Open The Second Leg

[Talak Rand]

Talak let out a deep, relaxing breath. This whole mission had been kind of absurd, but he knew Artee would be keeping an eye on the scanners for anyone approaching, so he wasn't too worried about being on watch. He sipped his wine and find the taste instantly relaxing, pressing back against the worries that haunted him in virtually every moment.

She mentioned missing her dresses and he couldn't help think that was an odd thing to miss. To him, he was so disconnected from items like that, but he supposed it made more sense for her. The things he was attached to were likely equally as odd.

You can always get more clothes. Just because you're a Sith doesn't mean you have to dress in black, he said. It was partially a joke and partially serious. The Sith - apart from the Knights of Ren - weren't quite as edgy as they could have been, but many of them still failed to look "normal."

It was her turn to ask something and he tried not to stiffen up at the mention of Trys. The fact that someone knew about their... acquaintanceship made him uncomfortable, even if Lilith had no intention of using that against him. He just had to remind himself that she had helped fight the Sith to aid her.

Right, he said doubtfully as she said she wouldn't snoop. He hadn't even talked about Trys and Lilith had tracked her down. Nevertheless, he intended to answer.

I've some friends and acquaintances and one other person I help train, he said. He'd recruited Ender into the Sith, but didn't consider him to be an apprentice at all. Ana on the other hand, he had helped train, though she was probably discovering he was a terrible master just like Lilith had.

So what do you do in your spare time? Whatever little of it you have, he said. He wasn't even sure she had any or any clue what she did when they weren't working together. @Dread

 

[Lilith Vye]

"Actually... some shopping sounds amazing," she said after Talak's half-joke, smiling. She couldn't remember the last time she shopped, or spent time on herself like that.

Lilith smiled even more when he said there were others, but didn't add anything to it. She told herself she wouldn't snoop. She definitely wouldn't snoop. Nope. No snooping for her... okay, she'd probably snoop.

When he asked how she spent her spare time she suddenly frowned. "I guess..." she paused, thinking some before continuing, "I guess I don't give myself enough spare time to know how to answer that. I'm almost always working on something. Prepping, researching or studying for the next project or mission or whatever. The last time I gave myself a break I suppose I ended up drinking with a ranger, unless stalking your friend counts." She shrugged.

Maybe it was a sad answer; sad, as in, she only just realized how much she'd buried herself in work. Thinking on it, when she ran her shop, she did go for days, even weeks barely eating, drinking or sleeping while working on designing a program. Maybe she was always a workaholic, but back in the day she'd break it at her bar to relax. Now it seemed the loss of it's convenience had given her the excuse not to take those breaks.

"What about you?" she asked, tipping her head somewhat. He seemed like the workaholic type but maybe he wasn't. "What do you spend your spare time on?"

@Phoenix

 

[Talak Rand]

Talak could certainly relate to her sentiment. He, too, had little time to do anything. He spent most of his time either working, training, or planning. He sipped his wine, feeling it relax him more and taking in deep breaths to let off the tension.

I think you earned the time off, he said after she mentioned going shopping.

His eyebrow quirked up at the mention of drinks with a Ranger. Maybe this was why she'd taken such an interest in Trys. Oh yeah, there were going to be questions about that.

What did he do in his free time? Well he had spent some of it with Trys investigating crimes, but now that wasn't a thing. The memory of how things had ended was still a sore spot, and he shifted in his chair just thinking about it.

I don't have a lot of free time, really. Most of it is spent pursuing my own goals and interests, so that's... not really free time? Or at least not what normal people do, he said with a shrug.

He didn't waste anytime in getting into the more interesting question. But tell me about the Ranger, he said with a smirk. And here I thought I was the only one with a Ranger friend, he said, but even as he said it the statement made his gut feel empty. He tried to push the thought aside and moved forward. @Dread

 

[Lilith Vye]

So he was a workaholic like herself, or at least he didn't give himself a lot of free time either. Even though Talak angered her more often than not, it did sometimes dawn on her that they shared more than a few traits.

She finally decided to take a sip of her wine, but ended up nearly choking on it when he brought up the ranger again with a smirk. Lilith felt her cheeks heat up while she tried to stop coughing. Why that smirk? She tried to will away the warmness in her cheeks, but wasn't entirely sure if that was possible.

"There's not much to tell," Lilith looked away now, deciding to fall back to the facts of the interaction instead of the deeper details. She found that it was a sneaky way not to get too personal or give too much away. "He was just... friendly and drunk. He approached me at the bar, bought me a drink... got into a fight with some other guy and then we went for a walk and..." she trailed off, frowning. "If he knew I was Sith, I'm certain the interaction would've been he pulled a blaster and I stabbed him through the gut with a lightsaber."

