darth Abyss wouldn't have lead him to the sith, he might as well could have become anything from a cutthroat salesman to an actor, as the cover he had build wasn't broken for even a second. His expression remaind professional only showing a small but realistic hint of disappointment as he failed to persuade the man.

"I am sure you have more important matters to attend to, and so do I. Sorry again for wasting your time, it has been a pleasure. I hope that one day we will get the opportunity to work together."

The sith knight rose from his chair, slowly walking towards the exit of the room, the drink he took still in his hands. Before he could walk out he looked at the drink, like he was surprised that it was still there. With a apologetic expression he turned around to return the drink to the cart it came from, only to stumble and spill the liquid in front of the mans feet.

"I am so sorry."

Kneeling to the ground his right moved to the cup to lift it of the ground. Before he reached it a whisper left his lips, spoken not in basic but in the ancient tongue of sith.

"Death has come for you, brother."

With a fluid motion the poisoned knife was in his left, and was swinging towards the leg of the other man. Simultaneously the presence of Darth Abyss that had been concealed to this moment was revealed, showing the full extend of the power he had gained.

[member="Asharad Graush"]

 

[Asharad Graush]

A'sharad merely looked upon the businessman as he spoke.

Expanding his company without having to pay for it? An interesting prospect, if the First Order wasn't already doing that, in a different kind of way.

Of course, his contract wasn't public knowledge, so when the businessman apparent got up to head to the door, the High Colonel moved, slowly turning. But when his drink had fallen to the ground, threatening to cover his boots in alcohol, he took a step back. The Force whispered to him, but he allowed the events to unfold as they did.

A knife was produced, it was in the man's left.

Brother.

More akin to a nuisance.

He twisted to the side as the knife penetrated his jacket, at least an inch or two deep, but nowhere close enough to his flesh for him to even worry about being injured. But all the same, while the swing was coming, A'sharad's foot was arcing in to the side of [member="Darth Abyss"]'s head, threatening to kick him across the room with a Force aided kick. Had he angled it enough, he could've been kicking him into the floor instead. The attendant in the corner of the room immediately ran out.

 

[Darth Abyss]

Darth Abyss could feel the kick, as his body was lifted from the ground and sended flying across the room. Only by use of the force he managed to land on his feet instead of his back, finding his balance as soon as his feet touched the ground. His left was still tightly clinging to the knife that had been pushed out of the jacked of [member="Asharad Graush"] the moment the momentum of the kick hit his head. The sith knight could feel the few drops of blood that where running down from his head, starting at the position the foot had meet his head.

Slowly Darth Abyss rose from the ground he was kneeling on, forcing his body to stand straight once more. By now his face had turned into a grimace, a smile reflecting the madness inside the mans mind.

"I planned to grant you a quick death, but it seems you do not value that gift enough."

He had no intention of revealing his lightsaber just yet, his adversary should think that he hadn't planned for the possibility that he would survive his initial attack. His right hand extended towards the man, and he allowed the darkness to flow freely through his body. The last time the two stood against each other he had been to weak to make real use of his knowledge of the ancient art to produce a lightning of pure darkside energy. Darth Abyss power had grown far above that of the acolyte he once had been, and while he still wasn't able to produce the beautiful and dangerous storms that a true master could, he had learned to make use of what he had. From his right a single lighting emerged, strong an precise, aimed at the chest of his opponent.

 

[Asharad Graush]

A'sharad shook his head from side to side.

Who was this guy anyway? It was clear he was a Sith, he could tell from his presence, but he hadn't offered anymore information since then.

It had been some time since they had last fought, and A'sharad was a busy man.

Whether it involved credits, the Legion of Yun'Do, First Order Military in the form of the White Wolves, or merely his company, Vitiate. He was an extremely busy man since then. Had he grown since then? Of course, stronger, definitely, but hardly anything noticeable. His arrogance remained the same, perhaps more with how many fewer superiors he had as a High Colonel. Chances were his power had surged when he had joined the First Order, but had stagnated since then.

Not that he particularly cared.

"Who are you?"

Silver hilt found itself into his left hand and he ignited the golden blade.

Lightning streaked at him.

His lightsabre caught the lightning and he pressed towards the Sith Knight.

[member="Darth Abyss"]

 

[Darth Abyss]

Without more than a slight flick of his hand the lightsaber hidden in jacket was pulled into his right, the crimson red blade igniting the moment his hand touched to cold metal. The blade was hoovering horizontally in the air, ready to block any incoming stike.

