Shrouded – 3660.026 BY
Zanleya had spent the day plotting and at last the time for action had arrived. She had been busy devising a strategy to begin the process of Jensine's downfall and in her not so humble opinion she was convinced it was a master plan… albeit for one small issue, it was hazardous in the extreme. The first step was to speak to the eminently unpredictable Änastasiä, a quest that was not without danger in itself, never mind what came next. Despite its best efforts her cautious side had not dissuaded her and after a bit of hunting she had found the violent white clad acolyte.
It was nearing midday and Änastasiä was leaning upon a railing overlooking the training grounds, watching fresh inductees undergo one of Harkun's brutal weapons lessons. Zanleya stepped onto the balcony to join her with no doubt in her mind that her fellow acolyte was already aware of her presence, so with a deep breath she took her life in her hands.
"Änastasiä," Zanleya greeted.
"Yes little Zanleya, what is it?" She replied turning her head and using the annoying pet name her group of acolytes had given her; Zanleya tried not to let her irritation show.
"I wanted to ask you for some assist…" She started.
"No no no, don't be silly! I'm not teaming up with you to fight Jensine!" Änastasiä interrupted petulantly, slapping a hand on the balustrade for emphasis. "We might have battled Frendric together, but I'm not going to join Zarriar in your little club!" Zanleya had to try harder to keep her irritation from showing. "I'm going to enjoy the spectacle for certain, but I don't really care if Jensine kills you or the other way round. I'm just going to watch, it will be fun either way!" Änastasiä turned to face her, forcing Zanleya to meet her gaze and stand her ground. Her posture oozed threat and menace in equal measure and Zanleya knew she was on thin ice.
"You haven't heard what I have to say yet, I think you might change your mind," Zanleya countered as calmly as she could, doing her best to maintain eye contact and not back down. Änastasiä raised one narrow eyebrow and folded her white robed arms.
"This better be good, I really don't like people wasting my time."
"Trust me, I have an idea I think you'll like… but I need your help with the execution." Zanleya checked nobody was within earshot before continuing. "Jensine has a combat lesson with Harkun tomorrow morning and I want to… disturb her."
"What exactly did you have in mind and why does it have anything to do with me?" Änastasiä asked albeit with marginally less hostility, it was clear to Zanleya that she had piqued her curiosity.
"I want to fetch Frendric's body and leave it for her to find," Zanleya replied simply. Änastasiä's eyes suddenly lit up and she gasped in mock surprise, covering her mouth with her hand as if she were hearing some scandalous gossip.
"Oh Zanleya! That is deliciously cruel! Oh my, I really did not think you would come up with something like that! I seem to have underestimated you!" Änastasiä cooed in delight. "So what, you want to find his two week old corpse, dump it in the training grounds and…? Oh can you imagine her reaction?! She will be absolutely mortified! The horror, oh goodness! It will be so sweet!" Änastasiä clapped her hands with excitement as if she were an eight year old opening birthday presents.
"I thought you might appreciate the scheme…" Zanleya said, though with somewhat less enthusiasm. Somewhere buried within her the fifteen year old slave who had fled Nar Shaddaa was horrified at the idea, but she quietened that inner voice.
"You are so right! So after we've dropped off this little present for her, we are going to watch her reaction, right?"
"That's the plan." Änastasiä grinned in malicious delight. "In truth I actually want to gauge the reaction of her fellow acolytes, I want to see which ones seem to have sympathy on her and which… don't. And… I admit it will be… interesting… to see her response," Zanleya said hesitantly. She was almost disgusted with herself, but, there was a part of her that truly did want to witness Jensine's horror. The girl was her enemy, she reasoned, Jensine had sworn that she would kill her. It was only fair that she did her best to dish out pain first and ensure that the girl was in no state to make good on her vow. In truth, the main reason she had convinced herself to attempt this audacious plan was that she hoped it would give her an idea of which other acolytes Jensine might have allied with and who looked upon her less favourably. Which she hoped would highlight who might be able to help her find out Jensine's weaknesses. The acolytes who laughed at her suffering and horror would likely be the one's she could trust to sell Jensine out.
"Oh fantastic, fantastic! I love it!"
