Dominion The Siege │ SE Dominion of Voss & Folende

[Arcturus Dinn]

Arcturus held Ishani's hand and provided her with any support she needed as they moved toward the testing site. The last thing he wanted was for her to fall behind, what if she passed out again? Nope. Not going to happen. He kept her close, and together they came upon the chamber.​

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For his part the boy was rather quiet and contemplative. He had a lot on his mind these days, and though chief among them in that moment was the bat they'd just created, he still worried over the responsibilities he was likely to take on with Folende. And the potential strife which would occur should someone counter his claim.​

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He inhaled slowly, and then focused back on the present.​

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Ishani had asked about its sex, and Arcturus blinked as the answer was given. If they were gendering it, then would they also be naming it?​

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Or was that foolish?​

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Still, it was their first creation...​

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Something to think about.​

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As the prisoner was led in, the responsibility of ensuring she was bitten fell to him. He swallowed back any doubt he had, stepped closer to the glass, and nodded once. Then he reached out through the Force, calling upon the bond which had formed between he and the bat, and urged it on toward the Rodian, urged it to fulfil its natural urges.​

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At first he thought it hadn't worked. Then the bat took flight, and glided toward her...​

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Ishani Dinn ​

 

[Alina Tremiru]

Graug.

A figure clad in black suddenly appeared between Taeli Raaf and Darth Vulcanus , a gloved hand catching the punch. She dug her heels into the ground behind her, only just able to stop the blow. But able to none the less. Golden eyes alight with their natural glow shown even brighter with the pure hate behind them. Once, fear gripped her heart at any mention of the word Graug. The horrors of Dantooine. Of Zygerria. Once, she felt useless in the face of such cruel power.

Now, there was only hate.

The Force around her shattered, cut off by an extension of her will. A dead zone among a planet so attuned to the Force. She tightened her grip on the fist against her hand.

Finally, she would have her revenge.

 

[Ishani Dinn]

Ishani instinctively squeezed Arcturus’ hand as the bat swooped toward the Rodian. Her eyelids lowered until she had only a crescent to peer out of, afraid to look yet unwilling to shut her eyes completely.

They couldn’t hear anything from the other side. No screams or shrieks from the prisoner or the bat. But beside her she heard Khayyam say, “So far so good. The bite paralyzes them at first… I assume you’re going to let it, er, him feed, but even if you were to stop it now and move on to new prey, the virus should begin to take effect…”

Now Ishani could not resist, though her expression was contorted as she looked, her brow furrowed and mouth twisted in revulsion. She saw only flashes—leathery wings and fur wriggling against bumpy green skin, the buglike eyes of the Rodian, no emotion readable there. But then Rodians were known for releasing very pungent pheromones, especially when they were afraid, that smelled foul to humans…

“What’s the average feeding time for a bloodbat?” Khayyam asked.

“Twenty minutes,” Silas answered a few seconds later.

Khayyam chuckled. “That’ll double his body weight. He’ll come home fat and happy.” Turning to Ishani and Arcturus, he added, “It shouldn’t take anywhere near that long to start seeing changes in the victim. I’ll send in another prisoner and see if she bites them.”

The doors opened, and a human man was pushed in. Ishani watched the ensuing gruesome scene for a few seconds too long, and abruptly fainted.

Arcturus Dinn​

 

[Arcturus Dinn]

Unlike Ishani's fluttering gaze, Arcturus was unwilling to look away or even lower his lids as the bat flitted across the room toward the Rodian. Even when its fangs took root he watched, morbidly curious and not a bit peeved or squeamish to witness it playing out before his very eyes. They had known, coming into this, that such was a necessity. They had made it so, formed it into the very foundation of its creation, and thus they would suffer the consequences.​

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Still, one seemed to be suffering far more than the other.​

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"Magnificent" he breathed as he watched it happen, even as very little in the way of change seemed to come over the prisoner at first. "I have half a mind to recall him, so that we can see for certain, but a first feed seems like a milestone we should allow him to enjoy."​

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This was, after all, the calm before the storm. From here there would be far more chaos introduced into its small life. Why not take advantage of the controlled environment while they could? Give him a good feeding. Sithspawn didn't have to be miserable little cretins, after all. Not all the time at least.​

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Another prisoner was brought in, and carnage happened rather swiftly. Even without recalling the little guy it seemed as though secondary testing was a thing they could witness and enjoy regardless. Arcturus nodded his head some as the Rodian woman tore into the male, though he couldn't rightly say where things led from there.​

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Ishani, swiftly succumbing to the nausea she'd been feeling at the sight of it all, crumpled to the floor at his side, and Arcturus swiftly knelt down to scoop up her unconscious self.​

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Ishani Dinn ​

 

[Ishani Dinn]

As the carnage ensued, Silas began to slowly clap his hands, the sound muffled by his gloves. Khayyam grimaced, repulsed by the bloodshed, though pleased that the experiment had yielded fruit.

Then Ishani fainted. The two alchemists turned toward the scene of Arcturus scrambling to scoop her up. “I had a feeling this was going to happen,” Khayyam muttered. Tugging on Arcturus’ pants leg with a pink claw, he directed him toward a chair where they might sit down. “Silas, keep an eye on the vamps, would you?” he called over his shoulder.

The Chandra-Fan continued to make conversation, regardless of whether Arcturus was engaged or distracted. “It looks to me like the project has been a resounding success. You did very well. It was a pleasure working with you.”

Winking one amber eye, Khayyam glanced at Ishani. “No more than slight weakness is to be expected after a ritual like that… though I don’t think it was the ritual that did it. Is she unaccustomed to the sight of blood? She did strike me as rather untried, though quite determined to get the job done. What I can’t comprehend is the stunt she pulled, giving you her power like that. Is it a form of… spiritual symbiosis you two have?” He was unwilling to use the term self-sacrifice; it was an obvious Jedi buzzword, and might offend Arcturus. Not to mention that it made little sense for a Sith acolyte to do such a thing. Perhaps the girl simply had yet to fully immerse herself in the Dark Side, and was overpowered by the ritual? It seemed more likely.

Arcturus Dinn​