NationStates Jolt Archive

Drakomis grinned, "My security is....the Force."

He laughed heartily, and bowed his head towards the guard when he sensed movement. Then to Siri, bowing his head, and waving his hand as if saying everything was alright.

"I assure you, I don't have ANY ANAGONIAN in this room that I command." His stare was truthful, "The Force guides and guards me, that is all."

“Oh, I see.” She was more at ease now when she heard his reply. “I understand completely, now. Though, you had me worried there for a moment. I thought that my security may have been a little too lax.”

Drakomis Laughed, "No, hardly, their everywhere. I could try, but my men would be cought."

Siri nodded and chuckled. “That is certainly true. The security forces around here are cloaked just like this one is. And I would like to add that there are more than you think.”

"Trust me," he smiled, "I can sense those that are hidden if I wanted to. I have felt many, I know." He chukled a bit, and sighed.

"So, any other questions?"

"Well..." Siri paused as she thought for a moment. "You are leading me to believe that you rely only on the Force as your security. This concerns me greatly. You should not be left unprotected in a world like this."

"I'me sure I'll be fine, for it is my guide and my path. I cannot be led astray." He smiled, "Besides, I do have people watching, waiting. If I truly needed them, they would be by my side in an instant."

He tilted his head, "Just to ask.....what was....your idea anyway?"

She shrugged. "Nothing really. It just concerned me that you do not have security as I do." There was something in her voice that could give the impression that she was not revealing all that she was thinking, but her facial expressions remained exactly as it was before.

He laughed, "Can't hide things from a Jedi!"

Waving a clawed hand, "Go on, what else?"

Siri was a little quiet at first as she carefully put together in her mind what she wanted to say. "The...Overlord...who commands all these cloaked forces in the battlecarrier now knows the flaws in your security situation because these guards are its eyes and ears." One thing that was readily seen was that she was not worried at all. "I am not saying that it will want to overthrow your government in any way, but it considers close allies of the Corporation to be worthy of the protection of the Order."

Drakomis looked puzzled, almost threatened in a manner, but otherwise sighing and moving, a bit uncomfortable in his seat.

"I....see...."

He looked down for a moment, closed his eyes and seemed to concentrate. If anyone was skilled in the arts of perception, they would sense he called to someone. Who was a mystery, but near the windows it seemed to frost a bit, temperature dropping suddenly in that general area. Any guard over there would feel the cold, then the immiedetly change back to normal after a few seconds.

Someone had entered the room....and not by normal means....

Drakomis looked back up to Siri, comfortable expression now. "So..I gather that investigating this 'Overlord' would be a prime interest, no?"

Siri eyed Drakomis carefully and pondered on what he was doing. She found it quite peculiar that he would do this all of a sudden. Perhaps it was in response to what she had just told him but did not know for sure. Then, she happened to look over by the window and saw what appeared to be frost waving. This really baffled her. Frost? In space? What the hell? she thought to herself. What is going on here? She looked over at Drakomis’ expression to see if it gave her any clue as to what was happening. He looked back at Siri with a comfortable expression.

She felt a little uncomfortable as she replied to his question. Not because of the subject material but because of what happened and it showed. “I…personally see no reason why I should…investigate it but if you choose to do so then I cannot stop you. I must remind you that if you take interest in it then…it will begin to take interest in you.”

Just like I have interest in you, Mistress Siri...

A spectral voice that seemed to echo through time belowed in a gentle tone through the room. The windows waved with frost, and the room went into a severe cold spell as a greyish, torn cloak waved in a mysterious wind. The hood was dark inside, red eyes gazing at Siri as light exposed a skeletal human-like face, the head tilted down as the eyes fixed on Siri.

When the jaws moved again, a cold mist came out, almost pure, as a manyical voice spoke.

"Tell me, who is the one that takes interest in....us..."

A skeletal hand was exposed as it wrapped some of the torn cloak over some dark spots, a mysterious wave of force shown through the movement of the myst that circled the death-like entity.

This was something that was not to be expected and Siri’s face turned white as this being stood before her. There were very few times where she was frightened of anything, but this time she definitely was and began to shake a little. The freezing temperature in the room did not help her either and could even be felt through her thick robes. She could barely figure out what this being was. The closest thing that even resembled it was a creation of a necromancer friend of hers.

A cold sweat broke out on her face when it asked her the question. For the second time in her life, she actually thought that she might die. Permanently. She desperately tried to put away her fears and stared down at the floor in front of her. The idea in her mind was that if she was going to die then she would not die like a coward. She took a deep breath and glared right up into its red eyes in defiance.

