Dominion The Veil of Elrood | SO Dominion of Elrood

[Gerwald Lechner]

​

OBJECTIVE: SURVIVE
WEARING: xxx
TAG: Srina Talon

“Wrong?”

Gerwald did not understand. Surely she could not mean there was something else driving it all. How could it be that Naedira was the one driving all of this. Asfar as Gerwald knew, the beast was meant to consume and it wanted everything of the woman it had been bound to. Wouldn’t that include the tether Gerwald wore. Srina spoke in such a way that it was not to be debated. The beast was simply that, a monster. Naedira sought him out.

He shook his head. Every interaction he had with Naedira would seem to suggest otherwise. She constantly was pushing him away. Each interaction since Naalol had been a warning that he was in a place he did not belong. She seemed surprised to find him in the Nether as much as Gerwald seemed to find her outside of it. Regardless of what was happening could they both have been right? Could Naedira have been after the ring as much as she sought out the wolf?

The only question such a realization left Gerwald with was why?

Before her death their last encounter had been at a party. There was dancing, but more importantly there had been someone to avoid. The auburn haired Knight had not allowed Gerwald to simply remain in the shadows alone, and it had touched him in a profound way. He knew that night what it meant to love someone. It had not been any special feeling, just a knowing. It was odd, and yet it had made complete sense.

Srina did not wish to debate, so Gerwald simply nodded. What was there to say? Even if he struggled to believe that Naedira was the one seeking him out, he would be lying if he said he had not hoped it were the case.

The wolf watched on as Srina made the beast bend to her will. She showed no fear in the face of something so monstrous. Others would have trembled and yet the Echani remained stoic and stalwart. Gerwald’s lips pulled at her expert use of sarcasm. She had spent enough time around Darth Metus to have picked up some of his witty retorts. Gerwald was not certain what she was truly doing, how she was going to pay the request he had made of her. All he noticed was Naedira’s reaction when the Devourer was weakened.

She stood still, motionless.

He wanted to move to her, to reach out and touch her, but something in the wolf held him at bay. The fact she could not move of her own will troubled the wolf. His eyes darted between her figure and that of the Nocna Mora before finally settling on Srina. It seemed so foolish, but all he wanted to do was ask one question.

What now?

His lips did not move, as he reached for the ring which was fixed to the chain around his neck. A tug was all it took to break the clasp. It had been her ring, the ring of the Knights Obsidian. His gut told him to return it to her, and yet.

Gerwald inched forward.

“Naedira?”​

 

[Srina Talon]

| ELROOD |
| COURTYARD OF CAPITAL BUILDING |

Tag: Darth Empyrean | Gerwald Lechner
_________________________________________________________


<<Release me, witch!>>​

Never had the Nocna Mora felt such intense anguish. Such immeasurable suffering—So much so that it seemed to be cracking at the seams. It had enjoyed watching its victims suffer through the lens of the tormentor but it had never thought anything could turn the tables. The slender humanoid creature that stood so brazenly in a field of blood was not what she appeared to be. She couldn't be, the demon surmised. The maker had created them to be impervious.

Unstoppable.

<<Your bones will snap like twigs.>>​

"Kneel."

<<I will feast on your mind—>>​

"Kneel."

The repeated word had no emotion behind it while the creature fought her hold. It was expected. It was difficult for any creature to accept a shift in reality. Especially, when they've just discovered that they weren't as high on the food chain as they thought they were. The Devourer could fight all that it wanted but Srina would give no quarter. She could not be intimidated. Could not be moved—Save toward her goal. "It will be much more pleasant once you understand your place."

<< Miserable wretch—>>​

Srina reached up with both hands between the crystal pikes that slowly forced the beast down to her level and placed both hands on its head. It snarled and growled with every bit of might that it had. Sulfur spewed from its nostrils that ended in flame and the sheer heat singed her hair. "You have something that doesn't belong to you. I will be taking it back, now."