"I need your assistance though; obviously we need to go back into the tomb of Tulak Hord to fetch his… body. I'll require a hoversled to move it so I'll also need someone to help fend off any tuk'ata or other beasts in the tomb itself. I can't do it alone," Zanleya explained. She certainly felt apprehensive about a return to the tomb of Tulak Hord, not least because she had been fighting for her life last time she was there.
"So, when do we go?" Änastasiä asked eagerly, her reservations about picking a side in the conflict having completely evaporated, leaving not even a wisp of hesitancy behind.
"Tonight if you can, I'll requisition a hoversled this evening then we can get everything set up for her lesson tomorrow," Zanleya replied.
"I can certainly make time for this!"
"Meet me at the east exit on level twelve at about midnight," Zanleya said, she had already planned out what she reckoned was the safest route from the Academy to the tomb. Nevertheless, this was the dangerous bit and she knew it, if Änastasiä was going to betray her, then she was serving her up the perfect opportunity on a golden platter. She had just advertised when and where she would be leaving the relative protection of the Academy, it would be simple for Änastasiä to tip Jensine off and ambush her. Beyond the boundary of the Academy murder was not forbidden, so she was providing Jensine with an ideal opening to jump her and get away with it. She just had to trust that she had judged Änastasiä's character correctly, that her love of inflicting suffering was greater than her immediate desire to witness violence and murder. Her motives for taking the risk and seeking Änastasiä out in the first place were twofold, firstly she reckoned Änastasiä was the most likely candidate who would actually assist her in this somewhat ridiculous plan… she doubted she would have been able to convince Zarriar. Secondly, she hoped that she could get the psychopathic acolyte talking whilst they walked and in the process acquire some information about her that she could pass on to Lady Gethen, therefore fulfilling her obligation to her. Two birds with one stone, so to speak. Naturally she was not overly thrilled at the idea necessity of picking Änastasiä as a travelling companion for a night-time excursion, but needs must she thought.
"I will be there! Oh Zanleya, you have made my day! This is going to be great!"
"I can rely on you to help me then?" Zanleya asked.
"Of course! Of course!" Änastasiä reassured with sincerity, Zanleya found her enthusiasm almost unsettling.
"Good, then I will see you tonight," Zanleya said with a satisfied, if slightly concerned, half-smile. Änastasiä rubbed her hands with glee and Zanleya gave her ally of convenience a last look before heading back into the Academy, wondering if she really was doing the right thing.
True to her word, Zanleya found Änastasiä waiting for her by one of the Academy's lesser used exits. She was leaning nonchalantly against the wall, a white cloak wrapped around her and a vibrosword in one hand. Zanleya tried to surreptitiously extend her force perception as she approached, attempting to ascertain if Änastasiä was alone or not. But her skill with the ability was limited and, whilst she could not sense the presence of anyone else, she was not sure if that was because there was no one else there, or if she simply could not detect them.
Zanleya endeavoured to give off an air of calm as she walked over but inside her heart was pounding, she was fully aware of the danger she was about to put herself in. Not only was she about to give Jensine an opening to come for her, but she was about to do so in the presence of Änastasiä, the young lady who had tried to kill her last time they had met in Tulak Hord's tomb. And if that was not enough, then there was the danger of venturing into the tomb itself, if rival acolytes did not manage to kill her, then there was still every chance that the beasts that made their lairs there would have a go at it.
"Peace is a lie," she muttered in an attempt to reassure herself. There would never be harmony in the Academy she reasoned, no matter what she did she would always be in some level of danger, it was simply a case of managing it. Right now she rationalised that the threat Jensine posed to her was growing and she needed to act to curtail said growth, to get a foot up and be in a better position to deal with her. This trip into the tomb was how she was going to achieve that, no matter how dangerous or distasteful it felt.
"Good evening Zanleya!" Änastasiä greeted with barely concealed excitement.
