OOM: The Secret of Tulak Hord

[last_kallig]

(OOC: Some lines taken from canon.)

Now that Inquisitor Urinth's task is taken care of and she's taken a few minutes to heal her wounds, it's time to return to Harkun with the scans from Tulak Hord's tomb.

Ibani is idly wondering if Harkun will turn interesting colors when he finds out she's still alive as she approaches his office through mostly deserted halls.

Comments

[infinitest]

Well, Harkun will have to wait: as she approaches the office, a woman in formal Sith robes approaches; she carries herself with regal poise, a benevolent expression in her beautiful face.

"You. Slave." The woman speaks in a deep, rich voice, commanding but not harsh; so different from Harkun's angry derision. "No, Acolyte," she corrects herself "you're the one who brought me this magnificent holocron from the tomb of Marka Ragnos, yes?"

She is holding the object in question, almost cradling it protectively.

[last_kallig]

Survival for Ibani has always meant being aware of her surroundings. Her mind reads the robes and body language and declares the woman 'Sith Lord' the instant she comes into view. Her face and body language schools itself into the polite and appropriately deferential posture of an acolyte faced with her superior before she is even addressed.

The correction startles her, but Ibani takes great care not to let it show. NO Sith she has ever met would correct themselves in such a way to such as HER. And that....that makes her wary. What motive could there be for being polite to her, of all people?

The question tells her that this must be Lord Zash, her future Master. "Yes, Lord Zash," she says with an incline of her head. "I am the one who retrieved the holocron from Marka Ragnos' tomb."

[infinitest]

"Unbelievable." Her tone makes it rather clear she doesn't mean it literally. "One thousand years, buried in that tomb, Sith Lords passing it by."

"And then, the most unlikely person comes along." She paces closer and then around Ibani, regarding the Acolyte with a measure of admiration. "Tell me, how did you manage it?"

[last_kallig]

Ibani can't help but be a bit pleased at the admiration. It's nice that SOMEONE appreciates her pulling off the impossible.

She considers lying for a moment, but she doubts her ability to lie successfully to a Lord of the Sith. "Lightning proved to be the answer in the end, Lord Zash," she explains. "I was a bit surprised when it worked, to be honest."

Surprised being an understatement.

[infinitest]

"Such a simple solution," Zash shakes head, amusedly "why did none of us think of that?"

"We must have thought too deeply on it, believed too strongly it could not be done." Then she tilts head, looking over Ibani again. "Or perhaps we were just not meant to open it."

Anyway... "Your work so far, in bringing back this holocron, and now the texts from Tulak Hord's tomb, has me intrigued. I have been watching your progress eagerly, Acolyte, and I have high hopes for you. Sky high."

[last_kallig]

Zash's comment about 'not meant to open it' smacks of Destiny. And, well, Ibani wonders that herself. SURELY someone in the last thousand years had tried hitting the damn thing with lightning, right?

"Thank you, my Lord," Ibani says inclining her head. "It is a surprise and a delight to find that one of my superiors has such high hopes for me."

Unlike, say, Harkun.

[infinitest]

Zash seems to know exactly what Ibani means; really, its not a hard guess. "Harkun's only purpose is to weed out the weak. Beyond that, his opinion means nothing."

"Good luck, Acolyte." The Sith Lord starts away, half her attention turning to the holocron. "Good luck."

[last_kallig]

Weeding out the weak. Such a polite way to put things. Ibani would be wise to remember what cruelty lurks beneath the polite veneer of Sith society.

"Thank you, my Lord," Ibani replies.

Once Zash has taken her leave, it will be time to endure Harkun's cruelty once again...