Private The Witch and the Oracle

[Taeli Raaf]

Follows the Events of The Darkness is Revealing
​

Everything had escalated quickly. From what had been a lingering debate, heated perhaps in some private conversations but generally background mutterings, about the role of Sith, the Sith Code, and what the future held for the Sith had exploded into near open revolt rapidly. The innate nature of the Sith could never be denied for long, it was within their beings; that urge to dominate, to rule, and the ambitious among them always eventually chafed under the command of another. In this case, it had taken a wayward son of the Emperor and the Oracle of Voss declaring her intentions to reshape the Sith.

Already the consolidation of power bases was commencing across the Empire and the domains that individual Sith Lords and Ladies held sway over outside Sith space. Traitors to the Empire were being executed on the spot, the Emperor moving swiftly to limit the defections and to send a clear message to those with second thoughts. It was not clear what level of support the rebellious Sith and military figures had yet, but lines were being drawn for the inevitable first battle.

A Kaggath it was quickly growing beyond...

But the Lady of Secrets had wanted to hear more from the Twi'lek that had sparked the looming conflict, because that was what she was. Taeli had always been a quiet one, working diligently of course, but she kept to the shadows for the most part. That said... she had still built herself quite a reputation as Velok the Youngest had so glowingly stated during the convocation on Bastion. The Triumvir of Power might have been title she had gained for her efforts in bringing down the Galactic Alliance and New Jedi Order, for her multitude of experiments to push alchemy and sorcery beyond the limits even their ancient forebears had dreamed possible, but in contrast to the accusations thrown at the highest ranking Sith within the Empire... she had proven why she held her titles. She had done the work.

Heavily encrypted, as she was still recovering on Genesia, the image of a seated Taeli Raaf in her Sith robes and cowl would appear within the sanctum of Darth Voyance .

"Now I believe we can continue our conversation without the background noise," she said in way of greeting. "Lady Voyance."

 

[Darth Voyance]

Darth Voyance turned to face the materializing hologram of Taeli Raaf . Voyance had been tending to the incense that burned from the Sith Chalices inside her qabbrat. In her hands was a metal prong used to clasp the dead embers of the incense sticks burned to stumps. Voyance wore her dark master's robes, with golden accents and dark leather brocade. One of her long tattooed lekkus was cast about her neck like a scarf. She smiled and bowed to the Triumvir of Power. She pressed a hand against her chest and stretched it outwards to Taeli in a reverence to arcane feudal etiquette.

"A pleasure I have been greatly awaiting, Triumvir Raaf," Voyance replied.

Voyance looked away and returned to her Sith Chalice, dispensing the embers and prodding the Korribanian dune sand that filled the chalice. She moved the embers and with the tongs combed fresh tranquil surface. Her cleaning made waving patterns in the sands that curved and weaved into the script of the High Sith language ur-Kittat. A prayer written in the sands designed to enchant the next batch of incense to be burned. When finished she rested the tongs on to a side paneling that jutted from the qabbrat's walls. Then with ceremonial care, she plucked three incense sticks and impaled them into the sands.

"Tell me my Lady, have you ever partaken in the trances of the Korribanian Incense Chalices?" Voyance began. "I find their pungent and acerbic aroma to cut through the noise, and entrance the mind into a sharp dark reality that helps meditate on the truths of matters."

"If not, I implore you to try it," said Voyance, tilting her head to the side to glance back at Taeli.

"For is that not why you have come to me?"

Her smile stretched thinner and wider.

 

[Taeli Raaf]

She remained silent as Darth Voyance went about her routine with her chalice, Taeli deciding it would be respectful to not disturb the process until the Twi'lek was finished and spoke again.

"I cannot say I have partook of such," she answered quietly. Taeli was a Sith of very few vices compared to others, almost Jedi-like in her avoidance of substances that might cloud her mind or inhibit her in some way. It had always been her belief that such distractions could very well lead to a rival gaining information or even a chance to act against her, something that had long plagued the Sith of the One Sith. Her Master, Balaya, had been a Sith of incredible vices, so perhaps that had also been a lesson of opposites.