"Should I ask you to tell me more about Trys then?" she asked, looking back at him. It was clearly a way to dodge anymore questions about the ranger, though she was honestly curious about his answer.

@Phoenix

 

[Talak Rand]

Talak was surprised when she started choking on her wine, which told him there was probably something to this story. Of course, she painted it as being about is disinteresting as she could make it sound, but that was fine. He found it interesting that she had had a sit down with a Ranger as well. He wondered what she thought about it, but didn't ask yet.

Her attention turned back to Trys, and Talak was silent for a moment. Not only was it something he didn't like talking about, it was far too complex and had ended on far too negative a note. They'd parted ways with the same fireworks that characterized their entire relationship. They weren't even really on speaking terms right now, were they? More like awkward speaking terms, probably.

He took another, larger drink of his wine.

It's complicated, he said, then realized that was what people said when they were in a relationship, and that wasn't really the case... or was it? It was complicated...

We met while working a case, he said.

We became... friends, he said. She knew he was a Sith and he obviously knew she was a Sector Ranger, but he didn't really want to talk about this anymore. It was entirely uncomfortable for him.

So you've met a Sector Ranger then, what do you make of them? he asked. It was a simple question with a potentially complex answer. @Dread

 

[Lilith Vye]

Lilith tipped her head at his answers. Using terms like 'it's complicated' and pausing before defining their friendship made her a little bit... suspicious that there was something more going on. But she decided not to 'poke the bear' as it were. She didn't want to talk about her ranger encounter much either.

"I think they think they're doing good... but they're influenced and limited by the broken governments they work for," she answered, taking another sip of her wine and hoping not to choke on it this time.

After a pause to drink and think she added, "If their name and enthusiasm was plucked from where they are now and put into an imperial setting, I could see them working." She shrugged. "But that's not a possibility, so I guess the short of it is I don't like them."

"And you? What do you think of them, master?" She caught herself saying 'master' abruptly in the conversation and it made her double take her own self. This probably suppose to be a casual conversation, but it was a sign of respect and maybe she said it out of instinct because his opinion on them was something she was very curious about.

@Phoenix

 

[Talak Rand]

Talak listened as she talked about the usefulness - or lack thereof - of the Sector Rangers. It sounded like she thought fairly well of them until she got to the very end and said that she "didn't like them."

Hm, he said quietly. He really didn't fit very well in the Sith, did he? It seemed at every turn that even allies disagreed with him fundamentally about things. He was almost as bad a Sith as he was a teacher.

I think law enforcement keeps corruption down. Or at least can, he said, taking a sip of his wine. It was a question of where things would...

The thought trailed off as his comlink buzzed and he raised it before stiffening up and raising his eyebrows.

We've got our link. Can you work with this to get what we're after? he asked, pulling up the port on the ship's holodisplay for her to work on. @Dread

 

[Lilith Vye]

Lilith could sense the conflict in him, both after she answered and when he answered. But then she heard the buzz and his request. She didn't answer and just got up, walked over to a console and started her job. She just had to set up a safer connection and find the right directory before running a proper search with her programs.

"Can I ask one more thing?" she said while working. "You're conflicted about the Dark Side" which had made her conflicted. "And a lot more I've sensed. So I just..." she trailed off, finding herself in the right place before plucking her datapad from her belt and bringing up the correct program.

"Do you actually believe in what we are doing?" She connected her datapad and ran the search before continuing. "Because if you like it or not, I look up to you and what you think and do effects me, so if you don't actually believe in any of this I need to know."

@Phoenix

 

[Talak Rand]

Well, well, well, look whose turn it was to do the snooping. Talak wondered where this had come from so out of the blue. He had always been conflicted about the dark side, and that hadn't ever changed since they'd started this.

He watched her poke away at her registries and generally do things he knew nothing about, but didn't say anything. What was he supposed to say? What was she looking for? He wasn't planning to leave the Sith, but he couldn't say the thought had never crossed his mind. If he ever did, he would likely give her some sort of warning.

If I didn't believe in what we were doing, I wouldn't be here, he said. And it was true, but that brought up another question all its own.

And even if my answer was "no" then what? You're just going to leave? he asked curiously. He wouldn't have been shocked if the answer were "yes" in which case if it ever came to that for him he would have to give thought to when and how to tell her. @Dread

 

[Lilith Vye]

She was relieved to hear that he believed in what they were doing, though not so much to hear the follow up question. Lilith started, "I've committed myself to the cause but..." Her datapad made a noise, signifying that it'd found the information, or at least information with the keywords she'd provided. She gave the command to download it all into Talak's console.