"I am Darth Abyss, The Ascended."

Darth Abyss ego wasn't hurt at all that the man wasn't recognizing, as the sith knight had none. All it did was telling him something he already knew: his opponent was highly arrogant, blinded by his own believe of superiority. This time that would be what would bring him to the ground.

"Any you Mr. Graush, are just another traitorous brother. Just another name to cross of a long list."

He had no idea how much of the war stories had made their way into the territory of the first order. Darth Abyss had ascended to a legend told by the soldiers who served him, a war hero who stood between the dieing empire and its enemies.

[member="Asharad Graush"]

 

[Asharad Graush]

"Darth Abyss? The Ascended?"

A look of confusion came to the Sith Hybrid's face, but then it was replaced with amusement, and then it set into a determined look.

The cycles described his thoughts well enough.

Who was Darth Abyss? He had never heard of him, probably hadn't met him, not personally anyway. The only Acolyte of note that he had fought within the One Sith's Empire had hardly been someone of note. Regardless, it appeared that the man before him hated him. And then there was the amusement. Abyss? That was an easy name to make fun of. But insulting Darth names was pointless. The title of Darth was a proclamation of Victory. And what victories had the One Sith claimed recently?

None.

For shame.

And then the determined look set into his hard features.

Within First Order Space, there were no stories of the 'bravery' or 'courageous' actions, of nobody Sith. The core was far from the Outer Rim. And in this corner of the Outer Rim, many loved their leaders. And their leaders were the likes of [member="Natasi Fortan"], first Grand Moff of the First Order, and chances were the first female Grand Moff. She'd have to do something drastically horrible to not be listed in the history books. And then came, [member="Ludolf Vaas"], a new Field Marshal. A warrior and tactician. Fought in battles for the One Sith, and now the First Order. A man to take note of.

Heroes of the Order.

And then there was A'sharad Graush.

Merely the Commander of an Infantry Regiment.

Why would the citizens of the First Order speak of the events in a once civilized Core, when the Outer Rim was bringing brought Order? Unity? Peace. That was what the Sith before him had forgotten. That was what so many of the One Sith had forgotten in its final hours.

For shame.

"Come then," he said, opening his arms to the Sith, lightsabre still ignited.

"Let me cast you back into the from whence you came."

[member="Darth Abyss"]

 

[Darth Abyss]

So he hadn't heard of him. It was not like Darth Abyss was surprised and neither did he care enough to tell him more than his name. In his arrogance the man hsd forgotten him, something that would never happen to himself. He knew no arrogance, he wasn't blinded by any illusion of his own greatness. And even if he had been, his mind was to strange and chaotic for memories and thoughts to disappear at random like they did for the rest of the galaxy.

He could almost smell what the man though about him, seeing nothing in him than another madman who thought that he could return the one sith empire to its form glory. How wrong he was. The one sith had been dead for a long time, but where the weak and fearsome only saw defeat, he saw opportunity. A way to take piece of the galaxy for himself.

Keeping the lightsaber horizontally in the air, making to attempt to move towards thw other man. Slowly he began to walk to side, circling around his opponent. With a sudden move the sith knight pushed forward, lifting his blade in the air for vertical strike down. In one fluid motion the blade was falling down on his enemy, while his left extended, a quick stab with the poisoned knife aimed at the mans stomach. He only needed a quick cut, the blade only needed to touch the mans blood. It wouldn't kill him instantly, but it would exhausted his body as it was fighting against the toxin.

[member="Asharad Graush"]

 

[Asharad Graush]

A'sharad watched carefully as the Sith Knight surged towards him.

If he truly did indeed believe A'sharad Graush meant to return glory to the One Sith, it was a mistake.

No, only a fool would stick to that slaughterhouse. The pointless and meaningless attacks. Attacks that went unanswered by the One Sith. Weak. He was called a traitor to the One Sith. The One Sith. The Dark Lord had been slain, so the rumours went. That was when the One Sith had truly fallen. But it appeared this man didn't know that either.

Regardless, A'sharad need not prop up the One Sith. His home was hidden from the eyes of the Galaxy, far out in the Unknown Regions.

The High Colonel of the First Order wanted to destroy the One Sith. To erase that poor excuse of an organization. But those plans were still in the working, they'd likely be cast aside by the Galactic Alliance soon enough.

Left hand with the lightsabre leapt upwards to catch the lightsabre that was descending upon him.

A straight stab.