"But it does sound fascinating, to be granted visions in such a way," she continued, turning an appreciative eye to the make of the chalice. "I've found the chalices forged on Ziost or Malachor can be excellent conduits for sorcerous rituals, especially in the melding of species. Early Sadow reign Korriban design I believe, a rare artifact you recovered Lady Voyance."

A thin smile formed at the last question posed by the Oracle.

"I said I would listen, and listen I shall. However, in turn I ask for one simple thing... you agree to do the same if I bring up a counterpoint. Is that agreeable to you, Lady Voyance?"

 

[Darth Voyance]

"Rare indeed, Triumvir," Darth Voyance replied, "Much to learn in the recovered wisdoms of the past."

Voyance turned around fully and moved to the black fabric cushioned seat of qabbrat, she sat down and rested her hands on the ends of the arm rests. As she did so she listened to Taeli Raaf 's proposition on the terms of their conversation. It intrigued Voyance, was this a trap? Or perhaps she was in genuine curiosity about her own machinations. Voyance would have to tread lightly. The Triumvir had her ways and she had demonstrated them well when she deceived the Jedi Order. But, Voyance somehow felt at calm speaking to her. A kindred spirit perhaps? A fellow deliver of the arcane and maddeningly enlightened.

"Agreeable they are," said Voyance.

"Then let me begin," Voyance continued, "Although I am most pleased by your call, I am interested to see why?"

"I am a 'traitor'...a 'heretic' to the Order that the Emperor has imposed. No doubt by now, even now, the gears of that bloated feudal sycophantic host have begun to whirl with odious calls for satisfaction."

Voyance's eyes narrowed and she peered into the ghostly projected of the Triumvir.

"And yet as a Triumvir, you have come to speak with me."

A brief chuckle flickered from her lips and died the minute it touched the air.

"That is because you are not like those imperial lapdogs. You always see the higher purpose in things. And that is why I find you so fascinating. Triumvir."

"So come, ask away, and I shall elucidate the peculiarities of my...insurrection."

 

[Taeli Raaf]

A small half smile formed as Darth Voyance asked why Taeli would contact her, even after her public branding as a heretic and traitor. The answer was two fold. She had already said she had promised during the grand meeting to listen to what the Twi'lek had to say and suggest, and the other was more... complicated.

"You are right to assume that the Emperor has already begun the purges," she replied. She had no qualms in sharing that with the Oracle before her. Knowing the Emperor as all high ranking Sith did, it was a foregone conclusion. Kaine did not stand even whispers of treachery within his Empire.

"As for myself, you are right to a degree," she continued. "I am not a zealot for the Rule of Order. My time among the Jedi and my travels to study with other Force cultures have broadened my viewpoint. I won't reject what others might have to say out of hand, even if I am far more progressive in my interpretation of the Sith code and the dark side, there is still room for some of our old traditions."

She leaned back in her seat, hands clasped in her lap.

"Which I suppose bring me to my first two questions, Lady Voyance. In our congregation, you declared there were no Sith present and yet many you accused, such as myself, have been Sith longer than you, have studied the dark side longer than you. What then do you believe constitutes a true Sith and what does not constitute one? And then I ask what do you believe is the core mission of your movement?"

 

[Darth Voyance]

The Triumvir Taeli Raaf was an astute one. Indeed, in terms of seniority, Darth Voyance was but a sapling compared to the elder darkness that formed the upper echelon's of the Sith Empire. But, even mighty elder-trees can be rotten to the core. Voyance said nothing for a moment. Letting her conscious bath in the question. Her golden eyes searched the image of Taeli, wondering if she could divine anything from the deep pensive glare that was reflected back at her. She nodded and her mind laughed at a proposition of an alternate fate, "oh had you only been my master then..." Voyance then blinked slowly and reclined into her chair.​

"I had thought on that very question too, Triumvir," said Darth Voyance, "Am I a Sith?"​

"I would ponder this question intensely, every day after I was plucked from the Ventooine Slave Bazaars by our liege Emperor."​

"He gave me power, drew me to it, taught me it, gave it to me."​

"And yet, Raaf," Voyance said leaning forward with her torso. "I felt hollow. Empty."​

"I had power yes, status yes, and the means to manipulate my rise in the Empire as the Emperor's apprentice and Eye. But, what victory would an inherited ascension to power be? To trade my personal strength and power for granted strength as collateral for obedience."​

