Star Wars: The Sith War - Fiction: Laying Plans [Finished]

[Lady Riventi]

The flickering firelight in the great stone hearth played across the long, empty table that ran the length of the great hall and soaked into the smooth black stone of the walls and floor as though the room itself was drinking the light; from above, a galaxy shone down, a swirling vista of stars, each star a gemstone carefully placed and pressed into the great dome of the ceiling. A vanity, perhaps.... or a statement of ambition.

A slim pool of shadow stood before the flickering curve of that fire, the veils that surrounded it shimmering softly with a oil-slick smoothness as though they truly were flowing, and the mind hidden beneath those veils reached out with a whisper in the old decadent tongue of the Sith like the caress of a lover's betrayal. Enter, my apprentice.

[Swara-Ann Trevelyan]

Boots echoed, muffled slightly by the long black flowing robes that draped the elegant, graceful figure as she approached the dark and exotic frame wreathed in black silks. Rare spices and aromas assaulted the apprentices senses and the fire did nothing to warm the chamber.

The apprentice knelt, dropping her head to gaze upon the cold black stone. Her hood slipped forward slightly, and a stray strand of white mingled in contrast with a few rogue locks of ink black hair. "What is thy bidding, my Master?"

[Lady Riventi]

Lady Riventi, Dark Lord of the Sith, Lady of Lies, turned and faced her apprentice with the wicked hint of a smile showing beneath the ancient Sith burial mask she wore behind her veils. Piercing blue eyes took her servant's measure, and the reined power of her presence was like a shimmering gateway into an abyss beyond measure. "I have a task for you, Nephtis, which will require your cunning and your devotion. I trust you are ready to obey?"

[Swara-Ann Trevelyan]

Darth Nephtis slowly raised her head revealing the the cold, pale beauty of her features offset only by blood red lips. A vile grin crept slowly long the smooth crimson gloss. "My life is yours, I exist only to serve you, Master."

She stood up slowly, the mantle of her dark cloak fell over her concealing her features beneath with a gentle 'swish' of black velvet and dark satin. "Tell me what I must do," excitement rose in her voice at the prospect of fulfilling her mistresses desires. "I never fail."

[Lady Riventi]

Laying a delicate, black-gloved hand against the taller woman's cheek, Lady Riventi's voice dropped to something very like a purr. "You never do, my servant, which is why I remain quite fond of you. Now, as to the details of the matter, I require more information about the latest movements of the Jedi, and I think you're just the person to get it for me." She tapped her finger lightly against Nephtis's chin, her half-hidden smile becoming entirely predatory. "Just recon, for now, though if you find a way to make a few disappear... well, I never mind that. You'll find your ship and your identity waiting for you in the hangar, as usual." She paused a moment, and her voice turned silkily dangerous. "Do try not to get lost on your way back this time."

[Swara-Ann Trevelyan]

Nephtis tingled at the cold touch of her master's hand. To be held in favor was an honor and Nephtis's loyalty was nothing short of adamant.

Lady Riventi referred to Darth Nephtis's incarceration on her last mission where spent six months in a Jedi isolation chamber awaiting trial. Nephtis couldn't help but grin as the memory returned to her. None knew how she escaped, not even master. I was this event that had secured her place among Lady Riventi's elite Sith followers and favored servants.

"The Jedi are weak," she dared an argument to her mistress's plans. "Reconnaissance will take months, if not more. Why do we waste our time and resources on gathering intelligence when when we know their weaknesses. Our fleet could over run the entire outer rim within the same time it will take us to gather more redundant information."

Darth Nephtis stepped forward with confidence. "Allow me to simply crush the Jedi and their pitiful Republic for you. I can do it."

[Lady Riventi]

"Arrogant child." Tessara's voice was a low, crackling purr, like a velvet lash against Nephtis' skin, and a simple gesture of that gloved hand hurled her across the room and pinned her to the wall as though she were nothing but a bundle of rags. "Have you learned nothing from your studies? Many are the Sith before you who have said as much; Revan, Exar Kun, even the ancient Sith Empire. Where are they now, child?" The power of her mistress's force grip crushed at her lungs, her throat, her ribs creaking with the agonizing pressure. "Where are those mighty, confident lords of old?"

[Swara-Ann Trevelyan]

She gasped as her eyes grew wide with terror. The impact against the wall tore the air from her lungs and the hope from her mind that she might live another day.

Her hands gripped her throat instinctively in a vain attempt to fend off the assault. The power of the Force gripped her body entirely and its might heeded only the call of its master, Lady Riventi.

The torment she endured while held against the wall was a swift and brutal reminder of Sith culture. It served as a lesson for Nephtis to remember: the relation between Sith Master and Sith Apprentice was a simple one. There will always be a Master who possesses power, and an Apprentice to desire that power.

With a graceless tumble Nephtis fell to the floor, gasping for air and wincing under the strain to force her body to listen to her commands again. The Dark Side of the Force still rippled through her causing nausea and pain with every movement and thought.

"G-gone, dead," she managed, clutching her chest tightly and wrinkling the stiffened black leather of her Sith armor. "I understand, Master. I will do as you ask." She coughed and choked in a heap of black velvet and dark leather.

There was no apology. Sith did not apologize. She had taken the lesson her master had to teach her, and a painful lesson it was.

Weary and broken, she staggered back to her feet using the wall to support her. Her knees wobbled, mixing well with her shortness of breath that made the chamber warp and weft from lack of oxygen.

[Lady Riventi]

"Good." Lady Riventi crossed to her, lifting her face with one gloved hand, and laid a delicate kiss on her cheek. "We have not come so far to fall victim to hubris, my sweet. I trust you will remember it as you obey." Releasing her apprentice with a delicate brush of her fingertips, Riventi strode back to her place by the fire to resume her meditation without need for a backward glance.

She knew submission when she heard it.

[Swara-Ann Trevelyan]

Discarded from her master's attention Darth Nephtis pulled her cloak over her quivering shoulders, perhaps subconsciously to warm the icy chill of her Master's disapproval that still coursed through her athletic frame.

Once she finally regained her composure she pulled her wide hood over her beautiful features. In moments shadow engulfed her face and all one could see is the crimson of her lips upon a sheet of darkness.

She had been given her orders. Without further delay she set off to complete her Master's desires. The sound of her boots upon the stone became nothing but echoes to Lady Riventi's ears.

[Lady Riventi]

Feeling her servan'ts departure, Tessara Riventi looked up at the glittering veil of stars set to her exacting specifications and allowed herself a simple, private smile.

Soon, she promised herself silently, soon we will be ready. Then, and only then, will the Jedi taste the vengeance that has so long been in store for them.