"Let's hope it is," Zanleya replied with trepidation. She was guiding a hoversled with one hand, her custom double bladed vibrosword clasped in her right. She had obtained the hoversled from her newly acquired slave, Leila, whom Veedron had placed in a job in the kitchens. Admittedly the red headed girl had tried to put up a fight when Zanleya had requested the sled, but she had pointed out that she had given the girl her life back and could just as easily take it away. It had felt cruel, but, Zanleya had reasoned, the girl needed to learn her place or she was of no use to her. Leila had relented and reluctantly procured a hoversled for her. Zanleya made a mental note to point out to Kharvak that the girl had already been useful and that the mercy she had shown the slave had paid off, but that was a smug comment she could only make later, if she made it through the night.
"Ohh this is going to be fun isn't it? A night-time adventure into a tomb of one of the ancient Lords!" As seemed to be typical, Änastasiä possessed absolutely no concern for her own safety or wellbeing, only the anticipated entertainment.
"Alright, let's do this. I'm going to need you to take the sled to begin with," Zanleya stated. Änastasiä's jolly expression was briefly ruined by a frown. "I want to shroud myself until we're out of the Academy, just in case Jensine has someone watching the exits," Zanleya hastily added. It was a precaution she had retrospectively realised she should have taken the other day when she had ventured out to practice in the wilds. The revelation she had received yesterday, that Jensine was already out trying to recruit other acolytes against her, had made her notably more paranoid. In truth, she was grateful for the wakeup call and was now trying to make up for her previous lack of vigilance. She had not actually tried to force shroud herself in a situation like this before, where it really mattered, up until this point she had only ever attempted the skill during lessons, but, as the saying went, there was no time like the present.
"Spoilsport," Änastasiä said, but did not complain further.
The ability to shroud oneself in a force cloak, or to use force camouflage to give it another name, was one of the skills Zanleya had been very pleased to discover she was blessed with. Unlike most force abilities, such as force lightning or telekinesis, force cloaking was not a skill that could usually be learnt if one did not already have a predisposition toward it. That was not to say that it was easy, it took a lot of concentration and Zanleya was only just getting used to it, but the basic premise was that one bent light and muffled sound with the force, just like a cloaking device. Kharvak had arranged for her to have a few special lessons with Lord Samus, a Sith who specialised in training promising Sith inquisitors and in these classes she had begun to hone her natural gift. Secretly she reckoned Kharvak was pleased to learn of her hidden talent, but she doubted he would admit as much to her face. Still, she could not hold the shroud for longer than a few minutes at the moment and any Sith worth their salt would be able to see straight through it, but she was counting on the fact that it would deceive the likes of Jensine and most of the rest of her peers. In fact, the only one of her fellow acolytes she reckoned would be able to pierce the disguise was already with her. Nevertheless, this was going to be the first proper flight test of her nascent ability.
"Ready?" Zanleya queried, Änastasiä merely grinned and took the hoversled. Zanleya drew in a deep breath, she needed to focus, it was one of the drawbacks of the ability, even a brief lapse in concentration would shatter the illusion. If she made any aggressive moves, or even moved too fast in the first place, the facade would shatter like a pane of glass and she would be visible. In time, Samus had assured her, she would become more proficient and be able to hold the shroud for longer and move faster whilst keeping it in place, but for now her concealment would only be brief. Nonetheless, it was all she needed, just long enough to get clear of the Academy and any potential watching eyes. There would be guards at the exit and, whilst it was unlikely, there was always the possibility that Jensine had bribed them to look out for her and tip the vengeful acolyte off. She wanted to be sure that they did not see her and, as they would not be force sensitive, she reckoned she could achieve that at the very least.
Zanleya closed her eyes and centred herself, concentrating on her connection to the force. She drew on her power, bending the force to her will then using it to conceal herself whilst muttering a mantra under her breath to maintain her focus. It took a few moments to set up, but she did achieve it on her first try. Then, confident the shroud was in place, she crept forward moving as quickly as she could whilst maintaining it.
The archway out onto the sands of Korriban was far less grand than the main entrance, but, like most things in the Academy, it was not done in half measures and the slanted portal out of the building was still easily five times her height. A pool of dull red light spilled onto the shallow steps that led down and out, cast from the eyes of a pair of hooded Sith statues that stood sentinel either side of the arch. A duo of crimson clad troopers stood guard beneath them and they both duly snapped to attention as Änastasiä left the Academy, but did nothing else. In fairness, Zanleya reasoned, it was not like one really needed to place a guard here, who in their right mind would try to break into a building housing literally hundreds upon hundreds of the galaxy's most dangerous killers?
