Corellian Ceremony (TSO)

[Southstar]

He gazed out the door to the balcony which rose several stories above a crowd of thousands upon thousands of Corellians. He could barely see the decorations, but knew they were quite extensive. It wasn't that often that the Sith knighted one of their members, let alone in public. With the massive propaganda campaigns raging a full force for years, the Sith Order had become very popular amongst Corellians. Some people had even been known to follow the pathes of the Sith with the gossip and stories that each member created. They were becoming like celebrities.

Part of the reason for the ceremony was to entertain the people and tie them closer to the Sith Order. The other part was that Jezreal wanted it. Southstar turned away from the view and towards his apprentice."Well, you wanted a ceremony."

[Alexia Sturkov]

Jezreal stood beside Southstar, gazing out at the vast crowd. "I didn't think this many people would show up" She said, hiding the nervousness in her voice "It looks like half of Corellia is here, atleast". Her took a step back and smoothed out a wrinkle on the sleeve of her black sith robe and brushed a strand of her dark hair from her face. I hope I look decent enough.

She felt like pacing the floor but stood still instead "How soon till the ceremony starts?" She asked, almost wishing for a few more hours.

[Southstar]

He glanced at his chrono. "Soon. Twenty minutes." He looked again out the doorway to the balcony. "After the offical knighting we're exiting through the aisle in the middle of the crowd and back to the palace. You're coming out last, after the speeches." He smiled a little. "So you've got a little extra time to let the nervousness settle in."

[Artimus Devaneaux]

Artimus Devaneaux observed the ceremony in an area not far from the front, shifting somewhat nervously. One thing he disliked more than his son was being in big crowds. "And by the Force, this crowd is pretty damned big," he said to himself. He was not sure what was going on; supposedly, someone was being knighted. But who? He was not entirely sure. Not him - he had not been here long enough. And he would have known in advance. But he merely shrugged, and waited....

[Alexia Sturkov]

Jezreal appreciated the thought of coming out last. If she comes out at all "Ok," She said as she brushed off a bit of dust from her sleeve, while checking the chrono on her wrist. Fifteen minutes leftp she thought as she bit her lip.

[Jorshal Vuntana]

Jorshal took to the front of the crowd with Artimus. They weren't completly engulfed in people as they had a higher standing as Sith apprentices. Still, they weren't the elders or the knights on the balcony. It wasn't that he envied the elders but he wasn't entirely indifferent either. Mostly he wished it would just be over.

"Hey, Jor! Jorshal Vuntana!" An unfamilier voice called. He spun around to see who had called him and found a young attractive girl reaching over guard rail. She blew a kiss as the police forced her back.

I have fans? He thought silently.

[Artimus Devaneaux]

"I think they heard of your involvement with the successful capture of the Skyrider a month ago," Artimus commented to Jorshal. "I've had the same reaction from some of those people." He chuckled.

[Vega Van-Derveld]

There had never been a time in Vega’s life when he had shied away from attention. An exhibitionist and showman at heart, he drank up applause and praise with unmatched arrogance. From his vantage point on the balcony, he was not visible to the crowds below, although the Lupine could see all of them and watched with a twisted smirk. Silently, he awaited the beginning of the ceremony and the time when the people of Corellian could truly show their appreciation and support for the Sith Order, and the impeccable Lord Van-Derveld.

[Parker Proctor]

To the people of Corellia, Parker Proctor was a familiar face. Perhaps more so than any other figure stood on the balcony. He stood at the front of the Sith crowd, a thin icy smile draw across his lips. The Minister for Information had a kind of a cold charm about him that helped the citizens of CoroNet forgotten that the half-Anzat dined on brain soup for lunch. His smile grew somewhat as he thought of the throng of people before him, and how it was likely that very soon he too would receive such a ceremony to set him in place as the Prime Minister of the city. For now, however, he’d was content simply enjoy the much sought after sight of the people and the Sith Order unified.

[Zereth Lancer]

Zereth stood near Vega. He did not look down at the crowed and he disliked being out in view of so many people. He liked being secretive and being watched by thousands of people was anything but secretive. He wore his Sith robes, instead of the black leather ninja garb he normaly wore. He had even left his Katana behind and was armed simply with his lightsabre, which dangled from his belt.

He paced the floor with his red glowing eyes starring straight ahead of him. He wished the ceremony would just start already so it could end and thne he could go back to the dark shadows he loved so much and escape the eyes of the Corellians.

