Unleashing the Fury

[Ashra'syle'nuruodo]

In a temple dedicated to the entire pantheon Ashra’syle’nuruodo kneeled before an idol of Ithari the Bloody wearing the red on red robes of a disciple of the god she had chosen to worship. Though she admired and worshiped the entire pantheon for the gifts they had bestowed upon her she had chosen Ithari specifically because she felt he best embodied her values it had been a hard choice to make as all the gods had earned her respect and admiration for the assistance their disciples had provided her a few months prior when her ship had crashed. The gods had protected her long enough for their disciples to rescue her from the burning wreckage.

She had since fully recovered from the relatively minor injuries that she had suffered in that crash, now it was time to use these gifts. Aslyen prayed to Ithari for guidance, whom to seek out to help her control these powers so she could better serve the gods in their efforts to bring the true religion to everyone in the galaxy and destroy all those that would question the truth. Certainly she was already trained in the basics of combat, in fact she was quite good when it came to hand to hand combat but these new gifts required a lot of refinement. She had spent a little time with Crusader Carter learning how to feel the sensations that the force gave but she couldn’t say she fully understood how to properly use any of these powers and her control over it all was largely still undisciplined. As a bit of a perfectionist that bothered the Chiss woman.

The powers of the gods were not the only things she needed to work on, she needed to build and learn to use the weapons of the gods as well. Asylen had seen a few of these lightsabers but never in action. She was anxious to learn everything she could so she could start repaying the gods for their generosity. She rose from kneeling in front of the statue of Ithari and left the temple with a purpose, at the very least she knew where she could find Crusader Carter, certainly there was more she could learn from this woman. She hoped Ithari would guide her to someone with a different skill set along the way, someone to help her better understand the powers that she had apparently displayed during her crash.

[member="Amorella Mae"] [member="Cameron Centurion"] [member="Crystal"] Carter

 

[Crystal]

When Crystal was at the Temple, she was normally found in the mess hall. She liked to eat, and be around people. Her mind often wandered into their thoughts for amusement, so it was easier to eavesdrop when she was nearby. At that precise moment, she was on her way to the mess hall. It was interesting to her to see who ended up there and at what times. Beings were creatures of habit, and she enjoyed learning those habits and schedules.

She wandered over to a table with some chocolate and sat quietly munching as she gazed around for anyone familiar or eye catching.

[member="Ashra'syle'nuruodo"]

 

[Cameron Centurion]

Silver-green eyes briefly swept those assembled on the large mess hall as he stepped through the open doors. Casually, Cameron pulled back the hood of his dark blue and gray cloak as he adjusted his direction to approach the one individual he immediately recognized. Given recent...announcements to the Crusade at large, the Sith Lord endured the hurried shuffling of those attempting to render whatever version of respect they so desired.

In truth, Cameron was not unaccustomed to such displays. Likewise, he knew the dismissing those acting on faith was tantamount to dismissing their faith. Cameron, like so many others, needed that faith to remain intact...to be a force to be reckoned with. Unfailing, fanatical devotion was always useful.

With a shallow nod to the masses, Cameron approached [member="Crystal"] Carter. In his normal deep voice, he intoned a polite request. "Crusader Carter. Please join me at my table. There is much I wish to discuss." Allowing a thin smile to touch his lips, Cameron turned an proceeded to an almost unnecessarily large table that played host to Cameron and the Senior Priests of Aatrox. Not today though. "Gentlemen. Leave us."

As the folds of dark blue and gray dispersed, Cameron took a seat. "How's things?" His tone was extremely casual.

[member="Ashra'syle'nuruodo"]

 

[Crystal]

Crystal turned and smirked when she looked at the entrance. Cameron had arrived, along with adoring fans. She chuckled to herself and popped another piece of chocolate in her mouth. It took him much longer to enter than he'd like, she was sure.

When he paused near her, she stood up. Invitation to chat. Accepted. She replied "I would be delighted to join you." And she gestured for him to lead the way. She took a seat next to him. "Things are going well. This place is growing on me too." She smiled a little. "And how are things with you?"