Had it been a slash, perhaps he would've had a chance to cut him.

Instead, his wrist was caught by the four fingers of the Acolyte, tightening around it as if it were a vice as he swung his right leg to the front of the shins of the Sith Knight. Lightsabre held away, knife a mere few inches from his body, A'sharad may not have had the best positioning, but with blood trickling from his own head, the Sith had probably suffered a devastating concussion from the savage kick. Either way, he aimed to cast the man on the floor in front of him.

[member="Darth Abyss"]

 

[Darth Abyss]

Darth Abyss could feel the pain in his leg, but he only stumbled a few step back, neither losing his balance nor his composure. His eyes meet that of his adversary his expression almost emotionless and unfazed. The man he fought disgusted him more than many he had stood against. He was a imposter, a real sith would never dedicate his live to order. Order was nothing else than peace, and peace was a lie. Only in chaos a sith could prosper, only chaos would lead those who followed the path of darkness to true power.

The one sith would fade into obscurity, but it was nothing Darth Abyss feared. It was something he awaited, as he and his master Darth Ophidia, the new dark lord and last member of the dark council, would return to the shadows to once more take control over the galaxy from there, like the sith of the ancient times.

With a quick motion the knife was sended flying towards the head of his adversary, as Darth Abyss once more moved to attack his enemy. Following the knife his blade descended in diagonal swing starting on his right.

[member="Asharad Graush"]

 

[Asharad Graush]

Hundreds of poisons.

That was what A'sharad Graush had learned in his tenure as an Acolyte in his Father's Household.

He had learned much.

Wars, combat, the heroes that fought, the styles of combat for the time. Everything. A product of the past, and the future of the Sith. That was the purpose of A'sharad Graush.

Oh.

And killing.

Mostly killing.

The High Colonel lunged backwards from the blade that was swinging at his head, in the same moment, the golden lightsabre beam was descending to slash across the shoulder of the Sith Knight. At most, it would render the limb useless, at the least it'd likely burn a chunk of flesh out of the Sith's lightsabre arm. Regardless, when the lightsabre was coming down over his right side, his right arm rose upwards to take the brunt of the attack.

He could feel the heat on his bicep, slightly.

But all the same the cortosis dust of the coat had already mingled with the plasma blade. Any moment now the lightsabre would die, at least for a while, but that was all he needed.

The Sith Acolyte stepped further into the guard of Abyss, but instead of slashing with his lightsabre, he struck out with his recently struck right elbow, straight to the side of [member="Darth Abyss"]'s head.

 

[Darth Abyss]

The cut in his shoulder was deep, and a lesser being might would have dropped the knife from the pain that was flashing through his body. But Darth Abyss knew no pain, to often he had been cut and crippled, to often crawled through dirt and blood and lifted himself up again. Even when his leg had been cut of the sith knight had forced himself to fight, only kept alive by the hate that burned inside of his mind.

He felt the punch to his head in the same moment his lightsaber shut of, the energy weapon shorted out by the cortosis of the mans coat. As he stumbled back, bringing dome distance between himself and his opponent, he couldn't resist but simle. Cortosis dust. Smart. It was the kind of subtle trick that he had used himself several times, and it slightly raised the respect he had for the other sith. Still it would not save him. He was mediocre swordsman at best, and [member="Asharad Graush"] very probably was above him when it came down to simple strength and skill with the blade. On the other hand his style of fighting wasn't defined by the art of swordplay, and he had many other abilities to even out his weakness.

Finding his balance again, Darth Abyss stoof straight once again, the shorted out lightsaber falling on the ground, followed by the knife jumping from his left to his right. If he couldn't best him in open combat than he would do what he could do best. Return to the shadows.

The other sith probably could feel the power that began to build up around the sith, as he suddenly became nothing more than a shadow, a slight break in the way light was falling to the ground. His feet leaving barley any any sound he began to circle around the man once more.

 

[Asharad Graush]

Curious.

The Sith Hybrid rolled his shoulders as he watched Darth Abyss.

If he had applied more force perhaps he would've taken the entirety of the arm. But he didn't want to expend energy in things that likely would prove fruitless. If he had tried to do it, chances were the Sith Knight would've avoided losing the arm. Better to cut out a chunk of flesh and render the arm useless, but it appeared that it wasn't. Not entirely.

A'sharad grunted.

I see...

A Sith Warrior aspirant.

But, he was not foolish.

Had he stayed within the One Sith and hadn't slain his Father, he likely would've been utilizing that ability right now as well.