[Jorshal Vuntana]

"Could be." Jorshal said as he looked at a woman in the crowd. "But I did defeat a Jedi on Corellia a couple of days ago as well." He smiled. It was defintiely something to be proud of. He glanced up at the balcony where the elders and Jezreal were supposed to show up. "I wish they'd hurry up." He said under his breath.

[Jacen Mann]

Jacen Mann, political aide to Southstar, was in an even less prestigious section of the crowd, stationed opposite the Sith apprentices. He was surrounded by a myriad of Corellian politicians and most of them were higher than his own ranking. It was a honor in one sense, but it would be even better to be on the balcony where the real power player were.

[Southstar]

"Alright, we should get out there." He said to those in the back room. It seemed that the crowd was beginning to get impatient. "Jez, you're last." He said before he appeared in the doorway.

Immediately people started pointing and a roar rose from the masses. He turned back to see that everything was in order in the room and then finally stepped out into the day. The crowd burst into cheers. Only on Corellia was his thought.

[Artimus Devaneaux]

"I wish they'd hurry up," Artimus heard Jorshal say. He glanced at his fellow Apprentice and said, "One day, lad, you will understand how important ceremony can be. The people are like dogs; throw them a bone and scratch them behind the ears once in a while, and they are your slaves. The Elders understand that. So do the politicians. Even if the politicians are lying, cheating swine about 99% of the time." The former warlord chuckled. "Since the Order set up shop here, it seems they've become the stuff of legends in the eyes of the people. We're just...flaunting it, I guess."

[Je'gan Olra'en]

And don't I look sharp.

Immaculate in white uniform tunic, breeches and cape, clothes that were trimmed liberally with satin black (the white a subtle tip of the hat to Malice Draclau), Je'gan Olra'en, Sith Elder, stalked out onto the balcony. His was the first speech on the agenda, and he'd made it a good one. He was a decent orator when he tried.

"People of Corellia!"

The crowd's enthusiasm buoyed him up, fed his appetite for their minds, and he gave it back to them subtly increased, broadcasting at such a level that his words seemed to hang in the air, delectable and glowing beyond their actual import. There were perks to being a mentalist.

"Jezreal Darkshard has served you since childhood as a guardian of peace and harmony. Her abilities are matched only by her selflessness, as evidenced by her triumph over the public enemy and pirate Xel-Naga." Je'gan wasn't one hundred percent sure that the man had actually been Xel-Naga, but truth was, after all, relative. "She has become a wise and powerful asset to the state, one devoted to your welfare and protection. In every way she is the epitome of Sith."

The crowd roared again, and Je'gan, bowing, backed away slightly to free the front-and-centre of the balcony.

[Lucianus Adair]

Phoenix was perched. Far above the crowd he was, with a clear front row seat of the proceedings. That is, for one with the capacity to telescope what he was seeing. His long coat played in the cooling draft, wrapping itself around the oversized katana he had strapped to his back. The only physically visible weapon on his person, and for as long has he had it, Mars had just recently bestowed upon it a name.

Raevat He knew no meaning to the name, but it came to him suddenly, from nowhere. It had a feeling of extreme importance, and the predator could not shake it.

"What is it with women? Ceremony. Pompous. Overdone." He murmured to himself, keeping the steely-eyed stare tuned to his master as the speech began. Jezrael was to be knighted, and while Phoenix had no encounters with her powers, he could not argue with the elders. If a member was prepared, they were prepared. One such as himself, however, would be prepared at a different point...as such, that was not to be decided by him. It is the way things are.

[Zereth Lancer]

Zereth nodded his head in agreement to what Je'gan had just spoken. He stepped forward to the edge of the balcony and used the force to increase the volume of his voice "I couldn't agree more with the sith knight that just spoke. I was among the first to meet young Jezreal when she first came to Corellia. She was filled with determination and a zeal to serve. She trained hard to become what she is now. Her dedication and hard work impresses me and I am not easily impressed" He paused as he searched for words "You people should feel greatly honored to have such a dedicated woman defending your planet."

The crowd roared and Zereth bowed his head and stepped back.

[Kathrine]

Meanwhile on Coruscant, Kathrine was getting ready to board a ship to Balmorra and then from there to Corellia. She just happened to be in a pub that just happened to be flipping through the Holonet when she spied something on one of the vids about something going on on Corellia. She looked at the vid and nodded. There was a Knighting ceremony. Jezreal Darkshard from the looks of it. Though she hadn't met the girl personally, she had heard about her and seen her in the halls of the Sith Order before.

She looked beside her and opened her eyes in shock. "Southstar!" She exclaimed as she jumped up out of her chair and onto her feet. Am I really that bad? Was I so easily replaced?

