55: Challenges.

'Twelve days and twelve nights have passed since I returned to the ruins of my ancestor's home here on Korriban. With a team of archeologists and my faithful apprentice Lord Aruk, we've been excavating previously undiscovered territory but so far have yielded no answers. The darkness which dwells within the holocron has grown more fierce ever since our arrival and a part of me has begun to imagine perhaps this relic should never be activated at all. My original hopes it may possess a cure to the after effects of my unique ability may have been naive.'

'Aruk made an interesting suggestion this morning and should this excavation fail to reveal any answers, I might consider it. He proposed I head inside the tomb of The First and attempt to destroy the holocron by using the fire within me—he believes a show of my heritage is the only thing that would unlock the relic's secrets.'

'Forty days and forty nights and still I am no closer to finding the answers I need and time is of the essence now. Word has reached me that the Emperor is in pursuit of members of my family, my son, due to a prophecy told to him by the Force itself. I must make haste and have decided to follow up on Aruk's suggestion. I will head into the tombs alone before dawn in a last attempt to break the seal on my family's holocron.'

Eliza sighed and put her grandfather's journal down. The entries provided her with little information on the holocron itself but she now grew even more suspicious of Aruk's involvement with her grandfather's demise and she got up. With the journals clasped underneath her arm, she navigated the hallways of the Citadel towards Darth Marr's chambers.

"Please tell Darth Marr that Lord Seraphine is here to see him." she told one of the guards posted outside.

He returned seconds later to let her in and Darth Marr gestured for her to take a seat.

"Have you found anything?" he indicated his head towards the journals she carried.

"Not much on the holocron, other than my grandfather's own suspicious and musings but…"

Eliza flipped the pages to the last entry he'd ever made and handed the journal over to Darth Marr.

"Do you think it's possible Aruk was aware of the Emperor's pursuit of my family too, could that be a hidden motive for him murdering my grandfather?"

"It is possible." Darth Marr nodded slowly as he read through the page "But there's still nothing to be done about that."

"No I know, I get it but if Aruk was acting on the Emperor's behalf then he could still be a weak link now. Didn't you say you wanted to ascertain where he stood regarding the Emperor my Lord? I just thought knowing this may help."

"Hmm, it does, thank you." Darth Marr closed the journal "Would you mind if I kept this for now to read for myself?"

"No my Lord, go ahead. I've already made copies of the entries concerning my grandfather's excavation on Korriban and I have the map and coordinates on my datapad."

"And you wish to visit the site?"

"I do."

"Very well, I'll arrange for your transport and access."

"Thank you."

Eliza took her leave of him and headed towards the library next. She double checked the index she'd downloaded to her datapad and headed up the large spiral stairs for the Advanced History Collection section of the library, off limits to anyone below the rank of Lord. Endless and high rows of books greeted her, most of them dusty as though they hadn't been read in years but Eliza deemed that to be a good thing. It meant they could hide secrets few others had looked into.

"The Old Families…" she whispered to herself as her index finger traced along the backs of several volumes.

A small cough sounded near her and when she turned around she found herself looking into the green eyes of a sandy-blonde haired woman.

"Lord Seraphine?" she asked.

"Yes, hi." Eliza smiled at her.

"Hi. You don't know me but we have a mutual friend… a friend who typically wears a red leather jacket?" the woman said in a meaningful way "Can we go somewhere private?"

"Uh…" Eliza nodded and searched her surroundings until she spotted a door off to the side and she motioned for the woman to follow her.

The two snuck inside what appeared to be an archives room "You know Theron?" Eliza immediately asked once they were certain they were alone.

"I do. He's best friends with my… well another mutual friend. I'm Charlie."

"Nice to meet you Charlie. Are you SIS too and how is it you managed to sneak into the Empire then?"

Charlie snorted and shook her head "No disrespect Lord Seraphine but I don't know or trust you well enough to explain that."

"If you're a friend of Theron's then you're one of mine and I'll keep your secrets, but I understand too. And call me Eliza."

Eliza could already tell by Charlie's accent and the way in which she addressed her that Charlie at the very least had Imperial roots too but she decided not to push the matter "Is Theron okay, did something happen to him?"

"Theron's fine, he sent me to deliver a message to you." Charlie pulled a recorded out of her pocket "I'll give you some privacy if you want."

"No it's okay," Eliza took the recording "I get a feeling you're here covertly and I'd hate for someone to spot you…"

She set the recorder on a small desk before her and hit play as Theron's holo-image appeared above the little device.

"Eliza. I just saw the news that you're alive and well which makes me happier than you could ever imagine. I am so sorry for what happened… I had no idea he was watching and I'd just hoped for some closure, something to remember you by. I never meant for you to get hurt but I understand if you no longer want anything to do with me. I've tried to message and call you but I can't seem to get through which leaves me to believe you no longer want to hear from me…"

The image before her let out a deep sigh and she watched Theron run his hand through his hair, his signature move whenever he felt nervous or insecure and it somehow made her smile.

