After The Flesh

[Sudoku]

Home sweet home. (http://sw-fans.net/forum/showpost.php?p=178170&postcount=21)

Dathomir had been a waste of energy, the Force leading him once again down the wrong path to a false prophet. A dark jedi ensnared by the charms of the head witch...made to be the whipping boy for those women...It was something unexpected, and disappointing.

As much as Sudoku craved sins of the flesh, he knew it was all about power. Being dominated by a lesser creature? Pathetic. Worse to be lead around like a dog by females who spend more time preening, admiring their freshly bitten lips and brightly colored eyes. Cut off the lips, rip out the tongue and gouge the eyes - much prettier.

Here on Naalol, he had the freedom to indulge. Nights were spent stalking the lower tunnels for temporary companionship. Pleasure was found in the warm flesh of twileks, in their cold flesh when he had grown tired of them and choked the life from their soft, supple bodies.

Days were spent weaving the strings of the Force, reaching out and touching who-ever (or whatever) he could. The old Jedi teachings were true; the Force is in everything, tied together with thin threads that could be manipulated easily if one knew how to play them. Perhaps through these subtle workings, he would find the one he sought. Something more than him, something that would lead him to the power and freedom he desperately yearned for.

[Darth Decepis]

If you stare into the Abyss long enough, the Abyss stares back at you.

So it was with this wanderlust-driven adept. He was looking, searching for something that had been searching for him, and had at last found him.

On this insignificant backwater, all he needed to do was to lift the veil from the horror beneath. Those who could see would know.

On Naalol, the dark side screamed through every street and back alley, because he willed it so. The very power of his depthless hatred would shake at the bottoms of the Adept's feet. Because he could see, he could then follow. Follow to the source. Follow to it's terminus that was invisible to the lay person, but stood black and formidable to any whose ally was the Force.

The source was a simple apartment. One of many in a row. There was no significance in the choice of the destination. It was utterly inconsequential.

[Sudoku]

It hit him hard, knocking the breath from his lungs. This darkness, it was palatable, it enveloped all his senses and made him dizzy. Nearly gleeful.

More than a mere thread, this power stood like a pillar, a dark tower that was a testament to whoever wielded it. Its immense shadow was cast upon him, marking a path towards better things. His destiny? Maybe. The Force was a fickle thing - threads wound round each other, snaking here and there. Paths were not so obvious as this one, paths that lead him to disappointment time and again.

This was different. The urge to rise to his feet and blindly follow was agonizing, his limbs felt like stone as he moved to gather what things he could not leave behind. Wrapped in a long leathery cloak, Sudoku left the small cabin, stumbling into the snow towards Rigton.

[Darth Decepis]

As the trail grew stronger, the presence was lent voice. The voice manifested itself through the soles of Sudoku's feet, through everything he could feel. It had no language, no gender. It's timbre was terrifying, as the adept could only manifest the words spoken to him in his own voice.

"Who is this one, and what does it want?"

[Sudoku]

The answer was simple and clear.

"One like yourself, who seeks power."

[Darth Decepis]

"You are like me as a drop of rain is the sea."

The voice compelled the listener onward.

"What do you know of power?"

[Sudoku]

"Enough to gain your attention."

The black cloaked continued his trek through the steep snowy drifts, the winter winds slowing his pace. Rigton was built into the crescent ridge of Mount Mogaar, honey-combed with tunnels, a city on top of a city.

"If I had nothing of worth to offer, I doubt you would grace me with your presence."

[Darth Decepis]

"You presume correctly. There are so few like you that even have the gift to hear my voice. You wish for more, and I can grant you more."

The voice continued to lead Sudoku onward, toward the source.

"All you must do to take what is yours is to find me."

[Sudoku]

The tunnels were less cold, but more crowded. Sudoku elbowed his way past twileks and humans, following the voice to a row of shabby, unimportant looking buildings. A small Force push was all it took to break the lock, and soon the young man was standing at the entrance to the apartment he had sought...

[Darth Decepis]

"Gooood...your talent in the force is apparent. Are you prepared for your reward?"

An anonymous tip, put out five minutes prior, alterted the Imperial garrison to the possibility of Rebel activity in or near the apartment complex Sudoku attempted to enter. As the darksider prepared to storm inside, a pair of speeder trucks screeched to a halt at the nearest roadway, spilling out two dozen stormtroopers.