“I…will not…tell you anything.”

The guard behind her remained cloaked and extended the wrist-sword. He was prepared to do anything to protect Siri, even die for her. And he rushed out from behind the couch and thrust the sword towards the being.

The being gazed into the eyes of the cloaked guard who dared defiled his respected existance. The cold become colder, and lightning came from the nowhere's around the skeletal being, shooting directly into the chest of the cloaked guard. A skeletal hand rose from the greyish cloak, lightning shooting from that, and seemingly wrapping around the guard in an instant, restraining him.

"I-" the being began in a deep, calm, spectral voice "-am Melkos Unchanos." His voice tone rose dramatically, to room-shaking levels. "I lead the Sith Order, and I SHALL NOT BE DESTROYED BY YOUR MORTAL ORDER!"

The lightning increased, and his eyes grew bright as the room started to freeze over from the intense drain of energy in the room. Everything seemed to grow darker, and darker, a feeling of depression, of hate, of sadness, of loss everywhere. It felt like the worst possible case of disastor imaginable, yet with one swift twist of his skeletal hand, the guard was flung towards the wall, slamming into it, perhaps even going through it.

Melkos hissed clearly, eyes gazing towards Siri. "And your nex-"

Drakomis stood, and Melkos seemed to jerk back in suprise, looking with a spectral gasp towards him. His eyues glared a bit, then his form resided, and stood back to the posture it had been when he looked at Siri the first time. Letting out a soft hiss before bowing his head towards Drakomis.

"No more killing, I did oath to that rule. Abide I shall."

Drakomis hurfed as he stood, tail swaying in frustration as he looked to Siri. Melkos residing back a ways from her to not be seen as a threat. "Tell me, what overlord would take interest in me?!"

Siri watched as her personal guard was flung through the wall and knew that there was no way that he could have survived. Nearly two feet of metal separated the two compartments. No armor could have protected him against that much force.

This combined with the sudden change in Drakomis’ attitude and the appearance of this Melkos character made her furious and anyone could see the rage building up in her. She squeezed the arm of the couch tightly and replied to Drakomis with clenched teeth.

“The Overlord’s purpose is for the protection of the Corporation, its leaders, and its ideals, and it will do anything to accomplish that goal. It does not seek rule over the people, mine or yours, but it wants to ensure the safety of the populace. The Overlord would only show interest in you because you are becoming a very close ally of ours. It is not a bad thing. It sees that you uphold the same ideals that we do and wants the Anagonian government to survive no matter what. And it feels that the presence of the Galactic Republic benefits all.”

Melkos seemed to reach through the wall, his skeletal hand reaching towards where he flung the guard. He retracted his hand, and the crumbled body came close to him. His eyes glared....blue....now, the room growing cold. Then, lightning shot in ropes from his hand, surrounding the shattered armor.

The room grew...warmer...a mixture of cold and warm. The Guards body was soon to be materialized again, pieces of bone and muscle and skin being gathered together. Then, after a while of this, a force was gathered into the newly reformed body, and a shock was given, and a gasp was heard.

Melkos hissed, setting the guard down as he looked at Siri. "I would have fed on his soul, but I cannot keep it."

Drakomis hurfed, snarling a bit at Melkos' action, but otherwise bowing his head. It was a forbidden thing to bring back a soul, but in this case, since Melkos devoured the soul, he had the power to bring the body back and plant the soul rightly into its past vessel.

With Melkos' eyes return to red, his stance also returning, and the room becoming chilled again, Drakomis looked back to Siri, hearing her say very well.

"Interesting, seeing as I was killed by an Overlord, and my family murdered by such, I would have believed that name exhoed a resemblence." He bowed, "Forgive me, I....feared...for the first time in centuries."

Once again, Siri had to experience the temperature of the room changing, but she was glad that it was for a good reason this time. She watched closely but did not look at Melkos as the guard was brought back to life. But this did not change the way she felt. She was still furious at Drakomis for what he had done.

She rose from her seat and approached him, completely ignoring Melkos. The expression on her face showed that if she had a weapon in her hand, she probably would have attempted to stab Drakomis out of anger.

She stared into his eyes and said, “That does not change anything. You did not need to bring him in here just to find out more about the Overlord. A simple question would have sufficed.” Her voice began to become louder. “You were not the only who was fearful. You had absolutely no right to do that.”