[member="Cameron Centurion"] [member="Ashra'syle'nuruodo"]

 

[Ashra'syle'nuruodo]

Finding her way to the mess hall Ashra’syle’nuruodo spotted [member="Crystal"] immediately, her casual nature stood out like a sore thumb in the middle of the room. The Chiss woman started to cross the room to her when another entered, she had never met him directly but her intense study of the Gods since coming to Exocron and with paying attention to the news and gossip amongst the devote allowed her to identify him as the Mask of Aatrox. The crowd that followed and gathered around him only served to confirm, she could only hope that one day she could prove herself worthy enough to be so honored by the Gods.

She noted [member="Cameron Centurion"] was making his way directly to Crystal and this gave her a moment of pause. Aslyen watched as the two of them left Crystal’s table and relocated the man dismissing those already seated at the table they were now occupying. It was clear that he wished to have a private conversation with the woman but as much as she respected the Gods and their disciples she made the decision to cross the room with purpose letting nothing stop her as she gracefully ducked past the crowd of people being dismissed from the table.

The Chiss woman cared little for social niceties, and didn’t particularly care if it was rude for her to interrupt whatever conversation the two were having. As much as she respected the accomplishments of both she was emboldened by her opinion that the Gods had selected her for the powers of the force and that mastering those abilities was a high priority so she could better serve the Gods.

Ashra’syle’nuruodo stepped up to the table and cleared her throat to draw attention to her. “I am ready for more training, I am anxious to better serve the Gods and until my skills are better refined I am certainly not ready to do so.”

 

[Cameron Centurion]

Unfortunately for the Chiss woman, Cameron did not share her optimistic appraisal of the situation. After all, the Gods wanted nothing...they were false. The question then became...did those of power want her to advance, strengthen? Did he perpetuate the traits the 'Gods' wanted out of their followers?

Silver-green eyes shifted from [member="Crystal"] to the blue-skinned woman with considerable effort and little to no real concern for who she was or...thought herself to be. "Funny. I have the ear of the Gods on a routine basis. Your specific advancement never comes up. The literal potential of any individual is all bit irrelevant to the greater scheme, the greater power of Moross. The strength of the devout."

Then again, Cameron was not much concerned with the social interactions of the Crusade's membership. He made no effort to address the woman's demeanor as his gaze shifted back to Crystal.

At the same time, a Priest in the colors of Aatrox was swiftly by [member="Ashra'syle'nuruodo"]'s side. "Take heed of your tongue pilgrim."

The sound drew Cameron's attention as he dismissed the man with a wave of the hand. For the moment, he gave the Chiss no more of his immediate attention. Crystal had always been more...patient.

 

[Crystal]

Crystal was well aware that the Chiss woman would be coming to speak with her at some point. After she'd been spared by the Gods, it was only natural that she would want to offer her service to them and grow in ways that not all of the pilgrims could. That being said, Crystal was tolerant. But not that tolerant. Rudeness was not tolerated with Crystal. The Sith Princess would give her one chance to change her manner of speaking, but would not be so generous in the future.

She listened to the brief exchange between Cameron and the Chiss. When there was pause, she offered the Chiss a warm smile.

"Greetings to you too. It's lovely to see you." Then her expression changed to a more serious one, and Asylen would hear her voice in her mind.

~Turn around, walk away twenty paces and count to one hundred. While you count, reconsider addressing a Princess in that manner. When you've finished, you may return and address us again politely.~

If she did not, she would regret it. Training she would receive, but the method would depend greatly on the Chiss' next move. Crystal turned back to Cameron and smiled. "And how are things with you?"

[member="Cameron Centurion"] [member="Ashra'syle'nuruodo"]

 

[Ashra'syle'nuruodo]

Taken aback by the response of [member="Cameron Centurion"] she couldn’t help but pause and think about her response, she was about to open her mouth to response when [member="Crystal"] cut in to scold her. She took another moment, weighing the options her red eyes flashing imperceptively between both Sith. Under normal circumstances she would ignore the instructions from the Sith princess, Asylen didn’t have time for polite or politically correct language but the woman had been party to her rescue so she owed her something for that at least. She glanced at the priest of Aatrox as he tried to correct her behaviour as well, she pictured carving his tongue from his mouth and a small smirk of satisfaction was briefly visible.

