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[Wrenarias]

He's dangerous.

The realization slowly settled over Wrenarias, her mind conjuring the image of the slumbering beast and its golden gaze. This calm and charming man in front of her masked another part of himself. What she didn't know was whether it was intentional or not. If it was, what did that mean, exactly? Would he hurt try to hurt her?

His body language and tone of voice said 'no', but she wasn't sure she could trust the facade or not.

Her lavender eyes narrowed slightly as she met his gaze, her own posture didn't change on the couch.

Caution had taken her far over the years, keeping her off the radar and out of too much trouble since she'd been separated from Kelina. Toeing the line between outright lying and vague truths was a difficult skill to learn, but she managed.

For now, there wasn't much plausibility in her lying about what he'd felt. Her fingers stopped their idle fiddling, dropping her hands back down to her lap as she managed a slight smile, as if embarrassed. Which, to be fair, she was. It was a source of great frustration that couldn't always control that part of her.

"I guess... the best way to explain it is as an extension of my own emotions, shared through touch." She explained in a soft voice, quirking her mouth to the side.

The next question was a bit more difficult, but she wasn't technically a Jedi yet. So, she shook her head. "And no, I'm not."

She placed a hand to her chest, sighing. "I'm really sorry. It can be... overwhelming for some people. I should have been more careful.."

[member="Darth Maliphant"]

 

[Darth Empyrean]

“Extension of emotion?”, he said in a slow, methodical repetition to her own.

It seemed at the very least, it wasn’t a glimpse into his past - were she to be trusted. In truth, he doubted if she saw who he was, or what he’d been through she would be so calm - or willing to come into his penthouse. His muscles relaxed, and the Sith Lord offered a genuine, if not slightly withheld, smile towards her. She was either the best actor he’d seen, or no longer the threat he thought she might be…

“Don’t be apologetic, Wren - Can I call you that?”, he said an abrupt interruption of his own tone.

“Regardless, everyone has their natural differences - and I don’t think that ‘extension’ is anything to be too ashamed about.”, he with a bit more endurance. She wasn’t the first person he’d had to explain that to, a common trope among insecure Sith acolytes it’d seem -

“No, often you should embrace such things - if I were to be so bold.”

He slowly stood, and picked up his glass, moving to refill it as he spoke -

“I hope I’m not being too up front, Miss.”

The AI chimed in afterwards, a constant listener but careful not to interrupt - her waif like tones offering a hum and a greeting;

“Wrenarias. Its a beautiful name, you know?”, the computer offered. “I’m Cybele. The AI for Jaeger, I help to make sure all our operations across the galaxy are working to their utmost best.”

The AI appeared on the massive screen before them, and her digital appearance was as beautiful and luxurious as the rest of the penthouse - with a bobbed haircut and a flawless complexion, it was hard to say an AI couldn’t make themselves look great - but it was probably Dorian that designed the way she looked.

“If you need anything while you’re here. Don’t be afraid to ask me - Speaking of which, do you have a place to stay on Coruscant?”, she asked rather abruptly.

Dorian resisted the urge to stop her, simply sighing as he poured another glass.

[member="Wrenarias"]

 

[Wrenarias]

"Wren is fine..." She said in a low voice, still cautious. It felt like Dorian was quickly moving forward through the conversation, not actually caring what her opinion was on the matter. In all fairness, he likely didn't. From her experience, wealthy men tended not to let mundane things, like another person's feelings, get in the way of their ambition or wants. Dorian may have been handsome and charming, but he still fell into that category -- and that was before she'd caught a glimpse of the slumbering beast within him.

Her head canted slightly to the side at something he said. "You know quite a bit about the Force, I take it?" She asked curiously.

His words lent credence to her sensing his connection to the Force, but she didn't know the nature of it... nor how powerful it really was.

Before he could answer, the AI interjected herself into the conversation.

Wrenarias turned her gaze to the screen, arching a brow slightly when she saw the striking visage of the AI. It was almost off-putting how beautiful she was. Everything in Dorian's life seemed so... pristine. The realization left the twi'lek feeling all the more out of place in his penthouse.