"No. That is not the way of the Sith," Voyance said. "That was the beginning of my enlightenment. Having the strength to declare all the power I had gathered, pointless and void. And then, to cast myself into the darkness once more to rebuild as our sage ancestors did before us...by the Code's virtuous steps."​

Voyance pressed her hands against the edges of the armrests of her chair and lifted herself up. She stood inside her qabbrat and waved her hands, expelling a brief gust of the Force that carried the incense of the newly lit censors inside the Sith Chalices out and onto the floor of her chamber. Voyance descended the steps of the dais where her qabbrat perched. The holoprojector lens embedded in the floors swiveled in there sockets allowing the hologram of Taeli to mirror her pacing.

"Did you see them, Triumvir?" Voyance conitnued, "Did you see how they recoiled at my accusations, hissing and moaning, beating their chests about the prestige and honor of their Imperial filial duty. Of how they opined about their power, their 'progress', and the base boasting of their material power - the worlds under our control."

"Empire. Power." Voyance growled, "Their progression as Sith is stunted. They achieved some numbing comfortable space of granted power by their overlord and have swaddled themselves in Imperial trappings of self-import. They are attack dogs, gleefully guarding the kennel the Emperor has imprisoned them in."

"Peace is a lie, there is only passion. Through Passion I gain strength."

"They have succumbed to an artificial inertia, a peace of Zambrano engineering. Their passions chained to the reverence, whether feigned or not, it does not matter, servitude is servitude, to the House of Zambrano and the "Rule of Order" they puppeteer."

"Then now do you see Triumvir? They are not Sith. They are agents of his Empire. Not Sith."

"The Sith Code isn't just some archaic dogma, it is a guide - each line a step. And they have fallen at the second."

"They have power, but, what power that no one else of their rank has? They are not free, they have not broken their chains, they do not serve the Sith culture, it's ideals, it's philosophies. They only worship Power. And not the Power of the Darkside, Power of Political gains and servile courtly machinations. Such power are to be tools not the center of their existence."

"Such a power is fleeting and heavily reliant on the continued vegetative existence of their Master's vainglorious monument to himself."

"These Sith are weak, and will break the moment the Empire dies and with them this Rule of Order will die too."

"Why? Because they are not Sith."

 

[Taeli Raaf]

It wouldn't be Triumvir much longer, Taeli thought to herself. Power bases were shifting, some determining their interests were better served elsewhere or away from the main structures of power within the Empire. She had placed herself well for ascension up the pyramid of power... and it would certainly help for the future regardless.

She did not interrupt Darth Voyance as she ruminated on the questions posed by the Lady of Secrets. It was fascinating to get such insights into the Twi'lek's thought processes and hints at the origin story for her into the ways of the dark side. There were always rumors of course, but nothing helped more than truth from the being's mouth. Taeli suspected some part of her upbringing as a slave might have something to do with the Oracle's... aversion to serving under the Emperor any further once she had tasted what real power could be and once she had accrued some herself.

The Oracle also made a point that was fair in Taeli's mind. Much of the Sith Empire's upper echelons owed their positions, or at least the chances to gain their positions, because of the patronage of the Zambranos. It had been such during the One Sith as even her former Master, Praelior, had been attached to the Zambranos, and many within that incarnation of the Sith had feared, respected, and indeed hated the powerful and influential Kaine Zambrano. His reach had only grown, and Taeli had certainly played her own part in creating that extended reach.

Voyance also raised an interesting point about the fallout her pronouncement had made at the convocation. Taeli had not cared about the grievances aired by Vaulkhar, considering his tone was one of a rebellious child railing against their father in the most effective way they believed possible. Valid points of criticism for the Empire may have been sprinkled in among the diatribe, but to her, she had viewed it as an inter-house issue, one for the Zambranos to deal with in private. Voyance had been clearer in her message, even above the other Sith that sided with her, in her declaration, and had brought about a more visceral reaction.

The corner of her lips twitched up as Voyance finished her impromptu speech. Now it was starting to become clearer to her.

"You would have done well in the Empire of twenty-two or so years ago," she remarked quietly. "If what I've been led to believe is true, it was much more about personal ascension and power, squabbling and plotting to reach the throne. I myself was still on Lorrd, blissfully ignorant and studying galactic history at the university there. Times have certainly changed."

