Musings In The Dark

The following is a Scene that takes place some time after the Chiss siblings have been reunited. It sets the scene for what will happen next in some future Follow-up Backstories. It also takes place long after the events in the SWTOR fan-fiction series.

Desmond sat in his room, meditating. His mind was disturbed and distracted. He did his best to focus, but it would not do. He could see images, Tiamat walking through a cave, the cave in the Yavin 4 Stronghold yard where he lived. He saw rancors. He saw Tiamat on Manaan, and he saw Killian walking through the same cave. He did not know what all this meant.

Finally, unable to focus, he let out a shout of frustration. He stood and looked about. T7 tweedled a tone of worry.
     ‘I’ll be all right, T7,’ replied Desmond. ‘I just need to clear my head. If I can manage clearing it.’
     T7 trummed a series of sounds.
     ‘No, I think Rosiet’s taking care of that. Lana was very specific that she required Light Side knowledge. We know who’s best at that, don’t we.’
     T7 acknowledged the Jedi and rolled away to continue whatever it was the droid was doing.
     Desmond walked upstairs. He saw Tiamat and ran to her.
     ‘I’m going to clear my head,’ she said to him, brushing him off gently.
     ‘Yeah, I should be doing that too.’
     ‘I need to be alone.’
     ‘You always need to be alone these days.’
     She only half smiled and put her hand on his face before leaving. Under his breath, Desmond whispered:
     ‘Or are you truly alone when you go off?’
     ‘Someone’s having a bad day?’
     He looked up at the smooth voiced Chiss who stood before him.
     ‘Hello Shadiesse.’
     ‘Desmond. Was that Tiamat? I don’t believe I’ve met her before. She looks familiar.’

     ‘Yes, that was her. We’re having…problems.’
     ‘The only problem I see is a lack of passion,’ replied Shadiesse. ‘Want my advice, let her be.’
     ‘Ah there you are!’
     Medeusa walked up to them.
     ‘Oh, the two of you are meeting?’
     ‘Yes Desmond,’ replied the Pure Blood. ‘Dark Council matters. Nothing that concerns you.’ She gave him a stern look with her yellow eyes.
     ‘No, I suppose not, but I believe I’ve been seeing things that concern all of us.’
     Medeusa and Shadiesse exchanged a glance.
     ‘Explain,’ said the Chiss.
     Desmond described his recent visions. Then he added:
     ‘Tiamat has been very distant from me recently. And every time she goes off to be alone, she goes to that cave. I know it. And she’s not alone is she, if she’s there? She’s been spending time with Killian.’
     ‘Haven’t we heard this before,’ said Shadiesse. ‘A man becomes jealous because his woman is exploring other avenues. My brother can’t stand Isabella’s licking habit.’
     Medeusa laughed. ‘Your brother is taming that Twi’lek more than he realises. She is…peculiar, I’ll give her that.’
     ‘And you’re not?’ added the Chiss Lady.
     Desmond shook his head. These Sith women were beyond his comprehension.
‘No, but I get what he’s implying,’ said Medeusa changing the subject and bringing her focus back on the green skiinned Jedi. ‘Something is shifty here. I have been observing Killian as much as I can and I have done so from the start, there is just something about him that I don’t understand. He knows all about the Dark Side. He speaks like a Sith would, yet he bears no connection to the Force and spends his days in his cave with his rancor.’

     ‘Oh, is Killian the one with the claw scars?’
     ‘Yes,’ said Desmond.
     ‘That’s odd. I believe I’ve seen him before as well. But I can’t seem to pinpoint when or how. There have been a few encounters like that recently since we’ve all arrived at Odessen.’
     ‘How can you not remember someone you recognise?’ asked Desmond.
     ‘Trauma. Well, we’ll say. When I was a young Chiss girl, I did a lot of stupid things to try to show my use of the Force, but without skill or discipline, a lot of people wound up dead and so a lot of people wound up coming after me. The last person who tried to attack me for killing his sister by accident, found himself cowering beside me and apologising. I couldn’t tell you what I actually did because I don’t remember any of it. I promised him a bit of wealth and a position in Admiral Aygo’s division.’
     ‘Well done!’ said Medeusa.
     ‘Wait, what?’
     ‘Nevermind.’
     ‘No, hang on a minute,’ Desmond pointed at her. ‘You say you don’t remember, but you clearly recognise Tiamat and Killian both. They arrived here much later than our alliance had already begun with Rosiet. Killian and Tiamat have been spending more and more time together ever since…’
     ‘Ever since your brothers have arrived,’ completed Medeusa.
     ‘Are you saying I have something to do with your failing love life, Desmond?’
     ‘He’s saying the timing is more than mere coincidence and you need to remember where you saw them because they could be plotting against us and not truly part of our alliance.’
     ‘I fail to see the connection, really. Obviously your visions and senses are clueing you in on things that I am not prithee to,’ answered Shadiesse.

     They heard a trail of beeps as T7 approached them. He whistled sadly in his droid manner.
     ‘What have you found, T7?’ asked Shadiesse.
     T7 was reluctant to show them.
     ‘Just get on with it droid, don’t leave us in the lurch,’ complained Medeusa.
     T7 began to play a holo-projection. It was short, but it was enough. It showed Tiamat and Killian sharing an embrace and whispering over a datapad. Aside from the obvious closeness of the two, it was obvious they were plotting something.
     ‘Well it’s clear we need to find out what it is they are plotting,’ said Shadiesse. ‘Where’s the rest of it, T7?’
     The droid gave a quick reply.
     ‘Understandable. You wanted to show us as soon as you’d witnessed it. We should probably take things slow and think before we act.’ Shadiesse looked from T7 to Medeusa.
     ‘I can live that,’ said Medeusa. ‘Plant some listening devices, find out what’s really going on.’
     Desmond had his hands balled in fists.

     ‘No,’ he said gravely, his voice was steady but his body was shaking. ‘We act now.’
     He dashed upstairs as fast as he could.
     ‘Oh, for the…’ said Medeusa. ‘That young man will be his own undoing some day.’
     ‘He’ll be ours too if we don’t get to him before he does anything stupid. Come on.’
     Shadiesse, Medeusa and T7 followed behind Desmond, trying to catch up to him before he reached the cave.