"Oh... thank you, Cybele. I do have a place to stay, actually. I'll be sure to ask if anything comes up."

[member="Darth Maliphant"]

 

[Darth Empyrean]

Cybele simply chimed in happy acknowledgement, leaving Dorian time to reply -

“I… Do.”, he said almost hesitantly. It wasn’t that he was going to tell a random stranger ‘Oh yes, I’m a Sith Lord.’, but it wouldn’t do to lie to in contrast to one's own nature. As he finished pouring his drink, he returned - though this time with the bottle in hand. He rested it on the table near her glass, took another drink of his own, and sat back down where he had prior.

“It's hard to explain without seeming pathetic.”, he said with an almost nervous smile, watching his hands tap on the glass he held.

“When I was young - It was a dream of mine. The Jedi were something of a matter of… Freedom, a way off the planet I came from - but I was never lucky enough to find a Master; nor do I even know if I’m a Force User.”

He chuckled, though it almost seemed forced - and he took another drink.

“Its an embarrassing story, I suppose. They were superheroes to me - but I made something of myself in other ways.”, Dorian said with a motion to the penthouse around him.

“And you have me.”, Cybele momentarily chimed in.

“And I have you, Cybele.”, Dorian mused.

[member="Wrenarias"]

 

[Wrenarias]

If Dorian wanted to talk about himself, Wren certainly wasn't going to stop him. One of her least favorite things to do was to prattle on about her past. Those memories were all best left behind her, there was nothing for her there. Whenever someone asked her about her history, she often felt as if they wanted something from her. She never knew how much information was appropriate to give. Machines were easy to interact with... people not so much.

Ironic, considering her innate 'gift'.

Now that a conversation had turned away from herself, she felt comfortable enough to take another sip from her drink. She leaned into the back of the couch once more, tucking her legs up beside her on the cushion. It was a much more relaxed posture, letting the glass rest on her thigh while she wasn't drinking from it.

When she spoke, she idly gestured with her free hand towards Dorian.

"I'd hardly call something like that pathetic or embarrassing. Everyone has dreams of something better, don't they?" She paused to take a sip from the drink, then placed the glass back on top of her leg.

"Though... I suspect you know the truth to the question of your sensitivity to the Force if you were hoping to find a..." She seemed to hesitate, as if she loathed the next word she was about to say. "a master?"

She glanced around the extravagant penthouse, then gestured around the room. "How'd you end up getting away then?"

[member="Darth Maliphant"]

 

[Darth Empyrean]

“No, just hope.”, he said absentmindedly.

“A master would give me a definite answer - not... “, he sighed as he took another drink.

“Nevermind.”

Dorian listened as she asked how he got away - and idled for a moment in thought as to how he got away. He wouldn’t tell her that he never did - that he was bought by a Sith who used him as a plaything for years before selling him off to the highest bidder, nor that the next to own him abandoned him to his own devices to the Darkstaff. He almost grimaced at the thought - but never showed his uncomfortable journey through memory lane.

“I got… Lucky, I suppose.”, he said simply.

“Stowed away on a freighter I was helping to load, and before anyone realized I was gone - I was. Its a terribly boring story, I don’t want to annoy you with the details.”, he said with a dismissive wave.

Another drink of his own. Histories were so disruptive to ones state of being.

“What about yourself? Where do you come from?”, he asked, inadvertently putting the pressure back on Wrenarias.

[member="Wrenarias"]

 

[Wrenarias]

Of course, she thought bitterly to herself as he turned the questions right back around to her. She had to remind herself that was the flow of natural conversations and she could hardly hold that against the man. He was likely just as curious about her as she was him. Especially considering the "sparks" as he called them, silly as that was.

She pressed her tongue against the inside of her cheek, trying to decide how much to share. He'd been relatively vague with his answers, and it stood to reason that he was as uncomfortable talking about himself as she was about herself. At least they had that in common.

Finally, she gave a soft chuckle into her glass as she polished off the last of her first drink then she leaned forward to refill it as she started to reply.

"Well, by the strictest definition, I'm from Ryloth... but I don't consider that home. Don't really have a 'home' in a traditional sense." She mused, leaning back into the couch to get comfortable once again.

