Word Count: 1215 (heh, that's my birthday (which is the reason Fluke's number is that in reverse))
Content: conspiracy, reference to major character death because apparently I can't leave Fives' death alone, righteous anger, confrontation, sith magic (Fox), star wars sign language
Mando'a Guide:
vode - brothers
hut'uun - coward; worst possible insult to mandos
osik'la - shitty
sheb'palon - asshole
dini'la jetii - insane jedi
di'kut - idiot
Echo’s eyes turned glassy as he watched the footage. The audio was corrupted, but he could see his twin’s anguish, his fear- he could feel it in his own bones.
As Fox fired, Echo recoiled–as though he’d taken the hit himself–jerking his arm back, still stuck in the scomp port.
He groaned, willing the scomp to twist and release him from the images being burned into his mind.
He’d been a fool. Rex told him everything he’d wanted to know about Fives’ death. He told him everything Fives said, everything he said. Every dismissal from his former general. That particular newfound blame and resentment would have to be left to simmer in his gut. He couldn’t confront a general. A commander, however…
Echo had collected himself quickly, rushing back to the officers’ barracks they’d housed him in, covering himself in the new armor he’d received.
The walk wasn’t long, fortunately, but he struggled to push that horrid image from his mind.
“Fives, stay with me, Fives! Fives!”
“The mission… the nightmares… they’re finally over…”
“Fives? No, Fives… come on, Fives. Don’t go! Stay with me. Stay with me.”
He shuddered beneath the chill that rolled down the cybernetics that lined his back. He wasn’t sure he’d ever forget the haunted final words of his twin.
The door to the Coruscant Guard office slid open, and the trooper currently condemned to front desk duty sat up, clearly confused by the sight before him. He seemed to be a shiny and looking up to see a brother, wrapped in burn scars, metal, and unique armor with a particularly pissed expression? Well, Echo couldn’t blame the slight panic he saw flash across his face.
“Where’s Fox?” he growled, all hints of calm or politeness eradicated from his voice.
The shiny pointed down a hallway. “His office,” he nearly whimpered. “Last door on the left.”
“Thanks,” he muttered as he stormed down the hall.
He didn’t bother knocking, scomp whirring the door open.
Fox sputtered, rising from his chair. “What the hell? Who the kriff are you?”
“Who the kriff are you to go around murdering your brothers?” Echo roared, closing the short distance between him and the commander.
Echo grabbed Fox’s chest plate, slamming him against the wall, his scomp pressing into his ribcage. “How many vode did you kill today? Does the number even matter to you?”
Fox’s scowl didn’t change. “You must be that ARC Cody told me about. Not surprised to see you here.” He tapped a button on his vambrace. “Call Captain Rex, 7567 from the 501st. Tell him to get his ass down here yesterday.”
Echo chuckled humorlessly. “What, are you gonna murder me in front of him just like you murdered Fi–”
“Fives didn’t give me a choice,” Fox said, his voice too calm, too even, despite the way his head seemed to jerk painfully. “He tried to assassinate the Chancellor–”
“He’d never do anything like that without a reason!” Echo snarled, throwing Fox to the ground. He was about to jump on him when a familiar voice stopped him. “Fives, no!”
“Echo, stand down!” Rex shouted as he pulled his brother away from the commander. Cody moved past to Fox as Echo struggled against his Captain.
“This hut’uun murdered Fives right in front of you!” Echo raged.
Rex growled. “Echo–”
“I was following orders,” Fox spat.
Cody sighed, “Fox, don’t–”
“That order was wrong and you know it! Fives needed help, not a kriffing blaster bolt to the chest!”
“That’s enough, Echo!” Rex screamed, finally wrestling his friend into a headlock until he stopped struggling. He dragged him out of the office into an interrogation room.
“Echo, you know it wasn’t his fault,” Rex panted. He ran a hand over his face. “The whole osik’la situation was kriffed from the beginning. He didn’t have a choice.”
“We always have a choice!” Echo cried. “I read the files on Umbara; I know Fives, Jesse, and Hardcase stood up to that shebs’palon sith wannabe. I know you did, too!”
“Umbara was different,” Rex sighed.
“It proves–”
“Echo, stop.”
“–that if an order is morally corrupt–”
“I mean it, Echo.”
