Hi~! welcome to the second part of Dominance!!
Disclaimer: If by now you don't know, Virtra is my baby!! I created her and I love her to death. Star Wars belongs to George Lucas!! I don't own it, but I did come up with most of the stuff in this story. The History of Korriban, the five cities... blah blah blah... I came up with it! BWAHAH! Dreshdae is not mine, but the other names for Korriban places are. I named all the characters... I like originality! Disclaimer:
Notes: Ok... This is little on action and high on history/setting up FORESHADOWING!! So I hope you like this chapter. It's character set-up and practice on speeches and storytelling... and I just wanted to have some fun with this. I don't want to just jump into things without setting up background... so yeah. This part jumps two years ahead of the last part... and you can expect bizarre ammounts of time jumping from part to part. I promise to do my best when it comes to fleshing out what happened in those gaps (without getting boring).
~Sarai~
Darkness Rising
"Mistress… the people are gathered," a handmaiden's voice entered through the dim murmur of noises floating through the darkness. Virtra opened her eyes and they fell upon the black robed girl who had delivered the message. The handmaiden had her hair pulled up into a tight, formal bun on the back of her head… as did all the other handmaidens. They were Virtra's messengers and envoys, doing what their master desired while holding a high station in society as well.
"Thank you…" the Sith lord said quietly, "The rest of the day is yours… go to your family."
The handmaiden bowed and gracefully exited the dark chamber. She was one of the many girls who served Virtra in various capacities. Her handmaidens were the ministers of the state. Rather than Sith lords, Virtra had opted for gifted young girls to come and serve the newly placed monarchy. Each handmaiden was trained to harness their abilities for persuasion and stealth.
While the immediate take over had been painless, Virtra was not completely accepted planet wide. Pockets of loyalists to the former Five Families, along with the surviving members, were opposing her rule. The major cities and a majority of the populace supported Virtra's reign, but a few of the provinces had taken to harboring the families. The largest holdout was under control of the Dreshdae heir, Markal. His father, who was the late Lord Malthazr, still had many followers who opposed the female populace's return to power. Virtra's handmaidens were her eyes and ears throughout the planet. They went to meetings she could not, delivered messages to her constituents, and when necessary… they removed the opposition.
It was they who had helped her to arrange this speech. It would be the first time she addressed all of the citizens in the five cities in the two years of her reign. She had appeared before different crowds, been seen in the provinces and sectors… but never had she appeared purposefully before the entire planetary population. The time had finally come. Up to this point the purpose of her rule had been defined by vague rumor and assumptions; now it would come from her own mouth.
While many supported her rule, it was viewed by some that she was content to leave things the way they were. Others believed that Virtra would be forcing them into taming the planet. Rumors suggested that she was embellished in her powers from the magics, and that the new Sith would pay them no heed. None of the rumors were particularly good. Yolani had been heaping praise for Virtra to her friends every time she was in the Market, and as far at the citizens of Dreshdae were concerned… the new monarch was heavenly compared to their past life.
Those less fortunate than to live in the same city where their ruler resided, still held to skepticism and disillusionment. Thus when the handmaidens from the capitol had come to the provinces and city centers with news of a public address from Darth Virtra… the entire planet was alive with the buzz of conversation. Gossip and rumor ran supremely throughout the streets, and everyone had been waiting for today. Those who could make it had traveled to the large stadium set up equidistance from all five cities, and those too young, too old, or unable to travel would be watching the speech from the newly set up planetary vision net… a project Virtra had set her scientist to developing. She wanted a way to immediately communicate with anyone planet wide… thus they had created some wave frequency which allowed the transfer of visual imaging and sound. The device had taken a year to build and several months to implement, but now it was ready.
Every city and province had been outfitted with a main screen that could be used to view Virtra's first planetary address… not a single person would be absent… not even those rebellious members of her old enemies.
Virtra exited the dark chamber she had been using to collect her thoughts, walking through a large, heavy curtain that opened onto a high balcony ledge which was overlooking tens of thousands of the populace gathered in seats, sitting on the ground before the stage, and standing in the back spaces to get a good look at the new ruler as she finally revealed herself. Virtra's dark blue robes, midnight and glittering in the light of early morning sun, flew outward as she placed her hands on the railing of the balcony, using it as a podium.