"Afraid it's a rather grim tale, one that wasn't all too uncommon at the time..." Her words trailed off for a moment, glancing to the large window to gaze out over the skyline. She chewed her bottom lip and clicked her tongue.

It was a poorly kept secret that many twi'lek women were sold into slavery by their own brethren on Ryloth. Though Wren wasn't sure if Dorian would even be aware of that darker bit of her homeworld's history. She wasn't about to come out and tell a near stranger that she'd be sold off.

"Do you often have sit downs with every new employee?" She asked rather suddenly, taking a breath as she looked back at the man.

 

[Darth Empyrean]

He hummed as he thought about his answer -

‘Just the pretty ones.’, didn’t seem wholly appropriate, and while the once hedonist of the Outer Rim that he would have said that much and more - he couldn’t help but be more reserved.

“Some, yes.”, he finally settled on. It wasn’t the most undue lie, many of his employees did find themselves in his penthouse - though rarely did they talk about their past, histories and so forth. Dorian was somewhat of a mystery to his own company - as it was deserving.

He understood, or assumed, he knew what she hinted at - Ryloth was notorious for exporting Twi’lek females; and they were a hot commodity anywhere slavery wasn’t banned. Once, he had seen an entire freighter of them end up on Nar Shaddaa - shackled and beaten into submission, for rooms and places he knew all too well what would happen. Slavery was a sickened endeavor, and despite all the cruelty he had enacted the galaxy -

Slavery would never be one of them.

Dorian eventually took another drink, and motioned to her with the glass -

“If you’d prefer to leave, I won’t stop you; I just don’t often-”

Was he comfortable with her leaving? He knew she hadn’t seen his past, yet she remained extremely uncomfortable - she saw something, at least. Maliphant couldn’t help but to wonder what.

“-get conversational partners that aren’t out to steal my fortune.”, he chuckled.

[member="Wrenarias"]

 

[Wrenarias]

His remark actually caused the twi'lek to genuinely laugh, a warm and endearing sound that matched her bright smile. Her weight shifted on the couch, turning more towards him as she got a little more comfortable.

"I appreciate it. I actually... don't get much chance to talk to people either, heh." She chewed at the inner corner of her mouth.

Her thumb lightly tapped against the rim of her glass, a little unsure as to what her next move should be.

"If that's the case though, you must have something you'd like to talk about other than small talk?" She grinned at him, sipping from her drink.

For now, it seemed the tension had abated. If he wanted a fight, it likely would have started already.

[member="Darth Maliphant"]

 

[Darth Empyrean]

“What's wrong with small talk?”, he said almost defensively.

Cybele quickly chimed in, her teasing tones integrated with the ever so slight synthetic nature of her voice, “There's a lot wrong with small talk, Dorian.”

“Who’s side are you on?”, he snapped at her, although with a smile.

He shook his head before finishing his glass - a decent amount before refilling his glass. The decanter had much in terms of quantity, and the tumblers were small - he saw no reason to not continue to drink.

“It’s hard to say, there are a thousand directions and more conversations like these can go.”, he offered with an idle fancy.

“If you’d prefer something other than ‘small’ talk, what did you have in mind? I’ll give you one free answer, anything you want to ask about me.”, he raised a hand as though to make a pledge.

“Scout’s honor.”

[member="Wrenarias"]

 

[Wrenarias]

The twi'lek tilted her head a little to the side, curiously considering her answer. She hummed thoughtfully, then took a longer swig from her glass. The sweet taste of pear filled her mouth and she savored it for a moment longer. It really was a delectable drink, she had to commend Dorian's taste.

Her eyes took in the man's features.

"Any answer? That's a generous offer." She smirked back at him, setting her glass back onto her knee.

A plethora of questions came to mind, making it difficult to settle on any single one.

"Hmm... if you could change one thing to make life better, what would it be?" The question was a fairly vague one, but it left the answer open-ended, instead of a simple yes or no.

[member="Darth Maliphant"]

 

[Darth Empyrean]

To make life better.

