Dromund Kaas hid away in the edge of the galaxy where it shrouded itself in eternal darkness and a thick fog. The bright lights surrounding the ancient stone landing pad were barely visible when the twisted interceptor descended out of the clouds. Dock hands rushed out to assist in the landing process. No sooner than the ship touched down did the boarding ramp swing out from under the hull. A slender figure draped and hooded in billowing robes and a veil over his face strode out and left the dock hands in his wake to take care of things. Nobody so much as looked at him. They wouldn't dare. Before him the ancient stone towers of the temple complex stretched into the sky. Their crowns sank deeply into the fog and out of sight. There they stood for thousands upon thousands of years. Watchers of a sacred place. A fitting home for his master. He took the wide stairs two at a time and whisked under the tall arches that lead into the main entrance. A massive cavern flanked with statuary and more arched doorways to different parts of the complex. It stretched on for a few hundred yards until it ended with an incredible pain of stained glass depicting the sacred figures and triumphs of the dark worshipers who first built this place. The glass had been partially shattered long ago and the weathered holes had been draped with dark, flowing curtains. But the display when the lightning of Dromund Kaas flashed through that glass was still awe inspiring, humbling and fearsome. He ignored the splendor of this place and the multitude of faceless guards that patrolled here. When he came to the arch before the hallway that lead to his master's quarters he stopped a moment. Then he turned and headed for the courtyard and the sprawling military base that had taken over the ruined city beyond that. The Master was not in her quarters. He could sense her elsewhere. He could always sense her. She was under his skin too deeply to ignore or cut out. The city was a place of mud, rust, quickly erected junk structures and prefab buildings, constant movement, and relative silence. Communication between those living here was quick and professional and if it ever was not so, then it was private. As for the others, words were not exchanged. Because they were the others and the dead have no use for talk. He made an effort to pass through this place quickly, even breaking into a jog a time or two until he reached the barren outskirts and the place where the blackened pine forest dominated. In this place there could be no light. Save for the small twinkling that came from sparse bio-luminescent flora along the ground, the forest would swallow it all. This would not be a hindrance for he had no need of the light. The dark was his second skin and his master's very existence a beacon. When he finally felt he was close, he slowed his pace in order for it to be silent and not disturbing. The trees made way and opened onto a clearing shrouded in tall grasses and reeds, but he could see her there, standing on the surface of a black pond. He neared the edge of the water and knelt before her. She was unmoving save for the subtle fluttering of the sheer fabric that clothed her. She did not face him, instead gazing out from under her golden mask and veil as the sporadic bolts of lightning danced across the water's surface. There was a silence between them that seemed as deep, eternal and thick as an ocean of blood. Then the rain started to fall. "Where is the agent?" she finally asked him. "She slipped away. To where I do not know," he responded quickly. "You were bested by such a small thing?" she asked. There was no response. "Instead of tracking her down once more and completing your task, you instead opt to return to me in failure?" she asked again. He kept his head down. "I do not understand, Apprentice" she sighed, "But I will let you decide how to proceed. Leave now and do not return until you have succeeded or accept your punishment and disgrace and allow the task to pass to another." "I will not abandon this, My Lord," he said quietly, "I seek guidance. I have been tracking them for more than a week and have found no sign, no feelings, no trail. I damaged their ship before they made a jump to hyperspace. But there was no sign of them at the end of the route. I would have sensed them. The route must have collapsed, they could not have survived, but... But I know he is still out there." "He?" the Sith turned on him. "Yes. The force user who accompanies the agent. He is incred--" "He is not your target." "But he must be stopped, along with agent. I fought him, he is more powerful than--" "He is not your target." "Forgive me, Master. But, you with all your power, perhaps you may be able to sense what I cannot and locate them-- her." "Are you suggesting I do this task myself?" The Apprentice was silent. "I am displeased. You will be punished severely and this task will be passed to Tu'chak'a." "The reptile? You have retrieved him then," the apprentice spat through his teeth. "He will track down what you could not," she said, "And you--" "NO!," he yelled, "He will not take this away from me! Not that putrid lizard! I will be the one to have the honor of destroying that man! I have never had an opponent I could not defeat!" "SILENCE." The trees were alive with the faces of ghosts. Those who had died in the deepest depths in the throws of agonizing pain as their very essence was carved from their bodies, piece by sliver-thin piece. They shrieked and towered over him while the rain turned into their blood and tears and long razor fingers cut through the edges of his mind. All the while a red hurricane surrounded Darth Scurus as her wrath threatened to cut the very land and air to shreds. The wind screamed at such high speed and the apprentice had his hood and veil blasted back and the cloak around him began to rip from the force. "YOU ARE MY APPRENTICE AND MY SERVANT AND YOU WILL OBEY ME. HONOR HAS NO HAND IN WHAT I DO HERE. YOU SEEK TO UNDERMINE OUR GOALS FOR YOUR OWN SELFISH FULFILLMENT. YOU ARE A FOOL. YOU ARE LOYAL TO ME AND LOYAL TO THE EMPIRE OR YOU WILL BE SUBJECTED TO A HELL SCAPE FROM WHICH DEATH WILL NOT SAVE YOU." Cuts and splits started to form on the edges of his skin where the wind tore. He tried to shield himself, but he could not shield against the ghosts of Darth Scurus. Despite himself a scream of fear and pain escaped him. "ARE YOU A LOYAL SERVANT!?" "YES!" he shouted. "WILL YOU SERVE THE EMPIRE!?" "YES!" he screamed and begged, "I WILL OBEY YOU!" It all stopped in a blink. The Master, the pond, the clearing, the trees, the fog, the grass and everything was as if nothing had happened. But the apprentice curled on his knees, bleeding, torn and struggling to breathe in a frayed heap. His Master approached him slowly. Her bare toes sank into the mud and grass at the shore. "Take out your knife," she ordered. He did so without hesitation and presented the small vibro-blade to her. She did not take it. "Open your mouth." He obeyed. "That will be the last time you speak against me. Slice it out."