Drakomis growled with anger at Siri, roaring in his voice as he responded. "I had NO IDEA about your OVERLORD! Your expression was that of hiding a DARK SECRET!" He hissed, lizard tounge coming out as if he were a snake, "I watched my FAMILY murdered by an OVERLORD who was dark and mysterious, don't tell me my DAMN RIGHTS to protect myself!"

Siri stopped from making any more comments and dropped her head in shame. She knew that her temper had gotten the best of her again, and now she seriously hurt the feelings of one of her few good friends. Guilt replaced anger as she moved back to the couch and sat down.

She leaned forward and rested her elbows on her legs as her head fell into the palm of her hands. Her thoughts swirled around a variety of things. The main one was the secret that she was hiding from everyone. That one in particular caused her outburst as she hid it from everyone. Her fear was that something terrible would happen to Jack if anyone knew.

A somewhat muffled voice came out from behind the hands. “You are right. You were only protecting yourself after what happened to your family. I should not have lashed out at you like that. It was rude and inconsiderate of your feelings.” She looked up at him with a sorrowful expression. “I truly am sorry for what I have done and I ask for your forgiveness. I will not blame you if you chose to walk away from here and never speak to me again.” She dropped her head back into her hands.

While her eyes were strayed from the scene, two hands befell her shoulder. One, feeling of bone, cold, but warm. If anything could be described from this touch, it would be comforting, almost a feeling of overwhelming comfort, sensing all that made her sorrow, reaching to see her burdon. A second hand comforted her other shoulder, scaly, yet warm and full of happiness. It was obviously Drakomis, because he refrained from probing.

Melkos, however, would make her thoughts and her secrets known to him. A voice, asking what burdoned her, wanting to take it, wanting to assure her that nothing would go wrong. When a lock was broken, when a small grasp of the secret was shown, the probing would stop, but a voice rang her head.

I will never tell, I promise. Fear not, for that worry is far from you.

Siri felt the comfort of both hands on her shoulders but made no effort to look up from her hands. Feelings and thoughts resurfaced in her mind. They were not pleasant, and she tried to move her mind away. Unfortunately, a great portion of her life revolved around them and caused her much pain. There was no hiding from it. It was now a part of who she was.

She then heard a voice in her head and knew it to be Melkos. She did not know if he could hear her but attempted to communicate anyway.

No, I cannot. I am the only one who must carry this burden. I carry it so others do not have to.

I know these ways, for I too carry a burdon. Mine could destroy everything, for maintaining the Darkness and molding it to light is harder than you think.

A short pause, as Melkos reviewed her burdons, an audible sigh could be heard as his red eyes went out. He obviously closed his eyes in his own way.

For a Leader, the greatest saddness is such burdons as yours. But you must know that your Husband cares very much, and you know that.

When Melkos mentioned her husband, she nearly began crying and attempted to hold it back. This was one of the things that troubled her deeply.

I do not think he would be please if he knew all that I do for him. There are things that I cannot tell even him until I am sure how he would accept it.

Being a protector doesn't mean lonliness. You have your companion, treat him with no secrets. No one will hate you, least me. For if I haven't convicted you, nor others condemned me, being of like history to you, then who would?

Of course, this all transveresed within the miliseconds that passed by. Somehow, Melkos' had slowed time specifically for this conversation.

She tried to keep her thoughts together and not blurt out anything sensitive, but the emotions she felt were too strong to be hid.

This is not an easy thing to just come out and say. I know the way he is. He would not react kindly to it. It goes against what he stands for.

Your more like a Sith than your realize, perhaps you could joi- He would sigh audiably again. Forgive me, your emotions, and your soul, express your secret all too well. Keeping a secret this long is not healthy, and being your type of leader is not helping your secrets.

Of course, it is not healthy. What other choice do I have? Reveal all and run the risk of a revolt and a possible execution for both of us. What I do is for the good of all. I must suffer this so that others can live their lives in safety. And what I do, I cannot turn from because I am in it for as long as I live. It is the path I have chosen.

Then join the Sith, and save your soul of torment. Instead of wasting that torment, use it as strength, and overcome your pain for a fulfilling existance. It wasn't a nessecarially deceptive tone, more truthful than not, but it was Obvious that Melkos was trained in attracting new members. No one would know this, but at the same time no one needs to. Join the Sith Order, join me, become my most trusted aide.....live by Good, yet retain pain for strength. This is the Anagonian Sith way, and you have all the desires of your heart, all the peace, all the life, for you here...