Maliphant considered the question - what exactly would make his life easier? He’d pondered what he wanted, what he fought for - yet he could never find an answer. He was a creature of habit, a man of that knew he followed in fate’s design but never understood exactly what fate had in order, or even wished upon him. Bane had the Order of Two, Vitiate his Eternal Empire, Sidious his Galactic Empire -

And yet Maliphant had nothing, he only did to do. To keep momentum.

He tapped his finger against the rim of his glass, as he thought about it in silence -

“I’d like to know what I’m here for. My purpose.”, he said quietly, his eyes watching nothing in the distance.

“I’ve spent a great long time working myself for goals others set for me - and yet I’ve never found what I’ve wanted. Success in every way but what matters, I suppose.”, he said with a weak smile to Wrenarias.

Not an easy question, and not one he liked to think about. Perhaps that was a poor offer to make to the girl.

He downed another drink and sat with an empty glass as he savoured it. At least being friendly would lessen her suspicions of him.


[member="Wrenarias"]

 

[Wrenarias]

"You don't need someone else to give you purpose, Dorian." She said gently, watching him curiously, another faint smile touching her lips.

He'd given her an honest answer, one that she could empathize with, without having to touch him. She'd spent a good portion of her life trapped at the whims of others above her.

It wasn't until recently that she'd been able to make a choice for herself.

Part of her wondered why a man that seemed to have everything, felt as though he had a hollow victory. What did someone like him truly want?

Her second drink was finished shortly after, then she leaned forward to refill the glass.

"What would say matters then? If this..." She gestured around them. "Counts for nothing?"

[member="Darth Maliphant"]

 

[Darth Empyrean]

He almost scoffed -

“It counts for something, just -”, he paused as he tried to find the right words.

“-just not enough.”

Maliphant leaned forward as Cybele hummed away, working on some discretionary process someone in the company asked her to - figuring out mining schedules, filing reports, whatever it was she did. The Sith Lord poured himself his fourth drink, and he could feel the effects of the alcohol creep on the fringes of his conscious.

“Happiness, I suppose. Luxury is exciting, for a while, and it certainly prevents unhappiness.”, Dorian jested with her as he took another sip.

Thoughts swam to a love he had in a previous life, of how his enslavement to chains brought them together but the enslavement of his ambition drove them apart. Another where a Jedi took the life of his apprentice, losing her to the malignant energy of the Nether. He sighed at the thought of paradise lost, and glanced back to Wrenarias - even with the alcohol, she didn’t need to know about them.

“Being powerful like-”, he motioned to the onyx, gilded penthouse they sat in, “-this, it has its advantages, Wren, but people prey on weakness. A man like me…”

He exhaled slowly.

“A man like me doesn’t get the chance to be vulnerable. Vulnerability counts for something, I suppose…”

Another sip, and he waved his hand away.

“Oh, listen to me prattle on - Don’t listen to me, Wren. Alcohol does wonders to make me talk nonsense.”, he chuckled - though there was the ever so slight hint of sadness behind it.


[member="Wrenarias"]

 

[Wrenarias]

The conversation had certainly taken an interesting turn. She glanced to her own drink and took another quick sip from the contents, finishing her second glass. For a moment, she considered if she wanted a third, then decided that she might as well. It would likely be a long time until she was able to imbibe a good a drink as this again.

She leaned forward, pouring herself another glass.

"In that case... what would make you happy?" She asked gently, looking up at him as she set the decanter back down on the table.

"I can see how having all this would certainly prevent unhappiness, but that's a far cry from contentment." She mused quietly, settling back into the couch once more.

Her teeth sank into her bottom lip, realizing that she was prying entirely too much. Dorian was her employer, after all. No, it was far more than that. The difference in their status was as vast as the distance between stars. So... why was she still here? Perhaps it was lonely, all the way up here at the top of his ivory tower.

"Feel free to prattle on. It's an interesting thread of conversation. If you'd rather though, we can change topics."

[member="Darth Maliphant"]

 

[Darth Empyrean]

He simply shook his head -

“I’ve heard it often said that selflessness is the true key to happiness, yet everything I was taught says otherwise.”

