Goodbye To Taris

Just a little over two weeks later, Nox sat in the same chair he'd sat in when he'd first arrived to Komo's office. Komo sat in the same chair across from Nox. The View of the forest beyond the wall was the same, but Nox now knew what had been lurking within the dense trees and brush of the forest.

As he looked out the window, Darth Nox started the conversation with Darth Komo, saying, "Now that your rebellion has been quashed before it could spiral out of control, you can return your attention to reclaiming the rest of this world. You only have pirates and Rakghouls to deal with."

Nox turned his head to face Komo.

Komo replied humbly, gratitude expressed in his tone, "It is all because of your intervention, Dark Lord." Then, in a tone that said he was ready to carryout Nox's first commands as his new master, he added, "And now for my part. Is there anything my dark lord wishes of me? What are my instructions, Dark Lord?"

Nox simply replied, "Just be ready. When I need you, I will tell you your part."

Komo, bowing his head, vowed solemnly, "I shall be ready, Dark Lord. I look forward to the day that you smash Darth Acina's plans to discredit you, and I look to the day you have formalized your dominion over Taris before the Dark Council."

Nox did not acknowledge Komo's vow. He simply moved on, asking him, "Have you learned anything else about her plans?"

Darth Komo was not offended. He knew it was too soon for Darth Nox to fully trust him. Just sitting across the small table from Nox and remaining alive was all he could have hoped for.

Instead, he smiled, and with glee answered his new master, announcing, "Darth Acina has just made her first blunder and has not yet realized this. She has ordered me to minimize your part in all of this, and to take most of the credit for myself, Dark Lord."

Komo, presented Nox with a data pad.

Khem Val was too far from where the two sat to intervene. It just happened too quickly for Khem Val to act. Nox had quickly accepted the device from Komo before Khem could warn his master. Khem watched silently, apprehensively, as Nox read it's contents.

However, Khem's worst fears diminished with each passing moment. When it became apparent that nothing untoward would befall his master, Khem Val breathed a sigh of relief. He then shook his massive head disapprovingly at his master's carelessness.

As Nox read the contents of the datapad, the corner of Nox's lip curled slightly. Komo's smile widened, almost imperceptibly, on seeing Nox's faint sneer. Nox looked up after he'd finished reading the datapad's contents. He'd found that they were orders from Acina to Komo, and it had her official seal on them.

From the datapad, Nox learned two things. The first thing was that Komo was firmly in his camp. The second was that he now had some real ammunition to use against Acina before the Dark Council in their upcoming meeting.

Nox ordered Komo, "I want you to increase the rate at which you clear out the wreckage, detoxify the land, and build new settlements. I want a detailed report itemizing your annual budget. If I can get you more capital for the work that needs to be done here, then I will make it available to you."

Nox thought about doing more to make his mark on Taris, to show it was now a part of his dominion.

He added after a small pause, "Also, I want you to give proper names to these towns. I want to show the Dark Council a direct correlation of your improved successes with the actions I took here."

Komo answered confidently, "That will be easy to accomplish, Dark Lord, because the delays and sabotage have stopped, again thanks to your actions on Taris. I will be sure to have a detailed budget report sent to you, as you have decreed."

Nox got up to leave. Komo stood as well.

Nox said in reply, "Good. Then I'll take my leave. Be ready to testify to the Dark Council about this and...," waving the datapad at Komo, continued, "... other illegal acts against the Dark Council which she has perpetrated."

Komo bowing as deeply, as his corpulent form would allow, declared, "I await your call to testify, Dark Lord."

Nox nodded, then said, "You need not see me out. I'll see myself out."

He walked out of Komo's office, Khem Val following behind.

Outside of Komo's office, Nox told Khem, "Continue to protect Darth Komo. I will send Sith to relieve you."

Khem Val counseled his master, saying, "This man has already killed all of his enemies and the spies of Acina. He is not weak. Acina will not waste strong assassins on him. She will send them against you." Frustration showed in Khem Val's tone, as he added, "As strong as you are, my master, you are foolish. You expose yourself too much to your enemies. I must watch your back."

Darth Nox did not like being called foolish, but this was Khem Val speaking. Khem Val feared nothing, and spoke his mind accordingly. He knew that telling Khem Val about his tone towards him would be a fruitless endeavor. Nox simply nodded, and accepted Khem Val's council.

Darth Nox said simply, "Then let's go, Khem."

As Darth Nox walked the corridors of Darth Komo's headquarters, with Khem Val following, he thought on what he'd read on the datapad. He couldn't believe that she had actually ordered Komo to assassinate him in a written order. And then ordered him, again in writing, to lie to the Dark Council that it was Acina, albeit through Darth Komo - and not Nox, who'd accomplished great things on Taris.

Nox thought, incredulously, "AND she put her official seal on it!" He wondered to himself, "Is she really this clumsy? Or is this a trap?"

He decided that he needed to have the contents of the datapad analyzed, including its coded seal, in order to ensure these were not faked. He decided to have his spies conduct an inspection of the contents of the datapad. The more he thought about it, the more he started to doubt the authenticity of the written communications.

Darth Nox thought to himself, "If it is authentic, then Acina is a buffoon and an idiot. If so, then how could the Emperor's Hand have chosen her as someone qualified to sit on the Dark Council?"

Many on the Dark Council, including Nox, erroneously believed that because the Emperor's Hand had chosen her to guard the Emperor's treasures, that it was also the Emperor's will that she have a seat on the Dark Council.

Nox thought more on the matter, "If it's not authentic, then either Komo is setting me up for embarrassment in the Dark Council Chambers, or Komo himself is being duped and is being used to embarrass me..."

Nox thought of another scenario.

"What if it is someone close to Acina's inner circle who'd sent the written communications, expressing her wishes, but is completely mishandling the matter...?" Nox's mind swam with possibilities. He breathed out in frustration, "Sith politics: Fun and games!"