Her hands moved to the armrest of her chair, her image lightly tapping her fingers in thought.

"My first real taste of the dark side came when three boys from my class assaulted me," she continued. "In my panic, my fear, my anger, my humiliation, I lashed out. They died, their leader I butchered with his own blade. What I did attracted the attention of a Sith visiting the world and I was taken to learn the ways of the Sith on Coruscant. In the time since, I have striven to learn all I can, experiment and push the boundaries of Sith science and sorcery beyond even what our ancestors believed possible. I surpassed my Master's greatest works with ease, I surpassed her in every way. No one remembers the works and creations of Darth Praelior, the supposed beastmaster and Sithspawn creator of the One Sith."

Her little smirk grew.

"I understand the attraction of wanting to take power for yourself, to make it yourself, to claim it yourself, to drag it kicking and screaming into your domain. I can also understand how you would view the Empire as antithesis of this concept. The Rule of Order is designed to have the Sith serve one thing: the Sith Order itself. To put aside the backstabbing and killing we that use the dark side are want to do against each other to focus on the ancient enemy. The two ideas would at first glance not be compatible with each other. The methods run counter. How can one immerse themselves in the dark side, further their control and power with that which gives us power through our emotions, if we are, for lack of a better term, chained to the Empire and its rules and turn those emotions elsewhere.

"I disagree with that notion. To use your cause for example, you want a return to the ways of older Sith. A stricter adhesion to the Sith Code, and if I am not mistaken, a more puppet master role in the material realm as you seek to conquer the ethereal or metaphysical for darkness. At the moment, in the material realm, your forces are badly outnumbered. You do not have nearly the Sith, which forgive me but many of those that have rallied to your banner have always been the rabble-rousers of our Order for decades now, or military strength to outright challenge the Sith Empire. It takes time to build forces, time you do not have. In the metaphysical sense, you are equally at a disadvantage as at present challenging Carnifex in a duel of mastery would likely end up with your death. I pose this question to you: What would have been a better path to take than outright declaring your intentions and cleaving parts of the Order away?"

 

[Darth Voyance]

[MUSIC]

Darth Voyance blinked slowly and nodded her head. When her eyes opened once more she strolled closer to the hologram. So close her face almost broke the gentle blue visage that flickered in the cosmic static. Her face only a frigid breath's from hers. Voyance said nothing for a moment. She inspected Taeli Raaf with an imperious look. Her dark gloved hand rose and she passed her index finger through the holographic rendering of Taeli's cheek, sliding it down and s that it turned and flicked up her chin like a beckoning curl.

"Oh, Triumvir," Voyance hissed in a low whisper, "My dear Triumvir. My Darth Arcanix."

"Truly it is a tragedy you and I had not met during our indoctrination into this ruinous power."

"You and I could have made such sweet terror together."

Her expression weakened into a sorrowful gaze, as if she was looking through Taeli into some unknown horizon in the future. Her eyes were dimmed, their Sith passions faded and in them simply eyes that saw some distant catastrophe.

"You have not seen what I have," Voyance's voice hardened into a growl, "This Cult of vanity will break. And when it breaks, this Empire will die. And the Sith shall be....no...more."

"Can't you see, there was never a Rule of Order, it was only his Order. He demeaned the way of the Sith, called it back-stabbing and in-fighting. It is neither. It is our way. I wish to harness that true violence as a means to bread better Sith."

"Mark my words, my dear Arcanix. When the Empire breaks against the radicals of the Empire, these "united" Sith will falter as they find their inherited comforts useless."

"I have foreseen it. That is why I provided the light to strike the match. And in the ruins, I shall build something better, longer lasting, and true."

Voyance's stare lurked back up to mingle with the blue hologram gleams of Taeli's.

"I cannot save what is already rotten," Voyance said softly, "But, I can save you."

"Soon this rebellion started by the former General ( Irveric Tavlar ) and this righteous scion of Zambrano ( Vaulkhar ) will become something far more powerful."

"They will sound the deathknell, but, I....we.....could sound the rebirth."

"Such is the Sith way, to kill what is weak and create something stronger."