She sighed with resignation as she pulled her chair back up and sat down. Of course you are. You proved that the otehr night in the Red Dragon, Kathrine thought as she placed a hand on her side that had two broken ribs and then up to her face which held a new scar that ran down the left side of her face. You had to have a Jedi save you. Southstar was right. I'm nothing.

She glanced at the screen and at that moment she decided that she could change. She could become a true Sith and not just an obnoxious little girl. She drank the rest of her drink and slammed the tumbler down on the counter as she watched the rest of the ceremony. That will be me one day. By the Force, I swear that will be me.

[Herod Jenns]

From the crowd, the children cheered wildly from behind Herod Jenns as Zereth took to the front. He was the leader and gatherer of an organization becoming known as the Young Sith of Corellia. Zereth was an exceptionally popular knight as he was the most combat focused. Children seemed to have a facination with violence and those who inflicted it. Though it wasn't as if all the other Sith weren't guilty of the same, Zereth remained the most popular.

Herod motioned to quiet the children down as the Knight and Elder spoke. The uniformed children did as told, as they tended to respect authority. Their faces turned to the sky, eyes on Zereth, eager to hear what he had to say.

[Warlock]

Alongside the other Sith Elders, Warlock watched the preceding with a sickly, serpentine smile. All of their plans to bring the Corellian people to their cause were unfolding perfectly – from their acceptance of the Sith as national heroes, to the inauguration of their children into the Young Sith of Corellia. It was simply fantastic.

[Baracc Olra'en]

Baracc would give no speech; the young man was down in the crowd, black-cowled and face hidden. He did not cheer. Instead, he simply stood there, a stalwart defender of all things Corellian, lightsaber obvious on his black leather belt behind the drawn-back hem of his cloak: his thumbs were stuck through his belt loops.

He was about this close to throwing up.

[Lady Vader]

LV stood silently beside Warlock. The people seemed to be enjoying the ceremony. And that was a good thing. Keep them happy in order to hide what really went on in the background.

As for Jezreal, TSO's ranks were growing, and this brought a smiel to LV's otherwise unemotional features.

[Alexia Sturkov]

Jezreal looked around. It seemed that everyone was out now. A few speaches had been given and she was feeling a little better. She fixed her hair a bit and then walked slowly out onto the balconey. The crowds cheered and hooted. The sound was defening. Jez stopped in the middle of the balcony and stoof beside Southstar.

[Southstar]

"Corellians, though Jezreal has studied under me for only a short time, I have learned a great deal about her. She is most talented in the ways of the Force. She will bring about great honors for this planet and its people." The people cheered wildly as Jezreal had finally made her appearance.

"As Zereth said, you should feel most honered to have her. As we feel most honored to serve you and contribute to the cause of Corellian greatness." The last bit was a lie, but it provoked the neccessary response as the excitment in the crowd looked as if it could barely be contained. "Corellia is a major power in this galaxy, its culture and traditions above all. We're on a path to glory, Corellia and The Sith Order hand in hand. Sith like Jezreal Darkshard, in all their accomplishments and triumphs, pave the way."

He raised his fist towards the sky. "To the Sith Order, to Corellia, and most of all to Jezreal!"

[Alexia Sturkov]

Southstar's words touched her heart the nearly the same way that Je'gan's and Zereth's had. She managed to supress the tears that wanted to well up in her eyes and simple smiled down at the people down in the stands. "What happends next?" She wispered to Southstar.

[Southstar]

"Unless anybody spontaneously to has anything to say... I'd say we're about ready to head to the Palace." The actual Knighting would stay private and unritualized. The whole point of this little endeavor was to show some solidarity within Sith Order ranks and to liven up the Corellians. He had a long conversation with his political aide Jacen Mann about instilling a sense of pride in the Corellians. Such a thing only made the Sith more powerful.

"We must take our leave of you now." He said over the balcony to the crowd. "We will be ever mindful of Corellia and its people, as always. You'll find there are some extra provisions; grain, meat, dairy and such, on reserve for every citizen. Consider it a gift from Jezreal."

Southstar faced the crowd as they cheered and after a moment turned around and retreated into the room from which they came. "After the apprentices leave for the Palace, we'll follow shortly behind." He said and faced the group of Sith. "And I think it went over well."

[Alexia Sturkov]

Jezreal smiled. It was over now. Her nerves started to calm as she followed behind Southstar. She was a knight now. Her dreams where coming true. She couldn't believe it. Her nervousness was replaced with joy at her promotion and an eagerness for the new training she knew was to come.