Once and Future King

[Bryn Vash]

The truth seemed to be something always out of grasp. It slipped like the sands of the great Dathomiri desert through fingers. As the hand would scoop the grains and rise, piece by piece and grain by grain they would fall, until all that remained were a few grains to grasp onto. That was all Bryn had to go on when it came to his history.

Sometimes he remembered a planet which was full of mountainous terrain, fertile ground, grapes in abundance, wine. It seemed like a dream, and usually was. The hot sands of the desert he was raised in, or near, reminded him Dathomir had always been his home.

"You must find your way off of this planet," his mother would always say. "You are destined for more than what you have here. Your father rules an entire world, people do his will. They will do yours, but you must first find a way off this place."

His father. A man which could be dead for all he cared. Bryn knew enough to know that he was born out of wedlock, a bastard child, sent away because he and his mother were a shame and disgrace. Still he was driven to leave, and she pushed him toward it.

He was fourteen when he left. The dark haired teen already looking older than his age. The world had become different as he aged. Things mived at his will, mostly by accident really. There was something else, sometimes he heard voices. These voices were what he followed until he reached the Burning Mists Clan. The magics he witnessed, the way the women were strong, Bryn knew he needed what they had in order to leave, so there he stayed.

Seven years passed, quickly. Bryn was taller, more muscular, the tattoos of their men covered his arms and portions of his chest. He had been learning their magics, or trying too, but he lacked the formal training the Sith who had been part of the clan had. He knew what he needed to do. That's why he set in his knees outside one of the two large tents.

The animal hides still kept their fur. It insulated the tent from the cold evening and morning air. Bryn had been waiting for two days, the only thing allowed him was a water bag made from the skins of an animal far to small to use for the dwellings the nightsisters occupied. He would wait until allowed to enter, or until death took him. This was his test.

[Anjali Raskor]

The last months had been draining but empowering in their own tragic way. There was beauty in survival through cataclysm and Anjali had learned to marvel at the trials and what came out of it. The Beast Warden had lost most of her clan and all of her family when the lava had ravaged the Lavender Rift's lands. When she had first met survivors and gathered them, being chosen as new Clan Mother, she had found the responsibility daunting but her fierce nature and her feral protectiveness had allowed her to be the strength her people needed. She hadn't chosen the perfect land for her rebuilt clan to establish itself, and they were still scounting several locations that could serve them well. She trusted in the guidance of the higher power to show her where to go.

In between her duties, she had also continued to search for other scattered survivors. Some had stayed in her Clan, some had left. All of them had been tested beyond the first truth of them surviving the destruction. She had a firm hand, whether with wild beasts or with her own kin. She wasn't one to codle. She would encourage and protect those worthy of it, but she wasn't going to have vermine infect her Clan.

One of the recent travelers she had met was a Night Brother that had caught her interest. She felt his path was anchored in this land and yet wasn't. She was no shaman and her talents resided in the earth and its living inhabitants as a Beast Warden. That was why she hadn't hesitated in putting Bryn to the tests. He had more to earn, should he be allowed to stay with her Clan.

On that cold morning, it was Iss-Ka, her female Voritor lizard (http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Voritor_lizard), that woke up first. She was growing a lot since they had first met when the ground was still covered in lava and ashes. Iss-Ka clicked her reptilian tongue and began to silently circle Bryn, looking as an extension of her mistress, searching for sign of weakness.

[Bryn Vash]

Bryn did not flinch despite the lizard which circled about him. His years of growing up on the planet had taught him the calm and steady posture of a great hunter. He and his mother starved without his hunting, now it was him, just him and this lizard. The clan mother had still not shown her face. Bryn heard she was beautiful, but most of the witches were. Their society was one which intrigued him, one where women ruled over the men. It seemed backwards to what his mother had taught him about the kingdom which was his to take someday.

Dark eyes locked with the lizard. He was not afraid of it. It studied him, and he studied it. Satisfied that he was in no danger, Bryn looked away and back to the tent. When would she come out? When would she grant him access to what he wanted. There was no getting off the planet without passing the rites of a nightbrother. Since the event which claimed a good portion of the planet, there was even less options to outsider than going to the witches. This was a means to an end, nothing more.

Closing his eyes, Bryn let the magic of the force flow through him. He didn't know how to use it, but he knew it was there. Since childhood he could feel it in him and around him. This rite would hopefully grant him access to its use. If not, then Bryn would find someone who would teach him. Until then, this was his plan. He was committed to it, knowing the trials were not ones every male survived.

[Anjali Raskor]

The man had survived two days with only the little water he had been given. That was a first step, but the rituals weren't done yet. His markings would need to be done if he survived until that point. The pain would mark him for life, just as the ink would, but it was part of tradition. The Clan Mother had been raised and trained as a Beast Warden and it fueled how she handled trials for males, maybe differently than a Sister who had been deemed to become Clan Mother from her childhood. Cataclysm had seen her own fate go a different road.

