IC- Lord Grievance Vexx
Vassek III - Training Chamber V
Grievance Vexx remembers well the scholar who had so thoroughly answered his call to action in giving an example of the Art of War and utilizing energy. He recalls the elderly man’s courage in spite of the cyborg’s intimidating presence, leering over his shoulder, culminating tension in the room as he had drilled him with his cold reptilian stare. He is a little surprised to sense Senec Tinople approaching, an elderly creature seeking training from a younger being, though with all his droid-like appearance, it is easy to believe Vexx is ancient as easy as it is to believe he is young. One simply cannot tell.
In any case, the cyborg watches Senec’s every move from the time he docks on the landing pad. Whether he has eyes on his guests by way of cameras or by way of the Force is uncertain, but either way, he doesn’t keep Senec waiting long before he appears in all his intimidating glory, cybernetics whirring and clicking softly in the tomblike silence of his cavernous retreat.
As the apprentice follows the veteran duelist to the training chamber Vexx has set aside for him, the Krigsbefallaf listens with well hidden interest as Senec maintains respect and offers his expectations of what will occur in this training. At least he knows this will not be easy. Nothing aggravates Vexx more than an arrogant student who thinks this training will be a walk in the park. So far, Senec remains on favorable terms. Vexx is admittedly perplexed over the intriguing personality of the Caamasi scholar, however. He has heard of this race before. They are almost the polar opposite of the culture of the Kaleesh. Peace-loving, pacifist creatures. Vexx is surprised to learn that one, in his elder years, seeks to align himself with the Sith.
“Your expectations are correct, Senec Tinople,”
he replies, pausing to turn and face the Caamasi, “This will not be easy, but I assure you, it will be worth it. You do not seem like the type who would shy away from hard work. This is to your favor as, in the Sith Empire, you will learn that very little comes with ease.”
The lights come on in Vexx’s fifth training chamber, revealing a room with plenty of space for movement, but it is also filled with walls lined with an endless assortment of weapons, most of them lightsabers. It is anyone’s guess how the cyborg came to stockpile so many.
“This will be our classroom, Senec Tinople,”
he continues, “And your first lesson begins now. You are a well-read and literate scholar, yes? I want you to dig through the libraries of your soul and bring forth one descriptive word you would wish to have applied to yourself in combat. This word—whatever it is—should resonate with victory, for it will be your battlecry. Take your time and draw the word into your consciousness; meditate on it and verify that it feels right before you deem yourself ready to commit to it, for this word was inside you from birth. Whatever it is, this word will lay the foundation upon which you will build the rest of your training.”
Saying no more, the cyborg paces away a few strides and stands in silence as though he himself is meditating. Maybe he is and maybe he isn’t. Whatever the case may be, his silence and distance is intentional as he gives his student time and space to search his soul for the battlecry within.
OOC- I would recommend visiting thesaurus.com as a way to expound on your chosen word as oftentimes, a common word has a synonym that sounds stronger or deeper and it may adhere to your character better than the original word you come up with. Thesaurus.com is also an invaluable tool to use when looking to put a little more panache into your writing. If you have any questions, you may PM me here in the forums using the same conversation in which you submitted your CS.
Tag:
@Senec Tinople
Conflict. It was a state of being into which he had been born, had been forged, his desire for power always battling with his Caamasi nature, his struggle to rise in fame continuously blocked by rival scholars and jealous competition, his spirit forever dissatisfied with his lot and fighting against life itself in a struggle to force it to offer him more. Suffering had long ago ceased to faze him, and conflict within himself and around him was always a constant echoing around him.
But combat. Combat was something altogether new for Senec Tinople. Since arriving in the Empire, he had been exposed to far more combat within a few months than in his several decades of life prior: a few brawls in the Kaas Cantina, a grueling mission to Etti IV. Yet combat was still a great unknown to him, one he had avoided as often as possible, not out of fear (or at least, not entirely), but out of a conscious goal to attain his own ends without resorting to crude violence. Yet violence was central to the way of the Sith, and Senec could avoid it no longer. As he stood within the training chamber, watching the lights slowly glow and reveal with greater clarity the weapons of war and trials around him, the cries and echoes of combat seemed to echo around him, as if the drums of war were gaining volume in his ears. He was like a Mon Calamari on a desert world, out of his element, and once again dread and doubt loomed over him, threatening to overwhelm him. Nonetheless, he stood fast, drawing on his fear for strength, listening to the grave words of Lord Grievance Vexx as war drums threatened to drown out the cyborg's very words.