Her black hair had been done up for this occasion, pinned and styled in an elegant weave upon her head; it was formed so that it all flowed down her back as silver filament wove in and out of her tresses. The dark, onyx strands framed her pale face and set her crimson eyes against a dark background… the mere sight of her ominous appearance silenced the crowd, making such a request unnecessary.
Virtra stood straight and regal as she looked out over each an every person gathered; she wondered if they feared her appearance? It didn't matter… The only thing that mattered was the task at hand: dispel rumors and give the truth.
"The time…" she finally spoke, her voice echoing through the stadium without mechanical assistance, "…has come."
"Many of you are new to my face. I am shrouded in rumors, my motives are a mystery, and I am regarded with doubt… but no longer. The time has come for you to see what I am, to hear what I have planned for the future, and to decide whether or not you wish for such glory," there began a murmuring from the crowd and Virtra noticed that it was a mix of opinions. Some were intrigued others were immediately on the defensive.
"Two years!" She exclaimed, "Two years it has taken to get life back to normalcy! Those who came before me took your lives; destroyed families… enslaved and embittered the populace to any figures of power. They ruled by a design of fear and force. They threw you to the side for their own gains, and the planet began to fight back. Two years since their days were over, and still they threaten to destroy the planet with their selfish desires. Have you not received your daughters? Your sons? The armies have been halted, the search for power is no more… your cities, your provinces have grown and been rebuilt… the planet is being cultivated once again… in only two years! We… not myself, but you and I have pushed back hundreds years of oppression in a mere two years. Can you deny that?" Virtra asked impassioned, "If any of you can deny that… I beg you to come forward!" There was a sudden storm of murmuring, not the hesitant whisper… but the murmur or realization, of truth revealed and closed minds beginning to open. No one stepped forward.
Virtra continued as the conversation died down, "We have returned to the way things were… but we cannot deny the loss suffered at the will of those before me. We cannot deny that our once great planet has been reduce, the once great populace severely cut… some of you have seen loved ones die, homes destroyed… you even witnessed cities fall do to negligence and inattention. These two years have seen the return to something normal, but we have not even begun to replace what we have lost. Families… lovers… fathers with their children, mothers with their lives… time!" The word echoed with impetuous force throughout the stadium, like a tolling bell of severity ringing harsh truth to the ears of all who heard it. "That… can never be replaced. You cannot take back lost years. You can see the lost time just as clearly as we do the overgrown portions of cities. You cannot reclaim lost memories the way we regain forest and field. Even though we can rebuild lost monuments, we cannot bring loved ones back—buildings and factories…those are meaningless compared to what has been lost. Time has been stolen from you… and those responsible still wish to take more."
The murmur returned now, but this time it was angry. So angry in fact, Virtra could hear shouts begin to emit from the audience, "Who! Who would dare?! Cursed families of the Darth!"
"What are you accusing?!" one young woman cried.
Virtra held up her hands for silence, "I know not their names… I do not consort with them. They live amongst you, spreading lies and rumors about the monarchy… attempting to associate the title Darth with their illegitimate legacy of lies and ruin. They are embittered and angry. They have lost their power, the same power that was gained by sacrificing your lives and your time. But I did not come here to talk about them! I came here to talk to you about a bright, new, and glorious future!!"
"NO!!" The crowd began shouting, "Give us their names!!"
Virtra's face was impassive, emotionless as stone… but inwardly she was smiling. With this speech her enemies would be destroyed, and the populace would hail her as an honest lord… a ruler to mark the passage of time. "They are the very same families…" the new queen spoke cautiously, "Who founded your cities. The very same families who darken your homes and burdened you ears with lies! Those who would incite war and chaos in order to gain power! But I give you what you deserve… truth!"