The connection to Knight Darcrath was something she could just barely see during the breaking. It wove around her like netting that kept her trapped, contained, and bound to the Devourer so it could feed from her as needed. She could cut that tether and retrieve any memories that had yet to be consumed. Perhaps, Srina could salvage some part of her that Gerwald thought was long gone.

The beast before her would find itself drained while she stole its vitality and added it to her existing energy pool. Srina blocked it from drawing on Naedira to replenish lost resources and kept it's focus on her instead. It couldn't bind with her the way it bound itself to its prey. "You are a parasite…", she breathed, slowly, and her voice seemed to seethe with something untold. Whether it was unbridled hate or something else…It didn't matter. It had the attention of the abomination. "That plays with your food..."

"It's a lot more difficult to puppet your doll when your strings are mine. You have roamed without a Master for far too long. Unruly. Wild. Disobedient.", she intoned while drawing more of Naedira Darcrath out of the Devourer in the same way one might draw poison from a wound. Every word she uttered was akin to a breaking of the Sithspawn's mental and physical armor. Once she had what she required…Gerwald would see a light begin to percolate in her palm. Slowly, it formed a ball.

It was the remnants of Knight Darcrath that had yet to be Devoured.

Her right hand drew back and her nails extended with the same red blood crystal that she had used to spear the nether-poisoned crowd. A swift slash, faster than the eye could see, drove through the destabilized beast and left the Nocna little more than wisps of black shadow. Srina drew its essence inward and golden orbs seemed to glow bright red for a moment. Leathery wings flared from her back before fading away just as swiftly.

Naedira, fell to the bloody grass. Limp and unmoving. From a distance she barely seemed to breathe.

"…She will be your burden, wolf. The beast is no longer twined with her."

The malevolent redness to her eyes faded but she felt a surging sense of strength that doubled, tripled, while taking in what the beast had to offer. It was nothing more than a Sith construct. Once she knew how it had been done—Srina knew how it could be undone. Harvested, and used.

The ball of light lingered in her hand. She did not bring it immediately to the armor-clad woman, nor, did she make any movements forward. It was possible that it would be best for the Knight to forget. They had just liberated a soul that had been caged, treated like an animal, and fed upon for years by an unholy spawn of demonic origin.

Whatever was left of her…It might be best if Srina let it fade.

"I do not know what is left. What damage, her restoration could do."

 

[Gerwald Lechner]

​

OBJECTIVE: SURVIVE
WEARING: xxx
TAG: Srina Talon

Darth Omnia commanded the beast, twisted it, formed it, unmade it. The strength and knowledge to do such a thing was one Gerwald did not yet possess, and one he was unsure that he wanted. His time among the others of his kind on Islimoore had been interesting and eye opening. The wolf had learned his kind had been made for the Sith long ago. His species was born of Sithspawn, a knowledge Gerwald guarded close to his chest. Perhaps there had been enough time that they could not be twisted and unmade as the Nocna Mora had been, but watching the process certainly gave Gerwald pause.

For the first time the wolf held a secret from his mistress.

It eventually relented, but not after experiencing a massive amount of agony. Gerwald could feel the ripples of it though the force. It fueled the darkness inside him. The wolf drank it in, powered by the leftovers of what the Echani drank deep of. It was immense, intense. He could only imagine the raw power Srina must have been collecting for herself. The longer Gerwald watched, the more he understood. She was using its own strength against it.

In time the Exarch had collected a glowing orb of energy in her hand. It was Naedira or, as Srina had stated, what remained of her. Gerwald faced a choice. Nothing about what they were doing was safe or easy. Whatever they chose to do in the moment would have repercussions lasting long beyond their years and influence. What Srina had done to the Nocna Mora already had changed the landscape of power among the Sith. Prazutis was no longer the only Sith to control the Devourers. To Gewald, the lone fact made the Mountain irrelevant.

"…She will be your burden, wolf. The beast is no longer twined with her."

“She has been my burden for some time now,” he answered in a similar matter of fact tone as Srina had dealt with him.

