Morally Ambiguous

[Vexillar]

Kowak...funny he had never been there before, he never really felt a need to go there. An all but abandoned planer, strong in the Force but otherwise lacking anything of superifical value or material for that matter. Unless you wanted a grand new pet. Then sure, it held plenty of value. However, that wasn't what the Sith Arcanist desired. It wasn't what he wanted, and it surely wasn't what he strived for. A monkey wasn't going to make or break his research...

No. He decided to go because he felt...compelled to. If he was honest it was on his list of places to see, but it was far from a priority. Today he felt some strange tug, urging him to the planet, a kind of siren's callm he just hoped that answering the summons wouldn't result in a death of his own.

The ruins and such on this planet held interest to him. Archaeology wasn't really something he cared for, outside of old Sith text and tombs, but who knows what he'd find on a planet so tied into the Force. Mayhaps the original settlers knew something, or believed something, that he had yet to come across? This was one of the few times he would have a chance to explore on his own. Away from the constant questions of those of lesser experience and the scrutinizing eye of his superiors, however few those were. He simply needed a vacation and it seemed the Force had selected his destination for him.

He touched down on the planet's surface and immediately threw his mind out to explore the surrounding area. He didn't bother going to a city. He landed right in the thick of things, in a heavily forested area. Touched down meaning that he had to jump out of the curiser he came in on, against the pilot's wishes but he certainly wasn't going to stop him. The Arcanist landed with little problem, but found nothing in his mental search. Just the minds of non-sentient beings. Cute, but not what he was here for. He began to meditate, calling on the Force. It had led him here for a reason. Maybe it could point him in the right direction...or point someone to him.

 

[Wolf]

It had been nearly a week since the meeting on Endor yet Nakoma's head still ached. The winds of change brought a tumultuous sea, one that she felt could consume her at any moment. She felt responsible for the breakdown in communication as her words to and about Lucien Fang seemed to spark the brawl that ensued. The woman had searched for Seamus after the fact to learn his reasons for calling the gathering in the first place...but all she ended up finding were more questions.

A heavy sigh escaped the lips of the raven haired beauty as she sat down at the top of a seemingly endless set of stairs at the heart of the great ruins upon Kowak. She had been traveling to this location for years in search of solace. The Force was exceptionally powerful upon this jungle planet, particularly amidst the stone reminders of the distant past.

Nakoma pressed her thighs into the handmade bricks beneath her. She straightened her spinal column and inhaled deeply, drawing in the life giving air as well as the life giving Force. She had been coming here long enough that the Kowakian Monkey Lizards all but ignored her and so the olive skinned woman settled in for a long session of meditation.

Just a few minutes in, something rippled through the Force and touched her mind in the same way that a droplet of water into a pond caused tiny waves to move outward until touching the stones along the shore. Nakoma's coal colored lashes slowly fluttered open and her golden eyes scanned the thick line of trees all around her.

A stranger was making his way toward the Knight's sanctuary of solitude. There were several problems with this notion...primarily the fact that Nakoma believed she was alone. Rising to her feet, the Guardian began to reach out through the Force to get a better idea of what...or whom....was approaching.

"Who is it?" she called out with her mind. The Knight placed her hand upon the silver hilt of her lightsaber that hung from the heavy utility belt around her waist. Though a threat had yet to present itself, Nakoma was certainly on guard. Her golden eyes were alert as she repeatedly scanned the surrounding area for movement.Just then, she was certain that she had spotted someone.

Taking the disengaged cylinder into her hand, she held her ground and called out through the Force once agan. "Announce yourself!" she shouted into the mind of the approaching stranger. A gust of wind seemed to blow from deep within the ruins and it blew through her billowing robes of black. The young woman hoped that this was not a Force hunter or worse yet...a Sith.

 

[Vexillar]

The feeling wasn't an unfamiliar one. Someone brushing against the walls of his mind, searching for answers to who he was. He knew the sensation well, and he could tell this wasn't a hostile invasion. Which is why no attack was launched at them. Her voice came over his thoughts, echoing inside him as if she were speaking directly into his ear. He arched a brow curiously. He didn't expect to find anyone else here. Let alone someone skilled enough to use telepathy at this distance and speak full sentences. He reached out to test their mental walls and found them well established too. How curious...

He wanted to know more.