"If that's the case, I apologize for bothering you with this message but if it's all some misunderstanding, please let me know. I've been worried about you, I miss you and… call me crazy but that kiss… oh I don't know, for some reason it felt like you felt the same for just a moment, but then again I may just be foolishly hoping. I love you and I'm so sorry. And please, however you end up taking this message, don't blame Charlie. She's Jonas' girlfriend and you can trust her. Be safe Eliza."

Charlie chuckled "Poor nervous sap, you really did a number on him."

"I don't understand why he hasn't been able to reach me… I promised my fiancé I wouldn't contact Theron myself but…" and then it slowly dawned on her "Oh…"

"Yeah, we suspect your man blocked Theron from your comms. Sorry."

Eliza nodded "Of course he did… can I, would you be able to get a message back to Theron?"

"Sure."

Eliza deleted Theron's message from the recorder even though deep down she would have loved to keep it to replay several times over and then she began to record her own message back to him, suddenly feeling equally foolish and fumbling with her words as Charlie tried to bite back several laughs.

"Thank you." Eliza handed the recorder back over "Is there a way for me to contact you in the future, or is that too big a risk for you?"

Charlie hesitated. She'd dealt with her fair share of Sith and prefered nothing more than to stay far away from them but Eliza seemed different to her so after taking a moment to consider her options, she agreed to exchange numbers with the woman before her.

"Just please don't constantly use me as an in-between man. I lead a busy life in the shadows, I can't be playing matchmaker for you both or whatever it is you've got going on."

"I understand, thank you and I promise, it'll only ever be in case of an emergency."

Eliza pulled open the door leading them back into the library and stepped out first to make sure the coast was clear before signaling Charlie. The two women said goodbye to one another and while Charlie disappeared back into the shadows to navigate her journey home to the Republic, Eliza gathered her pile of books. The ones she didn't need were placed back on the shelves and she checked the only useful copy out at the front desk.

"You could have at least told me you took extra measures to keep him out of our lives." the accusation rolled off her tongue as Eliza and Lord Scourge disembarked from the shuttle which had taken them to the surface of Korriban.

They'd departed from Dromund Kaas the moment Darth Marr had arranged for transport and clearance and though their journey had been quiet, Eliza hadn't been able to stop herself from confronting Lord Scourge about what he'd done.

"But does it really matter? You agreed to no contact which means he shouldn't be able to reach out to you either though clearly he found a way around that."

"Yeah, don't you just hate those spy types?" Eliza snarked.

Up ahead two Imperials awaited them with a set of speeders and Eliza double checked she had everything she needed before they set off on their journey towards a rarely visited section of the planet with ruins so old they'd crumble if one even so much as stared at them for too long.

"So how did he get to you anyways?" Lord Scourge yelled over the roaring engines of their speeders "Was it Lana?"

"A messenger droid." Eliza lied but only to protect Charlie's identity as she'd promised.

"Did you send word back to him?"

"Yep."

She twisted the handles of her speeder and sped up to get further away from him as from a distance, she could see the few remnants of an ancient structure come into view—the home where she'd met her grandfather in her mind following Arkous and Darok's demise.

Old excavation equipment still lay scattered about and half buried in the sand and Eliza wondered if those belonged to her grandfather's team or if another had visited this location since then.

"What did you tell him?" Lord Scourge demanded to know as his speeder came to a halt and he caught up to her.

"Yeah wouldn't you like to know."

A groan escaped his lips and Eliza knew she was pushing his buttons but she also felt he had it coming. She crouched down and picked up an old scanning device, brushing the sand off of it with her fingers and blowing across the surface so she could try to see if any old data recorded by its previous owner could be salvaged.

"I'm sorry alright? It's not like I didn't trust you, it's him that bothers me."

"It's too damaged," Eliza sighed referring to the device in her hands but she tucked it away in her rucksack regardless "and Scourge, what are you worried about? Even if he and I wanted to be together, which I don't, it would be impossible. He's there and I'm here, a small exchange of words won't change that."

"I won't be your consolation prize."

"And you're not." annoyance now sounded through her voice as well "Damnit Scourge I vowed to honor the Jedi Code, to never engage in any relationships or acts of passion and I threw that away for you. Because I love you and did so long before he ever came into the picture."

"You're not Jedi anymore."

"No, I'm not but what—"

"You're Sith and part Pureblood, with passions and urges you won't always be able to control."

"What?" she looked at him quizzically and shook her head "You control them, and I did for the bigger part of my life so far."

"I've lived and I know what and who I want." he argued as the realizations and fears he'd carried around with him got the better of him.