"The truth is that I am one of you!!" Virtra bellowed from the balcony, "I too was oppressed, locked in the darkness of their reign! For twenty years of my life I was kept in the dank, horrible confines of their dungeons… kept for their pleasure! I, like your wives and daughters, was treated like cattle… used for only their betterment. However! When it came to me… they decided I was no better than to sate a dark lord's incurable boredom! I was to be used and disposed of… by members of the same families you cry to learn of! And like you now!! I chose one thing and one thing only: I chose life!!" Virtra's passionate nature rolled through the crowd like a wave. The change could be seen on each and every face: the people wanted justice.
At that moment a handmaiden rushed from behind the curtain and whispered into her mistress's ear, "The cities are in a furious rage… the people are running out into the provinces. They are tearing members of the five families from their homes… they want-"
"Blood…" Virtra whispered quietly, enjoying the symphony of the shouts and cries from below, "Now go… I have a speech to finish."
The Sith lord turned her attention back to the crowd, they didn't seem to notice she had taken a reprieve, and held her hands up. The crowd slowly died down "I know what it is you want…" Virtra said calmly, "… it is the same thing I wanted that night two years ago. I wanted my planet back. I wanted my own life. I wanted to make decisions for myself. But more than anything I wanted blood! Blood of the people who had destroyed my home, my life, and my planet… that night two years ago… I took my planet back!! And today I offer that choice to you! I offer you a future to rebuild! I offer you a chance to take your lives and your homes and your families back! Take back your lives and I will glide with the winds of your tenacity! I promise you retribution!!"
"I will make my moves upon the back of you vigor, your energy, and your desires! The Lord of the Sith no longer works for selfish gain! Today the monarchy, and its ruler, flies upon the will of the people to reclaim that which was lost! We will move outward! Expand… increase… abundance is our future! Advancement is our cause! The power will no strive for the monarchy but for its people! The power is in your hands!! Will you sit idly by and allow your enemies to destroy opportunity… or will you make the same choice that I made? What will you do?!"
"Blood!!"
"TAKE THE PLANET!!"
"Virtra!!"
The crowd began chanting, worked into an angry frenzy as they poured from the stadium and back to their means of travel. Virtra stood upon her balcony, basking in the power of the knowledge she had just discerned. The Sith lords before her had sought power in the darkness, and they had been destroyed. The darkness would eventually destroy all—that was its nature. But words… words had the power to incite the darkness in others. Words could make one insurmountable.
*****
Unquestioned authority…
In one day, due to one impassioned speech, Virtra has cemented her place in the monarchy and eliminated her opposition. The people of the Five Cities had been enticed, easily urged into a fit of rage… they had taken the most obscure descendants of the five families and murdered them. It was not harsh cold blooded murder, no they did things according to the law… those members were executed after sentencing and a trial.
The true victory had come when those people in the provinces, as they watched the life-like form of Virtra on the high screen. They had become angry… quickly. Those provinces that had been harboring the actual survivors turned them over immediately. Those individuals, who had been closely related to the fallen Darth Malthazr, were turned into a vicious pool of rage and murder. Not one of the traitorous swine survived the night… by the time of the dawn, Virtra's name was on every lip.
"It is served…" Yolani said, bustling into Virtra's chambers with the dinner cart.
"Yes it is," Virtra agreed. "Vengeance, retribution, justice… it has all been served with delicate precision."
"Mm hmm," Yolani gave Virtra a quizzical look, "I don't know what ye are talking about… but I was referring to yer dinner." The maid chuckled and pushed the cart over to the desk and started to uncover the several trays. The desk was the only ornate piece of furniture Virtra had allowed to remain in her room. She liked the craftsmanship, it represented her and, in a way, her rule… elegant and refined, with a humble origin about it.
"Oh… right, yes, of course…" Virtra said, embarrassed about her mistake.
"Nothing to fret," Yolani cackled as she finished with her preparations. Several assorted entrees lay out on the cart, ranging from salad to fish and meat. The old woman was the only member of the old Sith staff that remained, and it was only out of her maternal instincts… she seemed determined to make sure that Virtra didn't go down the same road that her predecessors had. "So… you'll be having no one to oppose ye. Very clever that speech was… ya meant it I hope?"