She wasn't formally trained in the Dark Side as some others were but she still felt the gift from the Fang God run through her veins, giving her special appreciation for her environment and invigorated strength to face life. She felt that her Voritor was satisfied with the situation of the man awaiting outside her tent. He had shown patience and held his ground against the poisonous predator.

The athletic brunette decided time had come to take the next step in that man's trials. She emerged from the tent, and stared down at him. "Follow me." She commanded without further ado, before turning on her heels and heading to another section of the encampment.

[Bryn Vash]

Bryn nodded as he stood. He knew better than to gawk at the beauty of the clan mother. She was beautiful as had been heard, but the witches were also deadly, especially this one. She was a Beast Warden, a caretaker, trainer, the ability to work with the dangerous creatures of this world and survive made her more dangerous than anything Bryn had encountered on this world.

His stomach growled as they moved beyond he encampment. The second day was always the hardest in the fast. Until he reached the point where his mind stopped telling his was hungry his stomach would ache, growl, even churn about. The noise would likely cause the clan mother to smirk at what she was doing to him. Still, Bryn was resolute. He would not be so easily vanquished. The stubborn determination was needed for surviving what come next, and he had no idea.

"What next," he asked as he followed along.

The unsettling amount of silence concerned him. He did not know what to expect and that drew out a bit of natural fear.

[Anjali Raskor]

The stomach growl wasn't lost on Anjali, but she didn't spare a glance at the man following her. It elicited no reaction from her though Iss-Ka clicked her lizard tongue and hissed in what would have probably been a chuckle, had the Voritor been human. Iss-Ka walked behind the male, as if to make sure he would follow her mistress. Anjali knew that the man was here for his trial and didn't need to make sure he was still walking. If he was to pass out, she'd hear the sound on the ground.

It was only when he spoke that she replied. "We will see how much strength you have left, unless you waste them by speaking out of turn." Her tone was cold and dark but it was caused by more than the male's question though it wouldn't be obvious to an external observer.

They eventually reached a large area where several members of the clan was gathered. Hung to trees, three men were groaning and giving their last breaths. Blood, dry or dripping covered their bruised bodies. In the middle of the area, an athletic tattooed woman was on her knees, three Nightsisters making sure she wouldn't move.

"The four of them tried to kidnap some of our young. The men died as per custom, ten wounds for each child they tried to capture. The woman who was once one of ours answered our questions and will now be put to death via duel." The Clan Mother stared at the man. "Either you prove your worth and kill her or I feed both of you to my Rancors." Subjecting the treacherous Sister to death by a man's hand would be added shame to her and it was why she had made her decision as she had.

[Bryn Vash]

Kill the woman. Bryn knew enough of the culture this was more a spectacle and show of embarrassment for the woman who had been found guilty. He just nodded as he stepped toward the convicted. Bryn carried a large hunting knife on his person and was rather skilled with its use. He would show the women of the clan why he deserved to pass the trials, and if the was the show to do it then so be it.

Without any hesitation he lunged for the woman. It was not advisable to make the first move, but the woman was week. If he were able to get an early strike he could end this quickly, and that is precisely what he did. Bryn did not care about giving them a show. The man wanted to get through the trials and tests so he could get off the planet. How that would happen he wasn't sure, but that was the goal.

The woman had been given her own sword in return. Clearly she was a warrior, and this was not going to be an easy fight for Bryn. She slashed at him, though was slower because of her injuries from the questioning. Bryn stepped to the side and cut her arm. Blood dripped as she switched her sword to the fresh arm and carved at Bryn out of anger.

It was never good to get angry in a fight, not when facing someone with a knife. While her reach was further than his, Bryn had the advantage of quick attacks and a small weapon. The danger was how close he had to get in order to use it. He found that he would have been cut to pieces had the battle been a bit more fair, as this woman was skilled, just slow. He moved again and again, cutting away at her each time he moved in closer.

Finally she left herself open for what Bryn had been waiting for, a slash across her gut stopped her. The pain of the deep cut made her immobile to the point Bryn was able to come back around and finish the job as well. A cut of her throat and the fight was over. It had been quick, but not fast. Bryn looked to his right shoulder, blood ran from it as he had not been missed entirely. Wiping it away as best he could, he tore a piece of the cloth covering his lower half and used it as a makeshift bandage.

"I have no intention of being Rancor food today," he said taking Anjali's side once more.

He motioned that he was ready for whatever she intended next. His eyes glanced to hers to see if she was disappointed that he had ended it quickly. There had been no reason to draw it out.

