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The Greatest Sith... That
Never Lived
Posted by: Darth Danno
02.07.07 12:01am
Previously:
CHAPTER VIII: THE PRODIGAL RETURNS
(Part III)
Darth Ruin immediately held up his hand upon hearing mention
of the Holocron. Though no one fired off a shot, no one took
their eyes from their scopes, or their fingers away from the
triggers either.
"You and I must speak...privately."
Ruin said to Danno. Many of the asembled Dark Lords started to
voice their objection, but Ruin paid them no mind and led Danno
off down the hall, toward his private chambers.
The two were alone together for
many hours. Finally Danno left, headed for the docking bay, got
in his ship, and left. Even before he had reached the bay, the
Sith that had assembled with Ruin hours earlier, crowded into
his chambers to find out what happened.
"You just let him go?"
Darth Contagion questioned.
"You let him live???"
Darth Onslaught added.
"There are many questions
that remain unanswered." Ruin said, reclining in an overstuffed
chair that sat behind a large permacrete table at the far end
of the room. "Questions that a corpse could not answer."
"You could have simply tortured
him to get your answers." Contagion commented.
"He's dangerous." Darth
Gallows interjected.
"I'm well aware of that,"
Ruin said. "My priority is to determine the veracity of
the holocron. If it is real, a fake, or an elaborate ploy concocted
by him to attempt to gain favor with us once again."
"You should have just killed
him and taken it." Bloodbath snorted.
"I believe that's why he
didn't bring it with him," Ruin replied. "Instead he
left it with his...apprentice on the far side of the planet.
Which is where I sent him to await or decision."
"What decision?" Lord
Vikuru questioned, already surmising the answer.
"Weather or not to allow
him back into the fold." Ruin stated. Before any of the
assembled party could voice their opinions, Ruin held up a hand
and continued. "If I were to take him at his word, it seems
he has learned much in his absence. What exactly his knowledge
entails, and if it could be beneficial to our cause remains to
be seen. Somehow he penetrated the heart of the Jedi order and
was able to take out a sizeable number of the ruling council.
A feat never before accomplished by a Dark Lord. I need time
to dissect fact from fiction in that matter. There is also the
matter of his new apprentice. I desire to meet him...or her.
Danno didn't say much about them, but I could tell his trust
in his new acolyte was absolute. This could be his downfall.
Perhaps with the right influence, we may be able to turn a valuable
ally for him into an equally formidable foe." Darths Onslaught
and Fury chuckled at the thought of this. "Everything we
agreed upon depended on him handing over the holocron to us first."
"What does he require in
return?" Darth Rage asked.
"We here on this forgotten
world have a wide assortment of Sith knowledge, training, and
lore. Information that is available nowhere else. Danno's abilities
and personal knowledge are already quite vast...but not complete.
He is requesting access to our resources. After all, he couldn't
become a full Sith'ari without it."
Darth Onslaught interrupted,
"Once he gets his info, what's to stop him from trying to
kill us all, just like on..."
Again Ruin raised his hand, silencing
his fellow Sith. "The same thing could be said if us, What
is to stop us from ending his life once we acquire the holocron?
This is, to put it lightly, a very uneasy alliance." Ruin
caught the stare of all his assembled compatriots before continuing.
"I desire your opinions in this matter, but the final decision
will be mine alone. In closing, may I also say that considering
his past exploits, would it not be better to have our prodigal
as an unsure ally, rather than a definite enemy? Is it not better
to keep our enemies close, but our comrades closer?
Once he finished speaking, no
one said a word. Everyone simply shared uneasy glances.
Darth Contagion finally broke
the silence. "He needs to be watched...IF we allow him to
return."
"I could not agree more."
Lord Ruin commented. "If I do allow him to return, I plan
on putting YOU in charge of that...and holding you personally
responsible if anything untoward occurs."
Lord Contagion bowed, but everyone
could feel his seething hatred at accepting this new position.
Darth Fury tried to conceal a snort at Contagion's expense, but
the icy glare he received back told him he was unsuccessful.
"I will now open the floor
to discussion." Ruin stated, and the following debate continued
long into the night.
Darth Danno
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