“–it shouldn’t be followed just because–”
Rex was on him in an instant, grabbing Echo by the collar. “I said stow it, trooper! Before I bust your ass back down to cadet.”
Echo’s words died in his throat, coating his tongue with a sour taste. He couldn’t think of a time he’d heard Rex more angry.
Rex took a deep breath, releasing his grasp. “I’m sorry,” he whispered, moving to lean against the table.
“Rex, I–”
“You know I’m not defending Fox, right?” Rex said, his eyes trained on the room across the hall. “Fives… he wasn’t himself. He should’ve known better than to pick up my pistol. I still don’t know why he did it.”
Echo closed his eyes. He could see the security cam footage behind his eyes–not that his neural interface would let him forget it.
“You found the footage, didn’t you?” Rex asked, his voice softer.
Echo didn’t need to answer but he nodded anyway.
“I know why you’re angry,” he continued. “I was angry for a while, too. We always expect to lose our brothers, but not at the hands of another one.”
Echo’s thoughts were back in the files from Umbara.
“We all know what it’s like to receive orders we don’t agree with,” Rex said, his eyes finally landing on Echo’s face. “You should know that, too.”
Echo sighed. “I’m sorry, Rex.”
“I’m not the one you threw to the floor.”
“Right,” Echo said, turning towards the door.
“Maybe thank Cody while you’re at it; his soft spot for me is probably the only reason Fox didn’t put you on your ass.”
Echo knocked this time and waited for the door to slide open.
Cody let him in with a raised brow.
“Commander,” Echo started. “I acted without thinking. I’m sorry.”
To his surprise, Fox chuckled. “Yeah, you’re one of Rex’s alright.”
Echo’s brows shot up. “I– what?”
“Little Rexy here was a firebrand back in the day, too,” Fox smirked, nodding to the captain as he joined them. “Always jumping without looking. Why did you think he got stuck with Skywalker? That dini’la jetii is the only person in the galaxy crazier than this di’kut.”
“Guess that does make sense,” Echo hummed, lips pulling in a slight smirk.
Fox sighed. “For what it’s worth, Echo, I– I didn’t… agree with the order. I thought it was extreme.”
Echo nodded. “Thank you, Commander.”
“I was–” Fox started, before stopping with a slight gasp and groan as he clutched the side of his head.
“Are you alright, Commander?” Echo asked, startling slightly as Cody placed a hand on his shoulder, shaking his head slightly.
“I’m– ugh, fine,” Fox growled, his eyes meeting Cody’s as his hands moved somewhat rapidly.
Cody sighed as he looked up at Echo’s confused expression. “He’s using Basic Sign Language. He said ‘I am silenced, but I’m so sorry.’”
Fox nodded as Echo looked at him, continuing to sign as Cody translated.
“‘You’re part of this now.’”
Fox gestured to Cody and Rex.
“Part of what?” Echo breathed.
Cody sighed as he translated again. “‘Your twin was right about the chips, and he’s alive.’”
Mando'a Guide:
vode - brothers
hut'uun - coward; worst possible insult to mandos
osik'la - shitty
sheb'palon - asshole
dini'la jetii - insane jedi
di'kut - idiot
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Good night, sweet Jynni. You got the last laugh, all right. This old treasure hunter found the treasure. And just like you said, it's been the end of me.
They're all gone. Every last one of them. Sev. Rutigar. Deksi. Everyone.
Babb. When we made the big score, we were supposed to settle down somewhere on the Outer Rim, live like royalty. Guess that ain't going to happen. But I know why she had to do it. I know because I remember everything. I was there when the Virtue went up like a Deep Core nova. I stood in the wash of heat and radiation, and saw the things I'd called my army vaporized in an instant. I was a god, until the Heart was taken from me.
If I find the Heart again, it will ruin me. Yet I know I won't stop looking, the way I know I won't stop breathing. Graush won't let me stop until I find him.
The Heart. That reminds me. If you find this, go. Leave this place now. Some things should stay dead. This planet should stay dead. I should stay dead. But something tells me an old friend isn't going to let me. I can hear him calling my name, and I'm not going to be able to resist. So go while you can. Don't wait until dark.