A spectral sigh came about in her head, as a revelation overcame Melkos in his mind. Of course, seeing as you are a wild spirit, you could easily form your own Order....but that requires training, and you could be my...Apprentice for some time. A slight hackle chuckle as he gave another choice for her. I'm sure you could also go the way of Drakomis, seeking to quell that pain with Jeedai Training, restraint, devotion, and observance. It would require decades, but that path is worth it, in a way.

He hissed another sigh, But of course, I could train you, and mold that which you are....into something worth living for....to protect that which you overwhelmingly love....

Siri mulled over Melkos’ words. She knew that she was at the crossroads of her life. In one direction was a way that she could use her pain for strength to protect all that she loved. The other direction was the restraint of the Jedi. She knew that she was not one who practiced restraint. It was already evident with the way she totally ignored the power of Melkos and jumped right into Drakomis’ face. So many thoughts ran through her mind and all of them pulled her in different directions.

There was one thing that Melkos said that stuck with her. She could protect that which she overwhelmingly loved. This was always the focus of what she did whether it be for Jack, the Corporation, and even her son, Alakantar.

She thought about it for what seemed like an eternity before she made a final decision.

I need to overcome this pain in the way that I think is best for me and those I love. The only way that is apparent is the way of the Sith. Therefore, I accept your offer.

Darkness consumed the space around her, and unknown enegry flowed through her suddenly. Streaks of particle bolts shot through the room, lightning it in a mysterious and dark fashion. When Siri was to look up at Melkos, his cloak befell his skeleton face, and only darkness consumed therein. His red eyes shined brightly, and his words were deep, and rough, as he spoke her new name.

His skeletal hand reached to her chin, and make her observe his words. Motioning even, as he spoke them to her. "Good....gooooood. Embrace the Dark Ssssssiiide."

It seemed the more words he spoke, the darker the room became, and the colder it fluxuated around. It looked as if the Drakness was a cloud, shooting lightning, twirling around Melkos and Siri.

Then, suddenly, with a motion of his hand, the cloud of particle bolts and dark energy shot into Siri's chest, flowing over her being. Melkos' figure grew darker, more figurative as Death himself, as he seemed to weild a staff in his other hand. With each bolt of particle lightning exposing his skeletal facial features, it was obvious he was behind this.

Melkos would lower the staff, seemingly twirling with arcane energies, onto her shoulder, looking down at her with eyes piercing her soul. His voice was much deeper now, much more meaningful, much more darker.

"Therefore you are Siri O'Neill no more." His gaze became more piercing, "RIIIISSSEE, DARTH SIRISANA, and accept your DESSSTINY as my APPRENTICE!"

Siri was astonished by everything that was happening around here. Never in her over two-hundred years of existence had she experienced anything quite like this. The amount of energy that had to flowing through this room would even cause the most powerful mages in her homeland to humble themselves.

She suddenly felt the dark energy flowing through her and chose not to resist it as she would normally do. A strange feeling came over her as it happened. Something different was happening to her, but she knew that this was the destiny that she chose, and she accepted it.

It was obvious to her that all these occurances was the work of Melkos. That was readily apparent from the beginning. She knew him to be a very powerful being, and oddly enough, she actually envied him and made it her goal to seek this power.

When he pressed the staff onto her shoulder, she looked up at him, into his eyes and felt his gaze into her soul. His voice interrupted any thoughts that she had. It spoke of her new name and the first command that he ever gave her. She, of course, obeyed and rose from her seat and turned to him.

Time began to flow normally again, and any guard in the room would be able to see the two looking at each other. Drakomis was laying oin the couch, asleep. Someone had...made sure...he would not interfere with these proceedings.

The cloud of Drakness itself was gone, all oif it was in Sirisana now, and Melkos gazed at her with a wise observance, his red eyes calm and compassionate as she obeyed his command. He knew then that she accepted her fate, and that was enough for him.

The staff he held was at his side, and his skeleton facial features were clear to her view. His voice was back to normal, for some reason.

"Darth Sirisana, declare yourself to your Order, to your guards. Make sure they know who YOU are, and who I am." His jaw bone went from side to side, "That is your first task. Make of my orders as you will, but ensure, for the sake of Drakomis, that no one is killed."

Sirisana nodded her head and replied, “I will do as you ask, and I assure you that no one will be killed in the process.”