One day that curiosity will get you killed. The heavily accented voice of a Dathomiran female spoke in his mind. The voice of the disembodied Ertichu sighed deeply. She had calmed down much in her time with the Arcanist, but Raith could still feel her anger, her sorrow. She was hurting, but she was coming to accept her...condition.

Today won't be that day, my dear. You will see. The Force did not lead me here to die. Of that I am sure... He could feel the spirit's disagreement, and that was the nature of their relationship. Captor and prisoner, on two opposite ends of nearly everything.

He stood up from his meditation and brushed himself off. He didn't respond to the message, instead choosing to go to the source. The ripple in the Force he felt was subtle, almost lost against the larger presence of it's surrounding area. He tilted his head as if listening to a voice only he could hear, tuning his ethereal senses to the Force, listening for that familiar song of the sea.

He followed it closer and closer to the source until that which he looked for was in view for him. He still was well within the flora but he saw beyond all that to the ruins where the young woman stood. He smiled to himself as he read her aura. Looking at her from head to toe and seeing more than just her flesh...especially since he couldn't see such things anyway.

"I mean no harm, Follower of Ashla." He had his hands up as he emerged into view. His voice gave that familiar echo as his lips moved and he spoke with two. His own voice the dominant one but Ertichu's own feminine and clear Dathomir voice was just under that, something akin to how the Night Mother spoke, but not as...powerful. He flashed her a friendly smile and kept his hands where they were, seemingly a moot point when one could command the Universe with a thought, but he felt it would be reassuring.

 

[Wolf]

"I mean no harm, Follower of Ashla," the voice called out to her as a figure stepped out from the thicket opposite Nakoma. Though he identified her as a user of the light, her thumb flinched, anxious to ignite the saber in her hand... yet her mind refused to allow herself to react so quickly at the impulses of her emotions. The man's voice was strange as it was filtered through the Force and appeared within her mind. She was certain there were multiple channels of tone...

As the Miraluka came into view, the Jedi was convinced of his affiliation. The dark side dripped from his presence as if he was drenched in it. It was like a pungent stench that wafted into the woman's nose and turned her stomach in an instant. She had to ponder his intentions however...for if he wished to harm her, he would have attempted to by now. He came with no weapon in hand, but the hands themselves were weapons to any Force user.

"What is your name, Sith?" Nakoma's voice slipped into the mind of the one that would typically be labeled a foe...but at this point, she was somewhat puzzled as he was of a rather pleasant disposition. With a heavy sigh, the Jedi clipped the hilt of her saber back upon the utility belt that hung at around her waist. She slowly descended the imposing staircase and stopped at the midpoint.

For several moments, Nakoma's golden eyes studied the face of the stranger. He was attractive and possessed a soft appearance. It was the unseen implications however, that troubled the woman. Clearly within the realm of the Force she could see that he was a powerful practitioner of the dark side. Like her, it would be no troubling feat to drop the other one where they stood. Of course, Nakoma was certainly far more curious about this man than she was concerned.

"My name is Nakoma. Come, join me if you care to," she called to the man as a myriad of questions filled her mind for and about him. She was hopeful that they would have the opportunity to speak, since it was obvious that they would not be trying to kill one another...at least, for now.

 

[Vexillar]

Raith smiled warmly and bowed his head. Taking her up on the invite, he began the rise up the steps. He pursed his lips slightly at being called Sith though. The sting of that word, that title, felt as sharp as ever. Why should he be labeled by those whom he associated with? He supposed it was fair, looking down at his hands for a moment, he observed his aura. The energy of Bogan ran along, but it only ran surface deep. The core of himself was a light gray, a tone that neither supported Ashla or Bogan. Such a tone was birthed from his belief in the Unified Force, the belief in Life and Death and not Light and Dark. He didn't see the power bestowed upon him as split thing. Why should he? No. The Force, to him, was a singular energy, a singular person, who's definition altered based upon one's outlook and emotional output. Bogan's coat around him was due to his time spent on worlds rotten to the core with it.

Hm...

Looks like he should try to get out more often.

It was then that he realized he was walking up these steps while looking at his hand. He must look odd to her. Looking up he chuckled and smiled. "My apologies, Light One. I didn't mean to appear absent. That being said, I am Sith in title alone, I assure you. If I wasn't, then...well I suppose I should be engaged in deadly combat with you. Right? No, I assure you you're safe." He smiled and took a seat next to her. Eezeo climbed up into his lap. He pet the golden droid idly like a dog. He was terribly attached to his droids, loved them, he loved all droids. Machinery was practical, logical, methodical, black and white. They didn't deal with morally gray areas...He truly loved them.