He sipped from his drink as he slowly stood, making a slow and methodical few steps from the room to the balcony - the automatic transparisteel moving aside at his presence. The air was warm, and the building had repulsors that kept the wind from ever growing beyond a comforting breeze. He leaned against the rails, looking back to Wren as he spoke -

“Its hard to say what would make me happy, Wren.”, he idled with a gentle smile to her.

“Credits, power, knowledge… I own all of these things in more quantity than most.”, he idled as he tapped his glass.

“Love, perhaps.”, the Sith Lord finally settled on.

Cybele chimed in short order -

“Perhaps you’ve had enough to drink, Dorian?”, she said with a mild concern.

Maliphant exhaled in acknowledgement, “I suppose I have.”

“I’ve answered your question in full honesty, Wren; I hope that was what you were looking for.”, Dorian said with a glance towards the horizon.

[member="Wrenarias"]

 

[Wrenarias]

The twi'lek stood from the couch, moving to stand at the doorway, leaning against the frame with her arms casually folded over her chest, her right hand loosely holding her glass. She turned her gaze to the horizon for a few moments, enjoying the feel of the gentle breeze tickling her face.

"Fair is fair, is it not? Would you like to ask something of me, instead?" She offered, lingering a few steps behind him.

A glance was spared towards the source of the AI's voice, intrigued by the relationship between her and Dorian.

She took a sip from the drink, turning her attention back to Dorian.

"Or would you prefer I see myself out, Dorian?"

[member="Darth Maliphant"]

 

[Darth Empyrean]

There was a pride in him that didn’t want to ask her to stay, but he wasn’t so cruel to tell her to leave. It was far between that Maliphant had a chance to talk to someone without the endless games that Sith played - to truly speak, to mean what one says; and yet even now he was hindered by his identity, a secret left to his need for survival.

“I suppose I’d ask you the same, Wren.”, he said with a glance back to her, though only momentarily over his shoulder.

“What would make you happy in this grand galaxy of ours?”

A man who had everything needed to know what exactly he didn’t have - and perhaps Wren’s own insight would be enough to tell him. A perspective he couldn’t ask the others, something he could never offer another of his kind. A vulnerability, it would seem, he had given to a stranger - but done so from a deeply seeded need for companionship.

Perhaps his ivory tower was lonelier than he cared to admit.

He sipped on his drink despite Cybele’s careful reminder.

[member="Wrenarias"]

 

[Wrenarias]

Having the question turned back to her was to be expected, but it didn't make giving an answer any easier. She made a quiet, thoughtful sound in the back of her throat as she pushed herself off the doorframe and walked across the balcony to come stand next to the man. Her forearms braced against the railing, the drink hanging perilously by her fingertips over the ledge.

"Honestly, I ask myself that everyday." She said in a soft voice, gazing out to watch the speeders and ships soar past.

"Not sure there's much to be done when it comes to my personal life, honestly." Her voice was tinged with sadness as she spoke.

"Happiness can be so... fleeting. Like trying to grasp at smoke. One second you think you've got it in your hand... the next it's vanished." A frowned touched her lips and she glanced down to the drink that dangled from her fingers. Perhaps she'd had a bit too much herself.

"That doesn't really answer the question though, does it? I guess... I don't know. Maybe for something to just go right for once. To not screw up everything I..." She faltered for a moment, frowning.

"Now I'm the one prattling." The twi'lek muttered, shaking her head.

[member="Darth Maliphant"]

 

[Darth Empyrean]

It seemed even Wrenarias could not provide him with an answer - and perhaps that was simply what the galaxy had in mind. Unhappiness was the constant all felt, for those with power and those without - it was a terrifying equalizer on the level of death. Yet even that answer didn’t satisfy Maliphant -

Dorian listened to what she had to say, and felt empathy. He wasn’t incapable of such a thing, he just never chose to show it - and for a moment, he almost did. He reached outwards, as though to comfort Wrenarias by gripping her shoulder - but stopped himself just short of her skin and drew back. The business man offered an awkward smile and apologized -

“Sorry, I uh… Forgot.”

He glanced back to the horizon and took another drink before speaking -

“I hope at the very least, this job will work out. Go right for you. I understand Cybele already offered it, but… If you need anything, just ask.”

[member="Wrenarias"]