He now understood what he'd sensed that night in The Black Rose when she spoke of everything she missed out on as a Jedi. It wasn't just fancy clothing or luxurious meals, it was everything in the realm of romance and passions as well—the reason Theron's confession and kiss had gotten to her as much as it did, confused her the way it did.

Eliza frowned, not fully understanding what he meant but she pushed it from her mind for a moment "The tomb is just south of here…"

The vast sandy grounds expanded before them leading them to the entrance of the tomb and down the steps. Lord Scourge activated his glowrod to help navigate the treacherous tunnels until they reached the center chamber where the first of the Ignis family line was said to be resting.

"I too know what and who I want." Eliza started as she held her own glowrod up to inspect several carvings on the wall "It's been you from the moment we met."

"Until Theron came along, until his confession made you doubt yourself."

Eliza snapped holographs of the carvings and moved on to the next set "But I don't doubt you, or my love for you."

"I'm the only person you've ever been with, how could you possibly be convinced that I'm also the right one?" Lord Scourge appeared at her side and held his glowrod up as well to provide better light.

"I…" she shrugged and looked up at him, not really knowing how to answer that or understanding the implications he was making "I guess I just, know. What is this Scourge, why are you talking like this?"

"Maybe we've been going too fast too soon and I should have allowed you more freedom before asking you to settle down with me."

Just saying the words out loud hurt in places he didn't know he could be hurt but he also blamed himself. When they'd met he'd promised his loyalty to her, he'd offered to train her children one day and he'd tried all he could to open her up to pleasures she shunned, to awaken her passions but he had never intended to take all of that for himself and form a new cage around her to replace the one the Jedi had kept her in.

"Oh this is disgusting." an unfamiliar voice groaned behind them.

"Are you really standing here debating the definition of love? You're Sith." said another as two figures stepped out of the shadows.

"It's probably a good thing we came to put them both out of their misery." the dark clad and hooded one of the two spoke.

Eliza glanced at the Pureblood female and the hooded male next to her while her weapons came to life in her hands "Who are you?"

"Who… well I suppose we could get polite introductions out of the way before we kill you." the female laughed "I'm Lord Bels and he's Lord Dunn."

"Who do you work for?" Lord Scourge hissed and activated his lightsaber.

"Darth Aruk sends his regards." Lord Dunn snarled.

He lunged forward at Eliza but her reflexes kicked in immediately and with a wave of the Force she hurled him back against the wall while Lord Bels channeled her own powers and sent repeated bolts of forked lightning in Lord Scourge's direction.

Lord Scourge deflected all of them with his blade and he pushed forward to strike at the girl. With one fluid motion he struck her, causing her to cry out but it wasn't enough to stop her. She foolishly attempted another assault on Lord Scourge but he leapt up into a somersault just as she unleashed an energy wave and he landed on his feet behind her. His blade buried itself deep between her ribs, piercing her insides and she sunk to the ground.

Lord Dunn dove out of the way of Eliza's attack and took a quick second to observe his partner's dead body.

"Thank you, now I won't have to get rid of her myself. Father will be so pleased."

"Father? You're Aruk's son?" Eliza frowned as she jumped out of the way and spun around fast to block his next strike.

"I am." he sneered.

"Good to know." she grinned as their blades clashed once more and Eliza gathered all the darkness that dwelled around them.

She'd expected either one of Ravage's people or Aruk's would come after her but not this soon. Her emotions ran high, fueled by both the fight and her discussion with Lord Scourge, as well as the essence of her ancestor residing in the chamber and she easily surrendered herself to that familiar aching need inside—the one that always sought to destroy everything in its path if she let it.

She hooked his sword onto both of her own and wrestled it from his hands. In one swift move she kicked him in the gut and pushed him back where he fell at Lord Scourge's feet.

"Hold him there, I have a message of my own to send Aruk." Eliza decided as the boy struggled against Lord Scourge's strength "And I need answers, answers only one person can bring me so why not go straight to the source?"

A devious smirk rested on her face, alarming Lord Scourge.

"Eliza what are you—"

"Gather his ashes and weapon when I'm done, send them back to Aruk, he'll know what it means. And protect me, I love you."

Lord Scourge realized too late what she intended to do as her eyes grew darker and changed to a fiery red. The black shroud he'd seen surround her before built up at her feet and rose higher until it engulfed her completely.

"Now, move." she barked a command at Lord Scourge that echoed through the chamber.

Lord Dunn's eyes widened as he was released and before the boy could protest, run away or beg for help, the flames Eliza brought forth swallowed him whole until nothing but ash lay piled up on the ground. Quickly, Lord Scourge dashed forward and caught Eliza in his arms as she passed out once again, this time willingly paying the price for her abuse of power.