The window was closed, blinds concealing most of the light. Although it wouldn't make much of a difference in the use of the force cloak, A'sharad immediately broke off to the side and sent a push of the Force into the glass. It vibrated, too strong to actually shatter with a weak push. But that was all he needed, he didn't need to expend energy breaking through the window with only a push, when he could just jump through it entirely. Deactivated lightsabre as he rolled outside of the window once he got out of the room.

First floor and all that, his buildings weren't that large on Cloud City. Thankfully.

He came up to his feet, looking back to the building. Several of the Massassi that were on guard there turned in surprise to him. Armoured so as to conceal their species, they even had blasters along with the lightsabres equipped to their belts. He pointed to the room and said, "Burn it."

Three of them stepped forward and they began firing, their weapons criss crossing over each other's angles of fire so as to make it harder for one to avoid the blaster fire.

It lasted for ten seconds. He knew it wouldn't of killed the Sith within, but chances were a handful of shots would've struck their target. If he didn't flip over a table to hide behind. Oh well.

[member="Darth Abyss"]

 

[Darth Abyss]

Glass shattered and broken shards began to rain down on the soldiers that had just fired into the room, as the window was meet by the bright light of a blue lighting. Darth Abyss traversed through it, serval black dots on his left arm marking the points where he had been it by the blaster fire. The knife still rested in his right, the blade pointing to the ground, as his feet touched the ground.

Sudden and swift, he moved towards the closest soldier, swinging the knife down at the the small opening in their armour, between their helmet and their body. His left extend to the mans belt, the grip of his hand tightening around the lightsaber hanging at his belt. Without spending the time to see if his attack had killed the man or not, he released a wave of telekinetic energy to push the man away from him.

Like a he was a juggler, the knife and the hilt of the lightsaber changed hands, jumping and dancing through the air. His body was screaming in pain, but on the outside his face showed no emotion at all. In his hands the blade of a lightsaber came to live once more, as he lifted the it in the air in a defensive stance. His eyes jumped between his opponent and the soldiers, ready ro defend against any attack that would be thrown at him.

[member="Asharad Graush"]

 

[Asharad Graush]

They were all capable Sith Warriors.

But the first one was cut down.

After that it had been made clear that a blaster would not do in these close quarters. Both of the remaining Sith Warriors drew out their lightsabre hilts and ignited the crimson plasma beams of death. One holding with a one handed grip, the other two both hands. Two different styles of combat, both of them proficient at duelling. They were after all, Massassi.

A'sharad watched all the same.

"Kill him."

And then both went after [member="Darth Abyss"]. One high, the other low.

Overhead cut, intending to split the man's body in half down the middle, the other a horizontal cut across the kneecaps. Both of them quick. But they were opening attacks, obviously telegraphed. Easily avoidable, it was the next sequence of attacks that would come which would determine how powerful his foe had truly become.

 

[Darth Abyss]

He had to remember to learn some of the more acrobatic ways of lightsaber combat in the near future, as his own way had him confined to the ground most of the time. Form two was basically useless against multiple opponents, but it was the only one he knew. His own lightsaber moved to block the high strike, while he simultaneously shuffled back, using the footwork his master taught him to evade the strike by the second enemy. The plasma beam cut through the air, only centimetres away from his knees, Darth Abyss could feel the heat of the weapon on the surface of his skin.

Still the two man would be no match for him. The weapon in his left was thrown into the air, flying far above the head of the sith knight. Before it reached the peak of its path, his left extended once more, sending a single blue lighting at the first of his opponents. As the energy disappeared only seconds later, he grabbed the knife out of the air and rammed it towards the other opponents throat in one fluid spin.

[member="Asharad Graush"]

 

[Asharad Graush]

The Sith Warriors were both too slow to respond.

Of course, neither of them died.

The armour they bore protected the first one from lightning, but it had sent him flying away, stunned. He wasn't going to be getting up anytime soon. The other one towered over A'sharad, and he was already slightly taller than Abyss. The slash was scored over the top of his chest piece rather than his throat and A'sharad released an annoyed, "Go." There were other guards, but they were taking too long. Better that he just handled the situation himself.

The second Sith Warrior leapt backwards, collected the first one, and then force leapt away.

"Are you ready to be sent back to the shadows?"

Snap-Hiss.

A'sharad relished the fight.

He reached out with his right, and an invisible force seemingly pulled at the Sith Knight from out of nowhere.

[member="Darth Abyss"]