"Absolutely," Virtra said sternly and with great conviction, "The people were oppressed just as I was. Now I have everything, and I keep gaining more. It's time they start receiving. First the planet… and then we will go from there."
"Sometimes too much is harmful…" Yolani spoke absent mindedly, "Just like the Darths and their search for power. Give too much to the darkness, and you lose yourself. Take too much selfishly and you lose what you had. They lost their identity… and their planet. Ye've started out well and the people like ye. I wouldn't be goin' and messing that up with lofty ambition. Keep yer feet on the ground and move like the past two years. Things'll work out… I'd be willing to bet my bloomers on it."
Virtra nodded, "You're right. I don't plan on making the same mistakes as they did. Which is why I would like to ask you a question?"
"Well don't dance around it dearie," Yolani casually waved a hand to dismiss pretense, "Unhinge your trap and spit it out… I'm not growin' any younger." She sat her plump features down upon the bed's edge and looked at Virtra with impatience.
"The old Sith lords… you said that they took names. What did you mean by that?"
"What do ye think I meant? I mean they swapped out their names for something from the darkness they served," the old woman rolled her eyes, "I swear… sometimes ye are so dense girl."
"That's not what I was referencing," Virtra seethed, "I mean how did they do it? What did the use for a guide?"
The old woman eyed Virtra warily, "Ye aren't thinking of doing the same are you?"
"Definitely not!" Virtra growled, "My name is more than enough. I just… I want to understand what it is that gives me my power, and if names have something to do with it then I want to make sure I use such a thing to my advantage."
"That's a dangerous area to enter as well… ye might become lost along the paths to charting darkness."
"It's a risk I'm willing to take," Virtra said stubbornly.
Yolani nodded, apparently agreeing with Virtra. The maid bustled about, attempting to get comfortable on the bed's edge, but finally decided it wasn't going to happen… so she hopped into the middle of the mattress and crossed her legs. "Fine… let me see whats I can remember. I wasn't there so it's not like I've got an eyewitness memory…. But me family has been in this palace for a few generations now… none of us gifted. We see things, and mother passed down her stories to me as grandmother did to her."
The old woman paused for a moment, "Ya remember what I told you last time? About the council signifying the change of our society?" Virtra nodded. "Well after Morlun Dreshdae and his goons had their wives executed for conspiracy… they started goin' by different names. The five family heads started being called Darth something another. I think that mister Dreshdae was called Darth Hailor, mutterings about him being the lord of dark wisdom… rubbish if I'd had heard it. They was as stupid as you could get. It was their wives who helped to keep everything organized. The moment they started down their quest for power, the planet started fighting back and the people started suffering."
"The big problem was that the five families no longer used their powers to hold back the jungles," Yolani frowned, "Many a good people were killed by beasts… many more by their own lords. Ye happen to be much smarter than those men were when they started, but I don't know if yer wanting to be taking their title. The people may still be cautious around ye."
"The title means nothing," Virtra said irritated, "You yourself said that."
"Aye, that I did… and that's what I tells them," Yolani laughed, "But it's difficult to make old wrongs just disappear. Some of the older citizens is just waiting for ye to start callin yourself the lord of something."
"So the names they took… they had meanings?"
Yolani nodded, "That's what you've had to accept. Not natural that a man like Morlun Dreshdae be a fine and upstanding gentleman one day… and the next day he's murderin' his wife? Something bizarre was a happing with the families. That's why the lords from each always had a name to go with their house."
"Wait," Virtra interrupted, "What do you mean… to go with their house?"
"Yer telling me that ye don't even know about the five houses?" Yolani asked with annoyance. The gaze was met by aggravation and irritation from Virtra, and Yolani laughed. "I keep forgetting that ye were locked up. Not to worry though, the five houses each had a meaning. Dreshdae was the house of knowledge, Lehesh was the house of silence, Quintis was the house of power, Tuerkan was the house of nature, and Or'laede was the house of creation. So ya see it now?"
"See what now?" Virtra asked. She confused now more than ever before. "What do those names have to do with the names that the Sith lords gave themselves?"