[Anjali Raskor]

Regardless of the hard questioning that had been done to the treacherous Nightsister, the woman still made a dangerous foe and it was why it would be no easy task for the starving man to defeat her. Anjali knew that while the trials had been ingrained in the Dathomiri civilization for eons, there was room to adapt them to a given situation, as long as they strengthened the candidate through danger and hardship. Given how the clans were still in the midst of reconstruction, she found it important to also ensure that people passing trials could put up with unexpected changes too. Her approach for several recent trials had stirred questions at first but with how she had firmly handled any problem the Clan had gone through, they had all accepted and respected her decisions. The few examples of betrayal was like the one battling before her eyes: meeting their end.

The man did well, although his exhaustion and pain tingled her senses in a satisfying way. As for his foe, she found no particular pleasure in her death, but it was necessary to ensure that the Clan's security wouldn't be threatened. Protectiveness ran deep in Anjali's bloodline and now as a Clan Mother, she couldn't afford to be lax and weak.

She nodded when the now wounded candidate came to stand by her side. She made no offer for him to get his injury seen. Now wasn't the time. She was about to tell him about the next trial when one of the sisters closest to her arrived and asked to speak to her. Sensing urgency in her fellow Night Sister's tone, Anjali beckoned her and listened to what was going on. The place where they kept three newborn Rancors that were rescued from their dying mother were approached by dangerous snakes.

The Clan Mother gave a stern look at the male. "Follow me." She instructed once again and hurried towards the camp area in question. As a Beast Warden, she was well skilled and trained to tackle such issues but it took nothing from the dangerosity of it. Perching herself on a rock, she saw the several snakes, almost color of the soil, approach. "We must clear the area of them." She simply said, knowing that the male's blood would probably make him a delicious prey to the predators, but he was still going through his trials. Death was a common threat and being ready to face it was necessary.

Without further ado, the Clan Mother took her weapon in hand and carefully but quickly made her way to slay the first snake.

[Bryn Vash]

Bryn was going to need a sword for this. He was not dumb enough to get near the snakes with just the hunting knife he and carried with him. There was a nightsister near him with two. One she was using, the other rest in a sheath over her shoulder. As Bryn moved passed her, he took the whether weapon and struck at the first of several snakes. He was well aware of the power of their venom.

Each movement put another snake down to rest. There was no time to toy, or to be careless. The rancors were in danger, and Bryn could at least appreciate the ferocity of such a magnificent creature. All life had value on Dathomir, and even the most dangerous of creatures were revered. Bryn had even heard of a clan which worshiped giant spiders. They would sacrifice virgin makes to them, which seemed an oxymoron to Bryn, but it was as it was.

The exhaustion of nothing but water for two days was getting to him. His movements slowed. The final snake was too fast for him and would have killed him if not for the nightsister who he had taken the sword from. She smirked as she reached for her sword.

"Not bad for a male. Should you survive your trials come by my tent," she said sliding the sword back in the sheath. A playful smile curled at her lips as she walked backwards looking Bryn over just before turning and running off. Bryn smirked in return before turning back to Anjali.

"That was unexpected I take it, the snakes. My body is weak, and there is more to come yet. If I fail, you must send word to my mother near the deserts. I would not have her concerned because she did not know the truth."

[Anjali Raskor]

The Clan Mother caught the look on Sister Shara's face upon being relieved of one of her swords, but she gave a faint nod to her fellow woman. Bryn had made a good choice by going for a different weapon given the situation with the snakes. While it might be little details, nothing as such went unnoticed by Anjali, who would judge the male's trial by everything she witnessed. Tradition existed for a reason, but the trials held great complexity and one shouldn't judge another only by certain elements when life was such a vast and versatile web of skills and events.

It took much quick work from several people, including the Clan Mother herself, to get rid of the venomous threats. Her expression remained unchanged but she couldn't help being amused by Sister Shara's invitation. The Clan Mother could appreciate Bryn's looks and so far exhibited talents, she had little interest in intimate company over the past months, given all she had to take care of for her clan. Amongst the many lost from her original clan, one of them was a night brother she had shared her tent with on more than one occasions. While she hadn't considered him like any sort of lifemate, she had also chosen to observe five moons of mourning for all her Clan's lost ones, including her younger sisters, friends and even nighttime companion.

"The Fanged God placed this trial on my Clan's path, and thus on yours as well." She replied to the exhausted and wounded male. "No mother should ignore what happens to her offspring." She added, granting his request of his mother being told of his death, should he not survive the trial.

Once all dead snakes had been gathered, she ordered them to be burned in a large fire, as twilight was upon them. She crouched and then inspected each and every of the Rancor cubs, making sure they would be alright. "Some of my warriors are scouting the area to ensure no other snake is nearby. You will keep guard to protect the cubs until dawn. Stay awake and survive."