It was a true statement which did not change how he felt for the woman. Perhaps he had borne the burden for so long because he loved her, but it was a burden all the same. Centaris had tried to warn Gerwald. Regardless of past choices made then, it still felt to Gerwald to bear. He had carried the ring, and now the other half was in his charge as well. This was about more than love. Gerwald had been the Lord Commander. Naedira had been a Knight Obsidian. Whatever decision he made encompassed everything he had been, or not been, to the woman.

His eyes looked at Naedira for some time as he weighed his options.

Gerwald could restore her. Doing so could harm her, damage her, even kill her. It could be perfectly safe. All of her memories would return, at least the ones Srina could salvage and whatever remained from the ring.

They could allow the light to fade, and Darcrath would remember nothing, maybe. If what Srina said was true, that Darcrath had been the one seeking him out, part of her must have remembered him. What else did she remember that they were unaware of?

Both options presented risk, and both presented their own version of reward.

“On Naalol, she asked me to destroy the ring. It was something I had left out of the report. If the ring had been destroyed the Nocna Mora would have claimed her entirely and she would have eventually faded away. I promised her that she would live again, it was something she had expressed once.”

He was not sure why he was giving Srina backstory. Perhaps it was because of all the people Gerwald knew he did not feel the need to hide his logic from his Dread Queen.

“If we restore her and she lives, I have kept my vow. If it destroys her, then she is free, and I have still kept my vow.”

Gerwald closed his eyes as he let his head hang toward Naedira.

“And yet, love is a selfless trait. The things it makes us sacrifice. It does not mesh well with what many say a Sith is. Still, we have to try. If there is even a chance that nothing could go wrong, who are we to stop half way? You said so yourself, the two halves want to be together again.”

His eyes opened and he looked at Srina. It would be the last time he dared command her in any sense.

“Do it.”​

 

[Pravus Zambrano]

OBJECTIVE 1A: SURVIVE THRIVE​

With all his might and wisdom, he could not conjure an emotion further from the Goddess than a conscription to melancholy. To dwell on things, particularly out of his own control, was so beneath him that to even mentally masticate on it felt like time wasted. But he did feel initially conflicted about the statement regarding their homeland. Homeland, he thought a loaded word. If the Great Voice had said that his mothers family, that meandering vagabond caravan of worthless and pitiful beings, had gone the way of so many of his creations before - to blood and dust - he would have rejoiced. He would have lifted runes to the sky, untethered words, and brought a domain upon this world that would have rivaled the very Nether. But as it stood, he knew better. And the response to destruction and death warranted only two reactions - glee or fury. He wondered what he would have wanted.

Father.

"No, I find the ether quite distracting for my more fruitful endeavors." He lifted a finger, lowering his head as he tried to crouch beneath the low beam of the threshold before exiting the apartment and descending into the street. "A flaw of character, obsession that cuts to the bone...as my mother once said." A flash of rage, hidden beneath a prominent yet almost hairless brow, turned to see Darron. Blood and spritz of red flung from the bone scythes like the creation had become an artist incarnate. Bones cracked, calcium fragmented and flung like loosed from a grenade, and the screams of the people brought such a symphony. Even when enraptured and ensnared by the Nether, these crazed beings knew pain and knew fear. And it came in the form a wild eyed purveyor, brought to life by the very same elements that he know inflicted...with such PIZAZZ!

Raising his hands together in such delight, Pravus waggled his fingers together, as if playing a piano to the steps of Darrons fight. He, of course, never felt the need to exert power over Darron when in the throes of passion. It was never worthwhile to get in the way of artistic expression. "I believe my new being will be named...Angus." He nodded thoughtfully, agreeing that his idea was a good one. Turning to the Voice amidst all the clatter, he gave her his full attention.

"Tell me of this destruction, Great Voice..." He took out his Grimoire and flashed it open, pressing the quill into the vellum. "Names written in blood will end in the same, I always say." His expression was sincere, enticed at the prospects of well deserved reckoning.

Tag: Saeth Zambrano

 

[Srina Talon]

| ELROOD |
| COURTYARD OF CAPITAL BUILDING |

Tag: Darth Empyrean | Gerwald Lechner
_________________________________________________________
​

"You carried a ring. Not a body with a broken spirit and a face that you love. That weight does not compare."