"Ye are either dense… or much more uninformed than I possibly imagined," Yolani muttered.
"What was that?" Virtra asked pointedly.
"Nothing! I was just collecting me thoughts," Yolani smiled, "Now what the names of the houses and the names of the Sith lords have in common is meaning. Morlun Dreshdae was the lord of dark wisdom from the house of knowledge, Darth Malthazr is the lord of omniscience and he too is from the house of knowledge… though a great load of help that omniscience was. That traitorous lord Freth done him in… but then he's from the house of Lehesh so that would stand to reason."
"Why's that?"
"Because!" Yolani exclaimed, "Freth was the lord of deceptions… and silence denotes secrecy. Ye need to start working with me here otherwise my old age will kill me before ya understand what I'm trying to explain to ye."
"So your saying that the houses are named in the same fashion as the Sith lords?" Virtra asked quietly, pondering the possible implications.
"That would stand to reason wouldn't it? The only families that are all born gifted no matter what… are those who head the five cities. I would even go so far as to suggests that the house names are the root of their darkness. The five families always wanted more power, but when the ladies were in charge it was held in check. They had their gifts, but them gifts were used precisely and in proper fashion. Morlun Dreshdae and his goons were the ones that crumbled the works of ages."
"So the other houses… how do their names coincide with the Sith titles?" Virtra asked, eager that they were finally getting somewhere.
"Lets see…" the old woman paused. "I can't remember none of the names from Morlun's time… but we can go with the Sith lords that you took over from. I already told ye Malthazr and Freth… well there was also Nethzir, him being the lord of decay and all. He was the head for the house Tuerkan, late head anyways. Torlah, his son, that brat was the lord of creatures or whatnot. They were both from the house of nature so it fits that their powers was such. Lords from the house of Tuerkan have always been delving into that alchemy."
"That disgusting and corrupted art," Virtra sneered… "Anything that would corrupt the natural order of things…"
"I understand ye, but the lords wanted power and the house of Tuerkan found that they could manipulate nature itself. It went to their heads… that's why we have the Terentatek and the Tuk'ata, both of them dark monstrosities were named after the house Tuerkan. That alchemy was also what made the planet so vicious… it did more damage to the city of Tuerkan than any other. It was tryin' to tell us something methinks, and the Sith lords just ignored it."
"What about the other lords… the other houses?" Virtra urged Yolani back on topic.
"Right… right you are," she fumbled off the bed and went about cleaning up Virtra's plates, as the dinner had barely been touched. "Now there was Lord Yeniell from the house of Or'laede… he was lord of earth. Perhaps he wouldn't have been too bad a person, but he was steadily at Malthazr's heels… never got the chance to do anything worth mention. But the house of creation always held sentimental ties to the planet and the life around it. The other families called them soft, but they could do things with de earth, the air… the water… terrible things in ways, but beautiful as well. Right good shows they put on in my great-grandmother's times I hear… but that's gone by the wayside now. Then there were the two lords of house Quintis, Verca and Ridkal. Verca was a merciless brute… like a mountain he was and his brother Ridkal was a sniveling parasite. They both outwardly supported Malthazr, but Ridkal was always looking for more power. Verca was aptly named the lord of strength and Ridkal was the lord of demons… both coming from the house of power they had half of the gifts. Verca was the brawn and he had the pure power of the magics… but Ridkal, he was the more dangerous one in me own opinion."
"For what reason?" Virtra asked skeptically, "If his brother had the strength then-"
"Stop interrupting me! That's how I lose my place!" Yolani scolded, "Strength isn't everything, Virtra. Ridkal had the power of illusions… he could turn your fork in to a poisonous viper right there in your hands, and you'd not know that it was false. His tricks are what allowed Freth's plan to work I thinks… and it was always difficult to know what Ridkal was doing or who was actually with him… nothing about him was certain and ye were lucku that ya caught him unawares and killed him quick. Nasty thing those illusions were, an' more than once the house of Quintis was used to put down minor riots and uprisings. Always with their illusions so that we didn't know who was actually fighting and who was just a thought."