Stepping away the twenty paces she impatiently counted the hundred count in her head as she stared at the two Sith considering how she would approach for the second time. Ashra’syle’nuruodo knew what she wanted to say but doubted that it would be received any better than the first attempt. She finished the count, took a few extra seconds to consider and then approached the two Sith again.

“Apologies, I did not mean to imply that the Gods spoke of me, I have yet to start repaying the favour they granted by sparing my life. I have little doubt they do not recall someone as insignificant as me, they are no doubt busy with more pressing issues. I only meant to seek training so I may begin repaying the debt I owe them, I will certainly be better suited to serving in their name if I have better control over the powers they have bestowed upon me.”

Looking at Crystal the Chiss woman bowed her head ever so slightly. “Please accept my apology for my previous rudeness, I am simply anxious.”

 

[Cameron Centurion]

Cameron did not display a great deal of interest in the Chiss woman's apology, but he had the sense that she was mostly addressing [member="Crystal"] anyways. Allowing his attention to linger on the blonde Crusdaer sitted beside him, the Sith Lord responded casually to her question. "Busy, to be sure. However, I suppose an air of that is to be expected given the variety of competing priorities amongst the Crusade." That wasn't, of course, to say that the loyal followers of the Crusade were biting off more than they could chew. Quite the opposite, in fact.

"Though I must say some of my attentions have been drawn...core-ward. Very interesting developments regarding this new group of Sith and the swift near-destruction of Coruscant. Again." Silently, Cameron made a mental note to reach out to his contact to see if there was any further information he could glean for personal or professional exploitation. How long had it been since he'd paid blondie a visit anyways? Far too long, no doubt. Far too long.

 

[Crystal]

It seemed as though she'd had time to watch Asylen walk away and pose her inquiry to Cameron and already the Chiss woman was back. At least her words had sunk into that blue skull of hers. Well wasn't she chatty when apologizing. Crystal almost laughed. If only the Chiss woman had an inkling of what she was capable of. Not that it was good for her health to find out what Crystal could do.

"Apology accepted. Your first task is to take this and make it levitate from your hand with your mind." Crystal called a spoon to her hand from the table nearby that had been recently abandoned and offered it to Asylen. "Come back when you can demonstrate, and we'll discuss possible routes of your training."

Then she turned to Cameron. "Always busy yes. I like to be busy. It keeps me from killing people for fun." She said it loud enough that Asylen would still be able to hear unless she ran out of earshot. Then she smirked. "The Core huh? Sounds like fun." She'd read of the goings on there. (Though Crystal's writer has no idea what the hell is going on anywhere....)

"Mostly I've been flashing my pearly whites and glad handing, and you know, training apprentices. All of my favorite things here in the Crusade." She smiled. Diplomacy wasn't her favorite thing to do, but she'd had centuries of practice. "I've been sensing change is coming however, so it will be interesting to see what unfolds."

[member="Cameron Centurion"] [member="Ashra'syle'nuruodo"]

 

[Ashra'syle'nuruodo]

Taking the spoon from Crystal the Chiss woman retreated to the other side of the mess, she knew she could fling the spoon across the room using the force but that wasn’t the demonstration the Sith woman was looking for. Taking a seat she put the spoon down on the table and stared at it trying to use her emotions to empower herself, she had to focus as well though, if she let herself get frustrated she would only get a chaotic response from the force.

Staring at the spoon she tried to focus the anger she felt towards the Sith man who implied that she was not important to the Gods. The rather than levitating the spoon bent around itself into a ball of metal, this was certainly not what she was looking for. She softened her approach a little, trying to concentrate on lifting the now little ball of metal into the air.