These words surprised Senec. He had expected immediate physical challenge, being immediately pressed into combat, but instead the Sith Lord challenged his mind. His first task was almost deceptively innocent and small, Lord Vexx demanding that he think of a single word which would define his style of combat, determine his very essence as a warrior, become his ever-present battle cry. The task seemed almost frivolous, yet Senec knew better than to dismiss it. True, this word would be utmost importance to him in his training - Lord Vexx made that much clear - but the hidden lesson within these words was just as clear: if Senec were to succeed on the battlefield, it would not be a simple matter of physical strength, but also a matter of a warrior's resolve, a philosopher's clarity, and a Sith's cleverness.
With this in mind, Senec withdrew into introspection, the Sith Lord pacing away from him to give him space and time to carefully consider. Though inexperienced in combat, the Caamasi already had a certain philosophy of battle in mind, had spoken of it to his master, Darth Traya, many times before and during his apprenticeship. Senec's strengths in the Force manifested themselves in the mind far more than in brute strength: through cunning, illusions, and deception, subterfuge and chaos. Many apt descriptions, each describing a different facet of these goals, rushed through his mind in a flock.
He wished to be
impregnable,
untouchable,
impervious,
cryptic,
enigmatic, his symphony of deception leaving his enemies unable to even fully comprehend their manner of defeat before it arrived.
He wished to be
petrifying,
dreadful, a force of mind-destroying fear whose deceptions and illusions would leave his victims reeling and insane, terrified of the phantom that haunted them and turned very reality against them.
Yet none of these words adequately expressed the fullness of Senec's aspiring philosophy. He racked his brain, trying to think of something that might fully encapsulate the dual qualities of being inscrutable and terrifying.
All of a sudden, his head rose with sudden resolve, his expression filled with certainty. He turned towards Lord Vexx, who prowled across the room from him.
"Tenebrous."
The cyborg watched him silently, his expression unreadable as he waited for Senec to explain. Now it was the Caamasi's turn to pace across the room, his eyes seeming to empty as he gazed inward and sought to describe his philosophy.
"I must confess, Lord Vexx, to being inexperienced in the art of combat. Surely you know this, else I would have little reason to be here. I have no great physical strength on my own, nor does the dark side manifest in me through great physical feats to rend my opponents limb-from-limb. Rather than digging my claws into my enemies physically, I dig into their mind with equal viciousness, turning their doubts against them so that they fall as much from their own weakness as from my own strength. As such, my philosophy of combat is not so simple; I seek to be a very force of nature, beyond even the comprehension of the weak, terrifying them by preying on their dreams and thoughts, rather than something as crude as lightsabers and lightning. And even to the strong, I would be inscrutable and menacing, continually turning their senses against them in a maze of confusion and chaos.
'In short, nothing more accurately describes my desired presence on the battlefield than that of a shadow. A shadow appears to have substance, yet its nature is not clear. It displays itself as a reflection of a particular thing, yet it exists unseen even without that thing, existing merely as the nature of light warped around an object. I would be similarly nebulous on the battlefield, oftentimes appearing to be visible, but only as the warping of my object's fears. My true nature would be far more cryptic, as my presence in each combat would be defined by my opponent's fears and doubts.
'However, my chosen word is not 'shadow,' but 'tenebrous.' For a shadow, hard to understand though it is, evokes no fear or confusion. It is part of the very nature of reality, and we therefore do not question it. But to be tenebrous is to be dark and shadowy, unnatural in its murkiness. To be tenebrous is to be obscure and hard to understand, confusing the mind by its very presence. And most importantly, that which is tenebrous causes gloom and, by extension, fear, for that which is unnaturally dark is therefore unknowable in nature, and that which is unknowable will always cause terror in the weak and doubt even in the strongest.
'Indeed, Lord Vexx, you are correct that this word has always been a part of me. Perhaps it too existed only in unnatural shadow, impossible for me to see until now, but now that I see it, I seek to understand it, for only through understanding it shall I conquer fear and make it my own servant. Therefore teach me the nature of shadow, Lord Vexx, and the essence of mystery, and the meaning of fear. For indeed, even now, I seek to join the ranks of House Tenebris, and I would be the very embodiment of that house, manifest in the galaxy as no other."
His philosophy described, Senec stood, filled with new purpose and inner strength, and readied himself for Lord Vexx's response and for his next task.
@Grievance Vexx