Zanleya followed in Änastasiä's footsteps, keeping a couple of metres behind. She cast an apprehensive glance at the trooper to her left; he had his attention fixed on Änastasiä, eyes following her as she descended the steps. He did not for a moment turn his gaze in her direction, seemingly oblivious to her presence. A victorious smile creased Zanleya's lips and she quickly checked the other guard, she too had her eyes on the back of the white clad acolyte and was ignoring her. It was working! She thought in triumph, then hastily scolded herself, she could not get distracted, not now.
Änastasiä bounced down the steps ahead of her with a gait that was almost puerile and far too happy for someone venturing out into the dangers of the night, pushing the hoversled as if she had not a care in the world, a free spirit prancing into the dark. Zanleya continued following her, moving at a half crouch and sustaining her muttering of the mantra to keep the shroud up. An evening breeze pushed at her hair, the air currently still warm from the sun's daytime assault on the world, but the wind fresh and bringing with it the promise of a cold night to come. A tingle of excitement ran down her spine, she had to admit, reckless though this plan was, sneaking out at night into the tombs definitely had a thrill to it.
Absentmindedly Zanleya wondered if Veedron or one of the other of Kharvak's agents was still trying to track her and if they too would be fooled by her shroud. She had not realised until the other day that her master had his people following her, she was not even sure if it had been a permanent fixture or just in light of recent events. It certainly felt like an invasion of her privacy, but, there was little she could do about it, until of course she mastered the ability to force shroud.
The path they were taking was only lit for a few hundred metres more before it turned into one of the shallow canyons that scarred the surface of Korriban like veins. To her left and right lay training yards and prefabricated buildings, temporarily set up whilst the Sith Empire truly established itself back on its heartworld. But beyond this small radius of control lay raw and untamed wilderness, as it always had and likely as it always would. There was a greater Imperial presence around the main entrance to the west, but here, less so and the bleak and terrifying majesty of Korriban held sway on the night, free from the lights and trappings of civilisation. Zanleya turned her attention back to the path and redoubled her efforts, doing her best to keep the shroud up, keen to keep herself concealed until they were into the canyon.
Änastasiä looked back, directly at her, and smiled as if to prove that her force perception powers were superior to Zanleya's cloaking. Zanleya stifled a frustrated grunt, only too aware it could break her focus and instead kept going at as fast a pace as she dared. She could already feel the strain, her left hand was starting to shake, small tremors rippling through it.
The darkness was all around them now, only the small light poles sporadically lining the path fighting back the night. Beyond the track the murky shapes of rune etched monoliths and ancient carved cliff walls loomed, timeless and foreboding. With any luck she hoped that she was now beyond the sight of any prying eyes that Jensine may have set to observe the Academy's exits. Again, she thought that perhaps she was being overly paranoid, but on the other hand she was equally well aware that a single wrong move, just one incautious action, could see her dead.
The canyon was only a score of metres away but perspiration was beading on her forehead and she clenched her fists to try and still the quakes in her hands. She was also aware that the last thing she wanted to do was completely exhaust herself before reaching the tomb of Tulak Hord, she would need her wits about her in there.
With a last push she repeated the mantra one final time, the words coming through gritted teeth, sheer determination keeping the shroud in place. She forced herself the last few metres, off the plascrete path and down the roughly hewn steps into the canyon. Darkness enveloped the pair as they left civilisation, if that was the right word to describe the Academy, behind and entered into the lower wilds proper. Zanleya at last let out her breath in a rush and dropped the shroud, then bent over with her hands on her knees as she tried to regain both breath and composure.
"You know, you look really funny walking all crouched over like that," Änastasiä teased. Zanleya did not give her a reply, not wanting to let her needling spoil this moment of personal triumph.
She straightened up and bared her teeth at the sky in a silent cry of victory. She had done it she thought with jubilant satisfaction, she had managed to hold a real force shroud outside of a class! In a literal sense the force truly had set her free. Free from any potential watchful eyes and free to carry out her plan. Now it was time to face a night-time trip into the tomb of the Lord of Hate, to return to the place where she had made that irrevocable choice to become Sith.