[member="Cameron Centurion"] [member="Crystal"]

 

[Cameron Centurion]

Cameron offered Crystal's comments little more than an absent-minded nod of the head as his gaze drifted around the large dining hall. As of late, the Sith Lord's normally active mind seemed to be running in overdrive. Though he'd played the game long enough to be largely unconcerned with so much happening amongst the Republic and between the Jedi and Sith, he could not help but feel a continuous pull to be dragged into the thick of it all once again. It was his curse and his blessing...the need to be challenged, the thirst for blood and combat.

[member="Crystal"]'s last comment did draw the Sith Lord's attention. Turning his head to regard her fully, Cameron arched a curious brow. "Oh?"

 

[Crystal]

[member="Cameron Centurion"]

Crystal nodded. "I'm not entirely sure, as the feeling isn't exactly specific. I have not had the time to meditate on it properly. Or perhaps the outcome has not yet been determined and therefore I cannot see it. Either way, time will tell."

It wasn't like foresight was one of her gifts, so she got glimpses every now and again. But Cameron was well aware of her strengths and weaknesses and skills. She tilted her head "Have the little birds been whispering to you?"

 

[Ashra'syle'nuruodo]

Clearing her mind as Crystal had instructed her Ashra’syle’nuruodo focused on the little ball of metal that had been a spoon that lay in her had in front of her. She closed her eyes and pictured the little ball with her mind, she focused on the idea of it flying and the unfortunate result was the little ball of metal rocketing to the ceiling, hitting a light fixture showering the Chiss woman with fragments of glass as the little ball of metal fell to the floor beside her.

Shaking her head to free the fragments of glass from her hair Asylen stood up and carefully picked up the little ball of spoon before moving over a few feet. She seemed to be frequently overestimating the power needed to do anything with the force, she was either pushing the accelerator to the floor or jamming on the brakes and the two extremes of the power was not what she was looking for. As she held out the little ball of metal again a thought occurred. She closed her eyes again and imagined her right hand was lifting the ball of metal and the left was restraining it bringing the little ball hovering between the two hands. She slowly the power she was imagining in both hands until she no longer needed the left to keep the little ball of metal floating gently above her right hand. She had found the balance, she slowly opened her eyes and smirked to herself.

She let the little ball fall back to her hand and moved back to where the two Sith were sitting talking. Asylen stepped into their sight line and cleared her throat before holding out her right hand the little ball of metal floating slowly and steadily up until it stopped a few inches above her hand. It wobbled in her unrefined grip but it was floating as had been instructed.

[member="Crystal"] [member="Cameron Centurion"]

 

[Cameron Centurion]

Cameron chuckled lightly at the woman's inquiry. "If by little birds you mean the Aesirs, sure." More specifically of by Aesirs she meant Amorella. However, there wasn't really much point in going into all of that with his ex-wife. Fortunately, the young Chiss returned and gave Cameron an excuse to pause his conversation with [member="Crystal"] yet again.

 

[Crystal]

Crystal chuckled as the glass above shattered before responding to Cameron. "Well, I figured it was one of your galaxy wide birds. But local information is good too."

The Sith Princess knew better than to pry, as it would do no good. If Cameron wanted her to know something, he would ensure that she knew. Aside from that, their functions within the Crusade were different, and her presence was not required by the Aesirs, or they would summon her. That was fine with her, as she kept herself busy between missions with the few that she trained now.

Speaking of apprentices, it seemed that the Chiss was bound and determined to interrupt at every possible opportunity. "Excellent." She pulled the mangled spoon from her hand with the Force. "Now go and make a chair levitate." This would be a lot harder for the Chiss, as many had a hard time dealing with sizeable objects. She would soon see if Asylen had that problem.

When the blue woman had trotted off again, she looked to Cameron once again. "Think she'll break something else?" She grinned.

 

[Ashra'syle'nuruodo]

Sighing heavily Ashra'syle'nuruodo took the chair and carried it back to where she had been practicing with the spoon. She didn't understand how levitating a chair was helping her but she would do it all the same. She put the chair down and sat on her heels on the floor beside it. She reached out her hand and getting a sense of the weight of the chair tried to lift it guiding it with her outstretched hand. She started to break a sweat as she controlled her breathing and the chair started to wobble off the ground, it was harder to control then the little ball of metal had been, it kept flipping itself over and falling onto the floor. If someone was watching it was probably quite amusing watching the chair flip and flop around on the floor like a dying fish out of water.