Palpatine enjoys keeping the Corries isolated, enjoys knowing none of their comms reach their batchmates in the rest of the GAR and that they’ll never receive any from them. Except of course official messages. Nothing personal though, nothing to allow to think they have any friends outside the Guard.
Palpatine enjoys keeping the Corries isolated, using a Sith veil to cloud the minds of visiting battalions. They don’t even notice they haven’t visited their Corrie batchmates, that they never extended an invitation to a night out. They don’t realise how long it’s been since they commed or visited or saw their Corrie batchmates. They don’t even know if they’re alive or not.
Palpatine enjoys keeping the Corries isolated, locking words in their throats so they can never tell the truth, no matter how desperately they may want to. They can talk to each other, he lets them have that much, but outsiders, no, it’s more fun to watch them struggle, to feel them think the truth and desperately wish to say it and suffer the words locked in their throats. To feel the despair behind their locked tongues.
Palpatine enjoys it, because their suffering is sweet and free and there’s no one and nothing to stop him feeding off of it. It’s an endless supply of fuel for him alone, a banquet of pain no one else even knows about, for him to savour for as long as he wishes. It’s fuel, so no matter how much energy he expends controlling senate votes where other tactics have failed, he’ll never run dry. And if he needs that extra boost he’s always got the delicacy of his Fox’s exquisite soul.
Palpatine enjoys it, because it lets him enjoy the corruption of the Senate, not just the things the Sith have put into place but the greedy and the cruel and the power hungry who play into his plan perfectly, who help him knowingly and unknowingly, who’s deals and corruption ensure his plans will work, and they can work freely, because the Corries can’t tell anyone, and there’s no one to see what’s being done.
Palpatine enjoys it because he can be as evil and Sithly as he likes and they can’t tell a soul, he can tell them everything and there’s nothing they can do. He can use them for hits under Orders, he can use them for fuel, he can take out his anger when plans fail and enjoy his victories when they go well without having to pretend he’s the Republics kind grandfather. He can be as Sith as he likes. He can be exactly who he is and there’s nothing they can do.
Palpatine enjoys keeping the Corries isolated, he really does.
Darth Scabrous was a human Sith lord and headmaster of an academy on Odacer-Faustin. A researcher of Sith alchemy, Scabrous attempted to extend his life through experimentation with plants. His experiments worked, but left the resurrected mindless monsters.
Source: The Essential Reader’s Companion (Art: Brian Rood; 2012)
On the Colonization of the Sith Pureblood, and Sith Magic
I'm just reading through the SWTOR lore entries and on the entry for the Sith Pureblood:
"The Sith species was discovered three thousand years ago on Korriban by exiled human Dark Jedi fleeing Republic space after their defeat in a war called the Second Great Schism. The Dark Jedi quickly enslaved the primitive culture, and over many generations, the two groups intermingled [...] For a brief time, Sith blood was seen as a sign of weakness–but the modern Empire believes purity of heritage carries the strength of the Force."
As a POC, I definitely feel like the Sith Pureblood are POC-coded. To speak in real world terms, they were colonized by the Dark Jedi. Ajunta Pall, the first Dark Lord of the Sith, was a Dark Jedi. The concept of Sith as we know it was started by a Dark Jedi. Look at the Valley of the Dark Lords: how many of the Sith there were ethnically Sith rather than just Dark Jedi who 'fell' into Sithdom? Freedon Nadd was a Jedi progidy 'seduced by the dark side'. Exar Kun was a Jedi Knight who fell.
I suppose we still have Naga Sadow, Marka Ragnos and Tulak Hord though.
The Sith code is an inversion of the Jedi Code, which makes sense as the first 'Sith' were Dark Jedi. But what did the Sith Pureblood believed pre-colonization? How much of their societal values and beliefs were warped by the views of the Dark Jedi?
Hell, even Sith sorcery feels iffy to me. Ajunta Pall was worshiped as a god by the Kissai, a "subspecies of the ancient Sith race that was enslaved by the exiled Dark Jedi on Korriban." More importantly, the "Kissai were the priest class in the Sith caste system, where the Kissai would study the nature of the dark side of the Force and practice ancient Sith magic and alchemy." The pioneers of Sith sorcery worships a Dark Jedi as a god- I don't doubt their magic and the philosophy behind said arcane practices were influenced by the teachings Ajunta Pall taught them. After all, Ajunta Pall was their god, and they were the sorcerer-priests.