Her words were soft, though, pointed while she watched the wolf go through several stages of disbelief in how she had dealt with the Devourer. Gerwald did not know what she had done with it, only, that it was no longer standing between him and his Knight. The bond that the Mountain had created was little more than a memory. Regardless…He would do well to hear her. Truly. To understand that the female that he would essentially have her resurrect—Might be beyond saving.

He was wrong about one thing, though. Love was a selfish trait.

It had everything to do with what he couldn't bare to lose when it was laying still and dead in his arms. An empty doll. Waiting, for something to make it move. Breathe. Among the terrifying sounds of the swift execution of the townspeople the Dread Queen utilized their sacrifice to empower the gateway. With her work complete she channeled it into something new.

“Do it.”

Gold hewn orbs drew up from the woman and she held her hand out. The necklace that he wore tore from his throat without preamble. The ring that she had seen a hundred, a thousand times, that belonged to the Knights Obsidian of the Confederacy of Independent Systems leapt to her grasp as if it coming home. Flame and shadow began to crawl up from her throat as if the fingers of some dark god had begun to emerge from her esophagus. Death was a gift.

She'd not squander it while the Veil of Elrood was broken.

The ring dissolved in her hand and she pulled pieces of spirit from the cursed metal. As she combined it with what she had stolen from the Mora she was assaulted by images. It was the life of the woman prone in the grass. Fractured. Srina tried to give it some sort of time and organization but the memories had been torn. Some, lost completely. Others were strong.

The Devourer liked to play with their food before swallowing it whole.

~Please…Don't make me go.~

~I want to stay.~​

Little whispers that Gerwald Lechner had no doubt heard before. They were also met with the opposite. Her will that he destroy the ring to spare the world from the Sithspawn that had been tormenting her for years. She had been broken, then. She would be decimated now.

When the diminutive woman had done all that she could to seal the cracks in memory fragments she approached the body of Naedira Darcrath. Her golden eyes were silent, though, she knew better than most what it was like to lose someone. To lose their light. To lose…Everything. She would grant Gerwald what he asked of her against her better judgement with the full knowledge that she might also be required to but the former Knight Obsidian back into the grave.

Srina bent down and pressed the remnants of being back into the armored shell. That's all it was, really. Just a container to hold Force-bound essence. A knowledge of alchemy from her Master told her the truth of what she was doing, more, than the wolf ever needed to know. When her hands drew back the Echani felt as if she had moved a mountain alone. She sank down on her knees—But dug deeper into the well of blood she drew from all areas of the capital. It rolled and formed crystalline structures that were designed to shred anything that got too close.

She couldn't turn it off.​

The well of power that she had opened between herself and Elrood was overwhelming now that it had nowhere to go. Funneling into her, unbidden, and chaotic. That was when the screaming started. It wasn't from her, nor, her wolf. But from the body in his arms. Shrieking. So high and shrill that it sounded as if she was being murdered on Tanaab all over again. Srina drew her hand over the thrashing Knight's head and put her consciousness to sleep. So that Naedira, might heal.

<<Beloved…I need you.>>

It was not words that Darth Empyrean would have often heard from her in this context. Perhaps, in the dark but rarely in the field. She was as self-sufficient as any of the Eternalist warriors that served and thrice as capable. He would likely be surprised that she had enough strength to reach him through the broken Veil of Elrood. Let alone, the beacon that her presence had become. An anchor. <<I need you.>>

He would feel the power behind her words swelling with the tide of homicidal citizens that kept throwing themselves against the bloody glass stalagmites she had drawn up in the courtyard. Edifices of brutality—Pillars of strength that resonated. Srina needed Darth Empyrean to use the energy generated by the dead on Elrood to seal the Veil. The power was…Too much, too pure, too raw.

If he didn't do it soon it would likely burn her through.

<<…Seal it…Reverse the breaking...>>

Afterall, the pieces wanted to be together.