"So Quintis had brute strength and strength of mind…" Virtra mused, "Those would both be considered power."
"Precisely…" Yolani gave verbal applause, pleased that Virtra was finally getting it. "So you see what I was talking about before? With the names of the houses and the lords being combined?"
"Yes… except for Dreshdae… what was their specific trait?"
Yolani frowned, "I'd have thought you'd figured that one out by now… they had knowledge of the language darkness spoke. They had total control over the names of the Sith lords. Dreshdae were the masters, they named the lords and had power over them because of it. The lords of Dreshdae also wielded superior arcane mights…. Lightning, fire, darkness… it all bent to their will like weak metal alloy."
"Could the other Sith lords do these things?" Virtra asked hesitantly.
"What? The lightning and what have you?" Yolani scoffed, "Of course not… that would mean that Dreshdae had lost their hold. The lords of Dreshdae commanded the arcane might… they also sometimes had powers of the other houses, but never have I heard of the lower lords having powers of Dreshdae… perhaps if one of them were to learn to speak to the darkness… perhaps, but that gift was solely given to the head family."
"Because of the name you think?"
Yolani nodded, "Most assuredly… I think ye would be most correct."
"Power over people because of names…" Virtra mused. If she were to start her own brotherhood, after learning what this darkness was whispering and how it applied—perhaps she could harness it; then she could have ultimate control. She would be able to make sure that there were no divisions, no break in loyalty, and definitely no deceptions or treachery. However, Yolani's latest information startled her… could she be a child from Dreshdae? Or had she merely been lucky to be gifted from another birth, and if so… was she chained to the darkness like her past?
These thoughts annoyed her, and Virtra had become loathe of being annoyed. She refused to let these dark magics control her or dictate her path… and she'd find out where she came from before she took any step further. If she was indeed descended from Dreshdae, then she would find out just how much power these names had.
She noticed Yolani leaving and hurriedly spoke, "Where are you going?"
"Ye bees deep in thought, dearie," the old woman stated kindly, "And I've got to be cleaning this up so I can get some rest… not as young as I used to be. Yolani knows that you appreciated her help… so don't fret your head none about it." With that she bundled herself out of the room, and Virtra could hear her and the squealing cart as they lumbered down the hall.
Virtra waited until she couldn't hear any more sounds, and then went to sit behind her desk. The first thing to do would be to check the birth records for the five families… and see if there was anything about her in their. If not she would trace herself back from that dank cell. Surely they had records for all of this… and if they did not, she would find out by other means.
*****
=Virtra Kolan=
Born to: Michael Kolan and Virtres Holt
Gifted.
Sent to education site: Dreshdae
Designation: breeder
Virtra sat behind her desk the next morning, reading over the birth card information that her handmaidens had found. Nothing tied her to Dreshdae influence… much less their cursed inheritance. As far back as their records went, the Kolan and Holt families were as much peasantry as she was ruler. Her mother had been killed two years after her birth for producing a second child that wasn't gifted… Virtra had been the only child born into that family with the "gifts". Had times been different then this would have been cause for joyous occasion, but rather it just meant Virtres Holt had to suffer longer at the hands of her captors.
The thought caused a rage to build up inside Virtra. Seething anger at the seemingly limitless pain these Sith lords had caused. She wished daily for a different outcome that night, that she had slaughtered them all, but there was nothing she could do. The future was hers, and she could right as many of these wrongs as possible. Still… this news wasn't all bad. In actuality it gave Virtra more information about the darkness she was attempting to understand.
It was now apparent that people outside of the five families could harness the magics… and while the names from the darkness might have held sway… they are not all powerful. The powers of the houses could be mastered by one outside, and if that was so then anyone could learn those powers if they were strong enough.
This knowledge told Virtra that things would end up her way… and that once she could control the magics completely… she could control more than just the world. Why stop with Korriban… why stop with just a few planets? Why stop with just territory or the darkness… when she could learn to control life itself. Everything that exists could be brought to her will.
Just a bit of understanding was all that stood between her and ultimate control.