As someone who is intrigued by historical, real-world magic, this reminds me of the difference between folk magic and ceremonial magic. Sith sorcery, as we know it, is very ceremonial (once you go beyond the lightning-shooting stage). Think of the elaborate ritual Zash tried to do to our in-game characters. Darth Thanaton boasts about studying 'rituals you can't even imagine'. Fancy ceremonies and rituals seems to be the mainstream form of Sith magic depicted in the current setting.
Compare it to something like Force-walking which deals with ghosts, with the binding and contracting of the deceased. Force-walking does not require elaborate preparations, only measured words, mental strength and a few drops of blood to seal the pact. It feels much more primal, more raw than whatever rituals Zash and Thanaton was boasting about. This is not to say Sith sorcery is bad though. Sorzus Syn, a Dark Jedi who became the infamous Sith sorceress, is known for her three Great Amulets and also for her skills in Sith alchemy. Her mastery of the the ancient Sith ritual of Dwomutsiqsa, of conjuring dreambeasts known as Smoke Demons is also something I find fascinating.
But I could not help but wonder... a lot of POC traditions are oral traditions. Knowledge of folk magic passed down through words, through family- lineage which the Dark Jedi may have broken during the times when anything to do with Sith blood and Sith traditions was considered an undesirable weakness. Knowledge passed down through dreams are also a thing in certain magical traditions.
In the real world, the Ancient Greeks had their dream incubations, certain traditional witches have their oneiric sabbaths, and personally, in my own Thai culture, there are those who receive medicinal recipes from ghosts in their dreams and uses that knowledge to help heal others. Witches who have spirits whispering in their ears. Witches who wanders the graveyards and calls upon the shades of the dead to glean lore and prophecy. Witches who captures the stars and draws down the moon and bleeds the heavenly bodies for power to fuel their magic.
Give me Sith magic, y'all. Not the Sith sorcery pioneered by the Dark Jedi, but the old magic that is rooted in the stones and sands of Korriban, magic as taught by ghosts through dreams and visions, maleficia that borderlines on witchcraft.
A curse in the Sith Language Transcription: Dwolkas u jaijontu kai hyalkas u minwan Sai mwin kun hâskûjontu kintik Châtskas qâzoi u hâskûjontu nyash Qoritwinkas rak uyak Howinkas shâsot u Qorit nu won Translation: May they be among the void and may they crave power But may they only be among the blackest pain May their mind break with much pain May their dreams end May their passion die I end this one
What now I'm craving more sith obiwan running away with him meeting a young assaj and seeing her as his little sister?
@mostie01
Obi-Wan was not sure what exactly he had been awaiting when he set foot on the dark planet, but he certainly had not imagined to be greeted by at least a dozen nightsisters and their Mother.
“Greetings, young Obi-Wan Kenobi, we have awaited your arrival,” the Mother had a smoky voice and she seemed a little… ethereal, like she did not belong in this world.
Pushing his feelings aside for now, the ginger haired boy bowed formally and as a sign of respect. He was aware that one mistake could mean his immediate death, thought strangely, he was not at all bothered. He just KNEW that everything would be fine.
“Greetings Mother,” he eventually said. “You have awaited me? How so?”
The ethereal woman chuckled, stepping forward and clasping her hands in front of her body. Green fog followed her every move and Obi-Wan could feel the presence of the dark side around it.
“I have foreseen your arrival and your destiny. You are to train under us, you are to become one of us. It is the will of the Force.” She raised her arms and held her hands up, as if she was reaching for the stars.
This was going better than he had expected, but he would not complain, not after what he had been through. Everything was better than Bratakin after all. “Thank you, Mother, for your hospitality.”
The older being nodded her head and then slightly turned. “Follow me, child of the dark. I will show you, where you will live from now on.”
Obi-Wan nodded and followed the female. The other nightsisters, some of them had bow like weapons, other’s swords and knives, gave him curious looks. The ginger haired Sith did not mind. He was a stranger for them after all, he was invading their home. Yet there was one of the females that caught the Sith’s attention. She was not dressed like the others. Instead of red robes, she was wearing a black and very tight outfit, it certainly left not much to the imagination. Also, her face was masked and a hood pulled over her head. Yet something about her felt… strangely familiar. It was as if the Force encouraged them to meet.