Empyrean just needed to finish the puzzle. Glue it down. The people would stop killing themselves, horrified, and the bloody feedback loop would stop. In the interim—Her eyes had begun to brighten while the blackness beneath her eyes increased and spread. It was too much power…

Too much with nowhere to go.

 

[Gerwald Lechner]

​

OBJECTIVE: SURVIVE
WEARING: xxx
TAG: Srina Talon

Gerwald had not come to the conclusion as easily as his words made it seem. The internal struggle of whether he was doing the right thing or not still waged a brutal war inside of his mind. He knew this was what he wanted, but could he really justify this would be what she wanted. How could he? Even as the beast disappeared and all that remain was the husk of Naedira’s former self all the wolf could think was that they were so close, closer than he had ever gotten before.

He felt the chain at his neck break as Srina commanded it to her hand. How easily it had dissolved at her touch. Whatever power she wielded seemed more than what Gerwald could have ever hoped to master. Perhaps the ring had not broken at his attempts simply because he did not want it to. The longer this process took, the more convinced Gerwald was becoming that he had been the real reason Naedira had never been truly free. His reluctance to let go had been as damning a power as the bond forged with the nightmare.

The wolf heard everything. Words he had heard whispered thousands of times were now plain as day. Her will to live, to find a way to keep her in the world of the living, echoed in his mind. The duty filled plea in her voice as she begged Gerwald to destroy the ring on Naalol replayed in his mind, haunting him even now.

He closed his eyes. As much as he had told himself he had been willing to do it, he knew it was a lie. Gerwald only made the attempt to break it because Naedira had been right. Her life, even his, was not more important than the countless lives the monster would have devoured if allowed to break free. Srina would not hear the words Gerwald had spoken to her on that day, nor had he put them in the report. He should have told her that night on the balcony, the moment he knew, but some distorted sense of chivalry had kept him quiet. There was no doubt Srina knew, but not by any admission of his tongue. Rather, Gerwald’s own feelings betrayed him in this matter over and over again.

Death surrounded them, and yet Gerwald could not break his focus from the woman in his arms. She lay there lifeless, cold as the grave. Were he a devout follower of the gods the wolf would have offered a prayer that what Srina was about to attempt would work. He would pray that she would remember him, and that she would know who she was, and who she had been. Gerwald knew his prayers would be futile. What many called gods were nothing more than those gifted with the force to a degree beyond imagination. Ancient races which no longer had a place among the stars save for the ruins of their great civilizations were worshiped as though they were divine.

They were no more divine than the Dread Queen, and it was in her hands all that had been Naedira Darcrath now rested.

His eyes watched as she placed the remnants of Naedira’s soul into her body. He knew what Srina had not spoken. She had said this may not work, but Gerwald knew the likelihood of raising some twisted monster was equal to that of success. Whatever happened, they had to try.

Srina fell to her knees. The deed had been done, but Naedira still lay there, still, frozen. Whatever needed to happen next had been interrupted. His selfishness had now required his mistress push herself to whatever limits her own power had. Perhaps the others had been right when they accused him of putting everyone at risk simply to fulfill one promise, because of his feelings.

Naedira began to scream. She lived, but the shrieking was almost unbearable to the sensitive ears of the wolf. He wanted to reach up and clap his hands over them, but he could not bear to let go of the woman. Srina touched her, made her unconscious. It would be some form of relief, but what had brought it about? Gerwald could not help but wonder if she was being forced to relive every nightmare, every brutal moment, every memory caused to destroy her.

Gerwald’s selfish nature was demanding a price of those closest to him.

When would it be paid in full?

Would it ever be satisfied?

He could not hope to close the breach, nor would his strength be enough to aid Srina. It had nearly killed him last time, and Srina had not been as weak then as she was now. No, whatever happened, Gerwald would have to live with. He could only hope the tether Srina had with Darth Empyrean would be enough to close it. Even then, there would still be whatever remained with Naedira.

They had to finish what they started.

Still, the words Srina had spoken to him moments before suddenly felt like a weight the ring had never been.

"You carried a ring. Not a body with a broken spirit and a face that you love. That weight does not compare."