Looking up to the woman he tilted his head slightly. "What brings you here? It seems like such a strange place for two people to have gathered at a remote location unplanned. Mayhaps the Force drew you to this location like it did for me?"

 

[Wolf]

As Nakoma reached the top of the ancient stone stairs, she turned and lowered herself into a seated position. Her gilded gaze grew curious as she watched the stranger stare at his hands whilst making the ascent. She could feel the hum of the thoughts as they traveled through the space behind his eyes, yet she continued to actively limit herself from peering into his mind. For the Knight, it was a matter of respect. The only truly private thing that anyone possessed were the thoughts in their heads....who was she to deny them that basic right?

"My apologies, Light One. I didn't mean to appear absent. That being said, I am Sith in title alone, I assure you. If I wasn't, then...well I suppose I should be engaged in deadly combat with you. Right? No, I assure you you're safe." The Jedi could only smile warmly as the man reached her side and sat down. He certainly was polite enough...but perhaps he underestimated her. "Yes indeed, I am safe," the Knight laughed slightly as she reached over her head and tapped the stock at the back of the blaster rifle.

Nakoma knew that her protection was literally in her hands. They were weapons as the Force coursed through her and she had spent years learning how to use it to affect the galaxy around her. She glanced down and, just as the man had done only moments before, she began staring into her palms. She could see the blood upon them...she could see the good that she had done...she could feel the power that they possessed as well as the pain that they wrought.

A moment of silence passed and the Knight's golden gaze shifted from her hands to a small droid that had crawled up into the lap of this Sith who was beginning to intrigue the Jedi. She had never met a user of the dark side who had such a...soft side. "What brings you here? It seems like such a strange place for two people to have gathered at a remote location unplanned. Mayhaps the Force drew you to this location like it did for me?" Nakoma nodded as she shifted her eyes toward the sky that peeked through the thick canopy overhead.

"I have been coming here for years..." Nakoma began with a thoughtful tone carrying her telepathic words into the man's mind. She smiled as a large bird of many colors soared through the wide, sprawling branches. "The Force is particularly strong here. I think that is why the people from which my tribe hails decided to settle here thousands of years ago. This was their temple. They worshipped the Force and just as my people today, they referred to it as the Great Wind." The Knight's gaze and attention shifted back to the stranger whom, she had to remind herself again, was a Sith.

Nakoma tilted her head to the side and studied the stranger's face. The Miraluka had been somewhat of a mystery to her. She had only ever encountered them on one other occasion when training one...but the student had decided not to finish his training. Though they were blind and she was deaf, they shared a common denominator...the need to rely upon the Force. "So..Sith in name alone? Why is that...friend?" Nakoma used the word casually yet carefully. She was still not certain that he was indeed not a foe, though nothing gave her any indication otherwise. His title said he was...his behavior spoke otherwise.

"And your name? I gave you mine...please trust me with yours in return," the Guardian said with a warm smile tugging at the corners of her lips.

 

[Vexillar]

"Ah...my apologies. My name is Vi. And..." He tilted his head a bit curiously.

How did one explain him? His thoughts, his feeling, his...well him. How did anyone even begin to elaborate about him? He took a moment to collect his thoughts before speaking again.

"The Sith are where my friends, and a person that i feel more than friendship for, reside. I was taken there when I was young, though not against my will. They killed my master and...well they raised me. But I am not Sith. No. I am myself. I make my own path, form my own theology. I have the title Sith, but I am merely a child of the Force, and should be defined as such."

He felt that would suffice. It would have to. That was the best that he could do. How else was one to describe him? He didn't believe in Light and Darkness, feeling that they were too simplistic for the Force. Terms and limitations set upon a higher being that reduce the vastness of the Force. No. He wouldn't be so disrespectful to the power of the Force, Ashla and Bogan, the Twin Spirits...no.

She did say something, however, that piqued his interested.

"Before we continue, allow me to apologize. I didn't mean to intrude on your people's temple...I didn't know. But...the Great Wind? I pride myself on being a philosopher of the Force, and yet...the Great Wind is unfamiliar to me. Please, explain?"