Belsavis, about 3 years before the Dread War
Aayes could sense the power the Masters had in the Force. It wasn't anything like she'd sensed before. They were highly dangerous; she needed to be careful.
And they were freed from their stasis chambers. They stood around her, staring her down.
"Your name, Sith." That was...Raptus? Addressing her? At least he didn't call her "Twi'lek".
"Lord Aayes Chudo, my lord. 20 years old."
"I see. You were not even born when we were imprisoned, were you?"
"No, my lord. That was 30 years ago."
The petite woman-that was Brontes-turned to the tallest of the four men-Styrak. "30 years...Lord Styrak..."
"I know." He cracked his neck. Aayes could sense some annoyance and...nervousness? But even she knew when to hold her tongue.
Raptus turned to the hall facing the group. Alone stood a sole Republic soldier, his eyes wide with fear, unable to properly aim his rifle. "Well, well, what have we here?"
Aayes rushed to the soldier, grabbing him by his collar. "Run. Run now, and don't look back."
He wasted no time and ran like a womp rat out of Tatooine. Tyrans, the second shortest of the men, huffed. "What sort of Sith lets a Republic grunt run free?"
"Well, how else will the news of you breaking free spread?" Now Aayes knew how to portray her heresy, her refusal to be cruel and murderous, as pragmatism. And she knew how to manipulate a man that had been watching her with perverted curiosity. She waltzed over to him and gave him a sly grin. "Surely, you have all earned your names, correct?"
She sensed amusement. It was working. "We have a shuttle waiting for you, my lords."
Oricon, five months before the Dread War
Being the adoptive sister of the new Emperor's Wrath Xenli Sadow had its privileges. But being a Twi'lek in the Empire still brought with it many problems. Both before and after becoming the Wrath, Xenli would often have to remind many of their peers that aliens were just as capable as were Red Sith and humans. Usually, they listened out of fear. Sometimes, they then partronized Aayes. Rarely, they came to respect her.
Xenli and Aayes were heretics. They refused to cruel for the sake of cruelty. They used logic, not the dark side, to make decisions. They enjoyed being kind and selfless. Jaesa Wilsaam, Xenli's apprentice, was a good influence on them. Aayes had grown close to Xenli's best friend Vette, another Rutian Twi'lek, as well. And both women had to be very, very careful. Xenli was a Red Sith, and much was expected of her to be a certain way. Aayes was of course an alien, and being discovered was signing her own death warrant. Jaesa was a former Padawan to the man who'd betrayed the late, pathetic Darth Baras; she was always scrutinized by Xenli and Aayes' peers.
Xenli was born to be a leader. The role of the Emperor's Wrath came with its own challenges, but regardless, she did not fear combat. Aayes preferred to lead from the sidelines. She could learn and observe more easily that way. She'd received both Sith and Intelligence training. In Intelligence, she'd met Cipher Nine, real name Viksuni Anoor, a Togruta who faced much of the same discrimination Aayes had. They became fast friends and exchanged stories and tactics.
Aayes had worked very hard to reach her own level of skill. Usually that meant just gaining a person's trust and getting as much information as possible, then using it against them. It had worked with Malgus, and he was now dead. But after the revelation that the Dread Masters had betrayed the Empire and with Aayes volunteering herself to infiltrate their planet Oricon, Tyrans had proved a tough nut to crack. Thankfully, she wouldn't need to be here much longer.
She sauntered over to Tyrans with a bottle of brandy and her signature demure grin. "What is the next step in your plan?"
"Waiting, of course." He accepted the glass handed to him and took a sip. He was a reasonably attractive man, with warm copper skin complementing his auburn hair and bronze eyes. Like the others, he was over 400 years old, but Tyrans himself appeared perhaps in his early 40s. "We need to destroy our enemies all at once."
"Styrak disagrees." Aayes pulled her silk robe closer around her azure skin. She was blessed with long legs and lavender eyes and a charm that worked on everyone. Adira, her half-sister and a smuggler for the Republic, had it too.
"Styrak can go fuck himself. I'm the brains here." Tyrans tossed back his drink, scowling.
Aayes leaned on his shoulder, her lekku brushing against his back. "Don't get frustrated. You will be victorious."
"Live for a few centuries honing your skill, and you will have seen what I've dealt with."
It was almost midnight. "We should get to bed..." Aayes began to proposition. She rose, only to have her hand grabbed. She turned back. Thankfully, Malgus never looked at her the way Tyrans did. She'd heard whispers of a Rutian that the False Emperor had abused, and thankfully didn't share her fate. But Tyrans was fascinated with her. She chose not to understand it, but to enjoy the ride while she could.
"Stay here."
Oricon
Xenli's ship was approaching the accursed planet, and Jaesa and Aayes were meditating together. The gentle, brown eyed apprentice with tawny skin regarded Aayes as a second master and a friend. She was going to support and help her like she did Xenli.
But Aayes could sense Tyrans searching for her. And for the first time in her life, she was genuinely terrified.