She looked around the room and found the single guard near the window wondering what had just happened. She approached him with her arms folded and stared at where the eyes would be. “I order you to relay this message to the Overlord and all who follow it.” She replied forcefully. “I am now Darth Sirisana. You will continue to follow my orders as you have before. Also, Melkos Unchanos is now my Lord. You will show him the same respect as you have shown me for all these years. Do you understand that?”

The guard was stunned at all of this and found it difficult to reply. Sirisana grew angrier at him and shouted. “Damnit, answer me. Do you understand that?”

He stuttered a little with his answer. “Yes…I…under…stand.”

She gave him a satisfied look and turned back to Melkos. “The Order now knows everything.”

"Excellent," Melkos responded in a manyical voice, "I expect the Overlord to be very curious now."

He turned to look at Drakomis, who lay on the couch sleeping. Melkos was a dear friend of Drakomis', but when it came to paths and destinies, Melkos would not be stopped by his constant outcry. He had his plans, and no Jeedai would stop him. He had his loyalties to Drakomis, absolutely, but even he saw his future.

Melkos's red gaze befell Sirisana again, he had turned her for her own good, for the most part. But he needed her for when Drakomis began his new travels. She had the wisdom and experience, and her being involved in the future events would give Melkos the information he needed to assist his....Comrade.

"Darth Sirisana, you will begin training at your convience. Call My name, and I shall come."

He bowed his head, red gaze dissappearing for a second as he closed his eyes, then looked back at her, piercing. "Don't tell Drakomis who you are, Overlord. He must find these things out himself."

Sirisana was pleased and nodded when Melkos mentioned the training. She felt that training at her own convenience would work better for her because of the active life she led. “Very well. I look forward to training under your guidance.”

She waited for any other directions Melkos had to give her, but her face paled when he called her ‘Overlord’. How he knew, she did not know for sure. Perhaps she accidentally let her guard down. Only Melkos knew.

The color slowly returned to her face as she replied. “I do not plan on telling him. I will keep this secret within me as I have done before.”

Melkos nodded, observing her pale face made him chuckle silently. He loved doing that to people. With a great sigh he looked to Drakomis, then back to Siri. He extended his hand to her and gave her a Lightsaber.

"This is yours now, I'm sure you know how to use it." He chuckled, "If Drakomis see's it, don't worry, he'll be waking up any time now."

He bowed his head, then walked towards the windows. They froze solid as he walked through, then....back to normal. He was gone, and in a hurry too.

Sirisana took the lightsaber from Melkos and examined it. “I know how to use one of these. It is not too difficult. I just need to keep in mind that it can be deadly if it touches you.”

She placed it in a pocket on the inside of her robe and watched Melkos leave. It amazed her how he could just leave a space vessel without even using a transporter or shuttle craft. Siri then sat down in the armchair to wait for Drakomis to awaken and while she did, she reviewed everything that had happened. She could not believe that a simple diplomatic conference could turn into making new friends and joining the Sith. Sighing a little, she laid her head on the back of the armchair and closed her eyes.

"Your Different."

A firm but soft tone, rough in complexity, but gentle in speech, came from the couch area where Siri was. A slight yawn could be heard from the being that spoke, and movements on the couch could be heard as the being sat back up. Claws could be heard scratching scaly skin, this went on for quite a few minutes. By the end of it, a few bones were heard popped, and a shake. Then the voice spoke again, after having a slight chuckle.

"Sleepy head."

Siri smiled, still keeping her eyes closed. “No, I am merely resting my eyes. It has been quite a long day for me.” She yawned a little. “It is good to see that you are finally awake though.”

For a moment, there was complete silence. It was a strange silence, something that was foreign to the room. The voice spoke up again from Drakomis.

"Your sith now. Interesting."

A slight scratch of scales, which was a chin rub. "You have much training ahead, Young one. Melkos has his stain all over you."

A slight sigh, "Maybe its time for me to go."

Siri’s smile quickly went away when Drakomis spoke. She felt as if she had just betrayed a friend, but she knew that there was nothing she could say now that could change it.

She rose from her seat and replied quietly. “If you wish.” Sighing a little, she led Drakomis out of her quarters and down the hall. The strange silence continued as they walked.

When they reached the transporter room, they exchanged short solemn goodbyes, and Siri watched as Drakomis was teleported back to his ship. Long after he left, she continued to stand there staring at the transporter pad and thought about all that had happened. In her mind, she knew that she had to make him understand what she was going through, but how exactly, she did not know. She decided that she would just have to wait to see what happens in the future.

THE END