Gerwald nodded. At least that was one thing he understood.​

 

[Darth Empyrean]

The Sepulchral had moved with speed to prepare the wards and pillars, but it had taken longer than Empyrean had wanted. The first call for his assistance broke through the veil as Srina Talon requested his help. Didn't just want it, but needed it - he could feel the strain forming on her person even through the shroud of the Nether.​

​

"Give me one.", he demanded, to the protesting of the loading crew moving it to a launch tube.​

​

"That wasn't a request.", and with that they fell in line. He lifted it with the Force and moved for the hanger - letting the operating crews prepare to load and fire the obelisks into the world in key points. One would simply have to follow him.​

​

As the open energy shield protected the hanger from venting into atmosphere, it also faced the planet - giving Empyrean a clear location to hone in on. The presence of Srina, and Gerwald Lechner - the beacon they provided was easy enough to trace. He floated himself onto the obelisk, allowed the Force to hold it onto him, and then launched it with him atop it.​

​

Were his skin more alive, the tempature might've hurt - freezing then hot as he breached the atmosphere, but the Force would sustain him. The presence of the ward beneath him kept the veil still as he did so; ensuring that he didn't break it and release something far worse onto the world. He would look like the first of multiple meteors shooting to the earth - and when he landed, he destroyed a home right near them.​

​

Stepping off of the ward into the crator he had formed, he offered them both a glance - but spoke nothing as he pulled the strength from Srina and fed it into the Obelisk Ward. One would be overwhelmed quickly, but as more landed on the planet the network began to expand, and the veil slowly receded in great areas around the world - slowly bringing it back to the natural order.​

​

When it was a self sustaining cycle, he would turn back to them;​

​

"Fairing well?"​

 

[Srina Talon]

| ELROOD |
| COURTYARD OF CAPITAL BUILDING |

Tag: Darth Empyrean | Gerwald Lechner
_________________________________________________________
​

Kneeling in a courtyard that she had deliberately flooded with blood…Srina knew intimately what it was that Gerwald feared. She could taste it. Feel it in the air. Her extensive exposure to phobis devices had trained her to sense and mold the deepest wells of fright and uncertainty. He could not hide his pain of indecision, of burden, but what was done could not be undone.

Not without putting Naedira Darcrath into the ground.

The silvery woman remained silent while mitigating the flow of power through her circulatory system as well as she was able. There wouldn't be any sign that something was amiss, save, purposeful and even breathing. Gold hewn orbs became unfocused while veins began to darken beneath pallid skin. It was the black, wicked truth, burning through her. She let the putrid energy rend her extremities so that she might keep her core safe from harm. Let it roll. Let it burn—Darken her thoughts.

Her faith in Darth Empyrean was…Expected. She would believe in him, have faith, in Maliphant until he gave her a reason not to. For the hundredth time she hoped that day would never come but with the energy of hundreds, dead, sweeping beneath her skin? She wanted to give in. To lose herself to the cosmic whispers of the purest strength available. The consumption of life. Visions of razing the galaxy to dust in a bloody massacre to feed a lust for greatness danced behind her eyes.

Srina blinked and swallowed the darkness. She was the one in charge. Not, the Darkside.

Nothing and no one would ever control her.

She could only imagine how Empyrean felt. Every moment, of every day. This was only temporary.

Falling stars caught her attention and she could feel her husband drawing nearer. Her gaze drew toward the sky and a spike of energy caused her head to roll back for a moment while she swallowed it down. It was a particular form of relief when Empyrean began to draw on her strength and feed it into the Obelisk Ward. She didn't question his arrival no more than he ought to question what madness she had procured on the battlefield. The pressure and sensation of bursting at the seams lessened. Threads to be undone—Tightened and secured.

Srina licked dry lips before daring to rise from blood-soaked earth. The knees of her dark armor were stained and the ends of moonlit hair seemed as if they'd been dipped in crimson dye. She could feel Elrood shifting. Returning, to balance. The nether-poisoning would end and soon the screams would begin. The bright red crystals of congealed blood hummed, thrumming, with the strength they had collected. There was nowhere to hide from that ominous red glow.