Obi-Wan made a mental note, he would make sure to speak with her later, for now, he had to follow the Mother, who was surprisingly friendly. He had of course heard completely different stories, most of them from his Grandfather. Dooku had traveled through most of the galaxy - at least it sounded as if he had - and Obi-Wan had always enjoyed the other man’s tales. Unconsciously he had reached out to the weapon that the man had gifted him. He would make the man proud. He would become the best and most powerful Sith the galaxy had ever seen, Obi-Wan swore that.
Dathomir was certainly something else, decided Obi-Wan, who had know only the home on Naboo for most of his life. The last few days have shown him that the real word - away from parents and family - was hard and unforgiving. It was not like the nightsisters and the Mother did not care for or about him, but a few things had changed. Obi-Wan was now responsible for himself. When he arrived too late for a lesson, then it was his bad luck. here was no one, who would wait for him or who would coddle him. And as odd as it sounded, he found it great. There was nobody telling him what to do. Of course there were a few rules, but those were standard procedure. He was finally free. he could leave the camp whenever he wanted and he could roam the wildlife around it and most of the time Asajj would join him during his little adventures.
Asajj was the female he had easily spotted in the groups of nightsisters that had greeted him. Apparently she had a higher rank than most others, due to her abilities and deep connection to the Force. But that was not all there was to her. Asajj was also intelligent and cunning, but also reckless sometimes. She could take a few hard blows and just as well she could deliver them herself. Obi-Wan had immediately taken a liking to her. She was like a little sister and apparently the bald female thought so too. Otherwise she would not spent that much time with him, teaching him how to survive or the secrets of the Sith magic. This was another aspect of the nightsister society that Obi-Wan enjoyed greatly. Everybody could teach and though the ginger haired Sith DID spent most of the lesson time with the Mother, he often sought help from others too.
“There you are,” a female voice said, pulling the young man out of his musings.
“Have you searched for me?” he retorted a little bit worried.
“in a way,” Asajj dropped right next to him on the ground. Despite the greenish fog, they could see the sky with ts countless stars. “Do you miss them… your family I mean.” She hastily added the last part.
“Yes,” he did not hesitate. “Every day, every minute, every second… I miss my Mom the most. She always understood me, I could go to her with everything, no matter what troubled me.” He had realized that his little sister was in a talkative mood today and it seemed that she wanted to know more about his family.
“She sounds great.”
“She is,” he easily agreed. A moment of silence passed between the companions, then blue-green eyes turned away from the dark sky. Instead they settled on the female next to him. “But it is not as ad as you might think. You are my family you… all of you.”
There was a small smile on Asajj’s features. It meant a lot. Usually the female was always stern and fixed on her goals, but in private, she would let go of most of her shields.
“I still cannot believe that you won,” the nightsister quickly changed the topic. “You are barely here for a few days and you bested me in sparring.”
Obi-Wan could not help but laugh. “Face it Asajj, you are just bad at it.” The painful hit he received, had definitely been worth it.
The ginger haired teenager returned to his previous position with his head resting on his arms and looking at the light dots above him. Somewhere, on one of those stars, were his mother. Despite what he had told Asajj, he truly missed his family very much, even his father. The only one he certainly did not miss, was Bratakin.
“Asajj?”
“Hm?” she had sat up and turned to look down on him.
“Do you think it is possible for me to get a pet?”
“A pet?” she was not sure she had heard right. “What would you want with a pet.”
He shrugged. “I had one back on Naboo… It was a reanimated Tooka named Prancer. But… but Anakin killed it.”
there was a thoughtful look on the female’s features. Of course she knew everything about Anakin Skywalker and she had sworn to make him pay for what he did to her brother. In the next sentence she had said, that she should perhaps be a LITTLE grateful, because otherwise they would not have met. That woman was truly full of surprises.
“I don’t know,” she answered eventually. “It is not common among us to have a pet, but… but I am sure Mother would allow it, if you ask her.
A small smile played on freckled features. He closed his eyes and let his mind drift. It was time for a new animal companion, Obi-Wan decided. Now he just had to find one…