"I'd be karking pissed if you didn't actually believe in any of this," she added up again, continuing after a snort, "I'd probably throw a glass at your stupid karking head this time."

Alright so the part about throwing something at his head was a joke, but she would have been pissed. All this work because she believed in an Empire and that he could lead others despite his conflict with the Dark Side. For him to leave the future Empire without a knowledgeable leader... or, worse yet, one that did not even believe in it. She didn't want to think about it, and she didn't actually know if she'd leave or not.

Her datapad alerted her again. All the information had been downloaded. She turned around in her seat to face him again and simply said, "It's done."

@Phoenix

 

[Talak Rand]

Talak frowned as she talked about how pissed off she would be if he left. He shouldn't have been surprised, but he still felt like he was. Were so many people relying on him? How could he find a way to force a horde of murderous people into a path that wasn't so murderous? The dark side corrupted. He'd seen it so many times before, and even those who were setting up to be part of the Empire wanted to embrace that corruption and murder senselessly.

He heard her datapad beep which indicated it was finished, but he didn't move. His mind was lost in the thought of what they'd been talking about.

To be honest, I have more doubts all the time about the Sith, he said. That was probably the most honest thing he'd ever told her.

And I'm trying to repurpose a group of vicious killers into something else. And I'm not convinced I can do it, he said. These were things that he didn't normally talk about, but she already knew enough about him that if she took it to the Eternal he'd be killed. At this point, voicing his concerns couldn't do any more harm.

Even most of the people in our new Empire seem as interested in holding onto the darkness as putting together something worthwhile, he said. And it was based on actual conversations with people. Ender and Ana were both prime examples of gripping onto the darkness as tight or tighter than the the cause. If he couldn't even convince some of his closest associates, how was he going to convince anyone else? He was fairly certain that Lilith and Zarine were the only two who actually believed in the cause, and the three of them weren't enough to build an Empire up. @Dread

 

[Lilith Vye]

Lilith stared at him with a look that let him know she wasn't happy to hear those words. She stayed quiet for some time after, allowing herself to go through her emotions so she didn't say anything fueled by her initial reaction. At least he had said something.

"It was my understanding that it didn't matter who in the cult believed in control and less wanton slaughter," she started, tapping her fingers on the seats arms. "Not even I feel much sympathy for people in general. I did at first, but it slips further away each day. Rage fuels my actions towards the scum of the galaxy, my loyalty to you stays my hand outside of that."

"I thought the point was to get the cult under our control by whatever means, fear included, use it to build or take control of an Empire and then use that power to influence and control," she said, referring to controlling their darker brethren.

She thought for a second, noticing her still mostly full glass of wine but adding first, "Their head gets cut off if they walk around slaughtering our people wantonly, for example. It is my understanding that that sort of dominance is what a darksider is receptive to." After she finished, she turned and grabbed the glass, downing it fairly quickly. She wished she had something stronger.

@Phoenix

 

[Talak Rand]

This was the core of Talak's issue. It was why he wasn't sure he could stay in the Sith any longer. It wasn't because of Trys, it wasn't because of what it might turn him into, it was because no matter what he wanted to accomplish, he couldn't even convince those closest to him that his vision was what was best.

Lilith followed him out of personal loyalty. She didn't care about whether or not the cult murdered people. If he couldn't even convince her then how would he change people who were actually murderous slobs.

He could tell she was angry with him, and he felt sorry about it, but he wasn't sure how much longer he could betray himself. And how long after someone came along and killed him would his "Empire" slide into the hands of someone who didn't care at all.

Don't stop there, he said, pushing the bottle across toward her as she downed the remainder of her glass.

He wasn't going to leave today or make any decisions when he was this tired.

I don't know what'll happen, but you asked and you're the only person I've been this straight with, he finally said. At least the only Sith. If he decided to leave, he would likely warn her. If she wanted to know, at least. @Dread

 

[Lilith Vye]

For a handful of seconds her eyes lingered on the bottle he pushed forward, and her mind seemed to do the same with his words. She was still irritated, and should probably be angry by now like she said she would be, but how could she be when he was just being straight? She sighed after, "I appreciate you being straight but..." Lilith pushed the bottle back. "I'm ready for today to be over."

The irritation was rapidly being replaced with upset. She had poured her heart and soul into this project, and really did not like hearing he had doubts. Had he had them from the start? Would knowing he did matter? Did it change anything? Probably not outside of her not being happy about it.

The young Sith stood up, walking to a table to place her glass down before grabbing her helmet. She put her helmet on without looking back. Even if Talak said something she'd probably just leave without answering.

@Phoenix