"Fairing well?"

Her feet took her toward her husband without thought. His casual question seemed to be both understood and dismissed while her pupil seemed to fill her iris and block out the color. Blown. Bloodstained fingertips reached for him blindly. While she was always careful to avoid the arm that might destroy her…Something about her demeanor seemed less cautious. Less, safe.

"I have found another…broken thing…", her voice was a disconcerting mix of sharp steel and decadent cream when her hand came into contact with Darth Empyrean . Her form would find the line of the Corpse Lord and in the briefest moments, he might feel the oddest sensation. A living one. Red electricity leaped from her fingertips and wherever that residual power touched dry, deadened skin, it would soften and repair. Life for life. Srina…Srina could not help but follow the line of absolute strength. The thought of draining Elrood of all life, in its entirety, for an attempt to restore her beloved was more than tempting.

What was the loss of one planet? Or a dozen? Civilizations spread like a virus. Would the galaxy even notice the decline? Doubtful.

It was obvious that…She was herself. Yet, she was not.

The Dread Queen that either man knew would have rarely let such delightful power roll off of her waves. Even with what had been taken for the Obelisk Wards…Her very being crackled with untapped potential. All of it—Wanted Empyrean. Even, if she didn't understand why.

"We should harvest them."

The blood crystals. They remained strong. Storing power—Drinking the rest from the ground. Her wintry head came to rest against the Sith Lords shoulder before her eyes fell back to Gerwald Lechner . She watched the wolf for a long moment before speaking again. "Bring the girl. She will not survive if she wakes again. Her spirit is…"

"Weak."

Weak. Spoken, as if it were a curse.

 

[Gerwald Lechner]

​

OBJECTIVE: SURVIVE
WEARING: xxx
TAG: Srina Talon | Darth Empyrean

She knew him, and too well. Srina would feel the indecision in him, and the lingering wonder if he had made the correct choice. Was he simply being selfish again? There was no doubt his objectivity in the matter was compromised.

It was what love did.

Perhaps Naedira would have told him to let her go had she been lucid. The choice had been his, and right or wrong, he would now have to live with the consequences of it.

"Bring the girl. She will not survive if she wakes again. Her spirit is… weak."

He did not want to admit it, but there was a chance Gerwald had just forced Srina to suffer for nothing. Naedira could still die. As he had said, then his promise was kept, but could he live with it?

Gerwald nodded. If Naedira did have any chance of living she would need to be taken care of. Her spirit was weak, and her body was likely in the same need of repair. Blue eyes shifted back to the woman in his arms, the feel of the rough armor finally registering in his mind. She wore the skin of the nightmare Srina had just absorbed, defeated, or dismantled. Gerwald could no longer try to figure out what she had done. His focus had to be on how his burden had changed.

He stood with her in his arms. With help from the force he would carry her back with him until she could be helped. Each step was surreal. Part of the wolf could not believe he was holding her, and the other did not want to let go because he knew how real it was.

“She will find herself again. I will see to it.”

The tables had turned. Where Naedira had once helped to shape him, now he would have to help shape her. Srina had reformed him further, saving him from certain death. Gerwald had been broken. Srina had mended him, bending him to her will. Gerwald would see Naedira mended. If only she could heal as a wolf, but she could not. The woman would need what most humans needed to aid their recovery.

He would not leave his side.

Gerwald looked to Empyrean.

“Whatever you must do, we should see to it and be off this world. Make it an example of what the Sith can do.”​

 

[Darth Empyrean]

"A ship will come soon.", he said gently, pulling Srina close as he let his dark arm fade into oblivion. He seemed to hunch over then, his great and powerful form waning as he allowed it to. As though he aged and tired in the blink of an eye.​

​

"We can ensure the crystals are transported then - in the meantime, we wait. Let the obelisk do its work."​

​

He glanced down past Srina Talon towards the woman nestled in the Wolf's arms.​

​

"And she is?"​

​

Gerwald Lechner​