Closing her eyes and picturing the chair remaining upright Asylen lifted her other hand to stabilize the chair and keep it from flipping over itself. She got the chair into the air a few feet, beads of sweat dripping from her forehead, Exocron was too warm compared to home, but she persisted, the chair was in the air but not fully stable. She focused on keeping it from spinning trying to manipulate the force so she could let go with her other hand just use the one hand to guide the power into the task. She was amazed with the ease at which some of the masters of the power of the Gods seemed to manipulate it. The chair was finally in the air, hovering gently there without any movement she didn't dare move for fear of breaking her focus.

Ashra'syle'nuruodo called out to Crystal across the mess. "Is this what you wanted?"

 

[Cameron Centurion]

Cameron offered [member="Crystal"] more than a roguish grin she would recall all too well from their distant past. "Well. Perhaps that too."

As the exchange between Crystal and the Chiss woman continued, the Sith Lord arched a curious brow. "I hope that she does not." Silently, silver-green eyes diverted in the direction of the Chiss before settling on Crystal once more. "Quite a public venue you have chosen. It would be better if the people of Moross believed individuals were chosen to wield the power of the Gods. The sight of a woman obviously struggling to learn these abilities and succeeding might yet make the faithful honor her efforts."

For a brief moment, Cameron was silent. Eventually, he offered a very subtle shrug of his shoulders. "I suppose it's irrelevant. I know full well that Aatrox will implore me to smite her should she engage his displeasure." They both knew what that meant. Aatrox was a myth. Cameron Centurion was the reality.

 

[Crystal]

Crystal narrowed her eyes "I did not choose this venue. She did. And since she cannot wait until we're in private, she's on her own. She can embarrass herself in public if she wishes. These people will assume she follows Hali, and is probably on drugs."

And right on cue, Asylen was yelling. "Implore, or simply suggest?" Crystal chuckled. "I wouldn't be heartbroken. I'll teach her manners and restraint soon enough."

She did not verbally answer the Chiss who was yelling. Instead, she used the Force to push the chair into Asylen and knock her down, possibly out.

~Stop yelling in public. Go to your quarters and practice. I will be there in thirty minutes.~

[member="Cameron Centurion"] [member="Ashra'syle'nuruodo"]

 

[Cameron Centurion]

Cameron's silver-green gaze did not waiver from Crystal's face as she immediately spouted off a number of excuses. The Sith Lord was never much interested in the particular need for people to immediately go on the defensive. An individual's action was an individual's action, right or wrong. Cameron himself did not always make the right choice, but he did not suffer the perceptions of others either. That...he could have respected.

For a moment, the Mask of Aatrox wanted to retort that regardless of who [member="Ashra'syle'nuruodo"] was perceived to be worshipping, the people in the room would only see her doing Crystal's bidding and continuously returning to Cameron's table. A table at which, by the way, the Princess was a guest. He also could have said that if the Chiss were perceived to be a follower of Hali, the blame would fall squarely upon [member="Crystal"]'s shoulders. She was recognized as a leader amongst that particular sect whether she liked it or not. Therefore Hali's position and influence would be inexplicapably weakened. The Goddess was known for her jolity, true, but not for being moronic or unnecessarily disruptive at the wrong time.

All these thoughts and more swirled in the Sith Lord's mind, but only one particular thought spurred the otherwise tranquil figure into action. Casually, Cameron averted his gaze to one of his people, beckoning the man forth with a single finger. When the masked visage had arrived, the Sith Lord spoke casually. "I am suddenly struck with the desire for a BLT."

The figure replied in an almost metallic voice. "The usual accoutrements?"

Cameron offered a subtle nod before dismissing the man. Shifting his gaze back to Crystal, he made a...comment. "Aatrox does not differentiate between imploring and suggesting so neither do I." A change of topic was required. "How are things amongst the followers of Hali, anyways?"