"Though the time now is inopportune, a time shall come. And by then, my dear Arcanix....my Lady Raaf..." said Voyance once again tracing the hologram with her finger, "Then I hope you will assist me."

 

[Taeli Raaf]

She said nothing more as Darth Voyance neared, waiting for the Twi'lek to address what Taeli had asked, had prompted for. With the Twi'lek so close to the hologram of the Lady of Secrets, she could make out the patterns and twists of her tattoos more clearly. The hand along the cheek was a bit much though, she felt, even as she listened to the Oracle lament how they did not meet before during their introduction to the Sith.

She didn't speak as Voyance continued, warning of dire situations for the Sith and what the insurgency started by Tavlar and the Zambrano scion would grow into. She had seen many Imperial factions rise and fall in this region of space. They were always the same, and with such volatile figures at the lead of this one... no, she did not at present foresee a lasting power. A threat? Perhaps. But the Sith Empire was vast and contingencies had been prepared for such instances.

No, what was interesting was certain things Voyance was saying, hinting at through slight omission or things left hanging unsaid. She disagreed with Kaine's Rule of Order, that had been obvious. She wanted a return to what some viewed as the Sith way of culling the weak and ineffectual, leaving only the most powerful dark siders of their Order. If she was reading the Twi'lek right, and she liked to think she was good at reading beings, then Voyance had been quietly busy for months at least. She might not have attracted as many followers as would have liked with major influences or reputations, but there were a few.

Vexen was one, the Anzati breathed the old ways of strength over all else. But the others? Time would tell all, she mused as the Twi'lek finished her soliloquy.

"Your plans are further along than you've said," she said, leaning back in her seat for the moment. "Building your own shadow order to fill the void, if or when, the Sith Empire falls." The Lady of Secrets pushed off her seat, moving to pace around the circumference of the hologram's range as she mused. "Keepers of the Sith traditions as it were, protecting and preparing for the inevitable rise. I assume your visions have already led to a place to do such a thing."

It was a statement more than question. Voyance wouldn't have launched all of this unrest into the open if she did not have a hidden stronghold to build her power base.

"I believe it was once said always in motion the future is," she said, lips quirking in amusement as she quoted a long dead Jedi. "Relying upon visions can only help dictate actions for so long, especially if another being could manipulate said visions to draw you along a certain path they desired and you would never recognize it until too late."

She clasped her hands behind her back, her head forward in thought. Dark hair obscured her features as she paced.

"Assuming what you have started leads to an invasion of Bastion, at some point down the line, what then? Kaine already designated a secondary capital within Sith space itself for just such an occasion. A region of space far beyond Tavlar's ability to wage war into, and we both know that, from a multitude of reasons. So the government won't collapse. Legions of his followers and Sith are still loyal, and will remain loyal, perhaps becoming even fanatically so. Reforms will come into practice to deflate Tavlar's arguments because Kaine is not a fool, he knows how to play the game of politics, he's been playing it a long time."

She turned to look at Twi'lek now.

"His Rule of Order won't fall, not from this," she said. "It will adapt, morph into a new form, and all he will view it as culling those that were disloyal, making his Empire stronger... and ultimately he will not care. His ambitions have grown, his interests shifting. If you see him retreat from public eye during this, know it is calculated."

She knew what the projects were, but she and the Twi'lek weren't there yet.

"By taking your followers out of the Empire, you lose valuable sight from within. You lost the ability to keep closer tabs, to know what Kaine is planning... it was reckless to rush so foolishly into open rebellion. I learned, during my time with the Jedi, it takes patience to grow from within an organization, to subvert its people, to prepare for that moment when you are ready to deliver the death knell to your enemies."

She walked up to the Oracle now, the Witch standing eye to eye with her.

"I have not challenged for the throne because I understood that to overcome his power base, all of it, would take time. He trusts me, as much as any Sith can trust another."

She looked over at the display on her desk, watching as the red light started to pulse slightly. They were getting slow, she thought. Braxus would have their hides mounted on his wall for taking so long to start breaking through her encryption. The Lord of Lies and the Lady of Secrets did enjoy their game after all.

"I am afraid we are almost out of time, but perhaps, when the occasion arises again that we can talk... opportunities will be present that are mutually beneficial."