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Complete Article: Sith Bloodfyre
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The Boy
- "It is a wise father that knows his own child."
- ―William Shakespeare (1564 - 1616 AD)
So much of what I was born to, and what I had done among my people has been forgotten. Time is a river, and it moves swiftly. Without others along for the ride to help you remember, you will forget. Without taking snapshots of victory as well as defeat, so that you might live to be greater, you are doomed to repeat your past mistakes. Become more, or be doomed to relive your failures. So it is with others. So it is with me.
My first life, as I choose to remember it, was a lie.
Early Childhood (68 - 50 BBY)
Sith Bloodfyre does not exist.
This identity was forged while a refugee fled his people. Yet, it became everything a faceless youth had ever dreamt of, or envisioned. While a great majority of the tales surrounding him are half-truths and different spins on reality, there truly is no such person that was born on Shaevalis Prime under the name of Sith Bloodfyre.
He was born Arikan Sol, the sole offspring of the shogunate ruler of an outlandish people beyond the known territories of space. In the unknown realms of Wildspace, the Shaevalis system is ruled by the Grand General Evandris Sol. Evandris was the most recent head of the military government of both the Shaevalis system and Shaevalian people. Arikan was born into opulence and nobility, but he was also born into hatred and murder. His mother, Mareeta van Kaynen, had indeed married the Grand General, had previously been a daughter of a noble house, and had died in childbirth. It caused a fracture in the Sol household from the very moment of the boy's birth. The trauma of the birth was not solely upon the mother, and exacted a toll upon the boy; Arikan grew up as a very frail boy, needing constant attention.
After the birth and subsequent funeral rites for Mareeta, Evandris retreated into his role, and Arikan was left in the able hands of various wet nurses and nannies. The sickly boy had no physical contact with his father growing up. In fact, well through his twentieth year, Arikan had only laid eyes on his father on perhaps a handful of occasions. And, for the long-lived Shaevalians, this coldness certainly had a profound effect on the youth. Perhaps partly due to his poor health, or his father's neglect, Arikan grew into a very dark, hate-filled individual. Where Shaevalian youth were certainly aggressive and warlike, often exhibiting such traits at the onset of adolescence (generally the mid-20s to early-30s in standard years), Arikan began to exhibit aggression, hate, and dark emotions many years earlier than expected.
Where normal youth had nurses or guardians assigned to them through Shaevalian puberty, Arikan had menaced all who would serve in the Grand General's household. Eventually, Evandris Sol had to seek outside help. It came in the form of one of the Soreihan -- a Shaevalian term meaning “man of fire in their blood.” (This would aptly be translated as “Force-user.”) Publicly, the Soreihan were the guardians of the Imperial family, which family were in turn served by the shogunate Grand Generals. The truth was that the Soreihan served the Grand Generals, and kept the Imperial family locked away from interfering with the public.
To deal with the trouble of young Arikan, Evandris called for the assistance of one hailed as “Menh the Master,” a powerful Soreihan of many years service. Menh was not unkind, but neither was he gentle or caring. Indeed, Menh often assigned difficult tasks to his young ward, designed to train and focus the mind and inner demons of the young Arikan to better ends. Arikan eventually developed a trusting bond with his mentor, and as the two deepened into something akin to master and apprentice, a hidden truth became very obvious -- Arikan was a Force-user. Among the Shaevalians, however, the Soreihan could not actively seek out and recruit new additions. The only way they could accept others was through ritual abandonment and donation of children, and this could never come from the Grand General.
Though Menh would never announce the hidden truth to the boy's father, he began to train Arikan in focusing techniques and methods to enhance his physical prowess. Shaevalians are a hearty people, but the circumstances of Arikan’s birth left him smaller and weaker than his genetic brethren. With Menh's training, though, Arikan made great strides physically, and became a closer match for others of his kind. As the boy's training progressed, the inner demons that Menh sensed in Arikan seemed to retreat. Arikan then began training as a warrior, in multiple forms of combat favored by Shaevalians. Swordplay, archery and grappling became some of the boy's favored forms. In time, it even began to attract the attention of the elder Sol, and it seemed as though Evandris might finally acknowledge and accept a relationship with his son.
Teen Years (50 - 10 BBY)
As Arikan aged and trained under Menh, his powers rumbled beneath the surface like some sort of cosmic quake waiting to rock the heavens and the earth in turn. By the boy's twenty-fifth birthday, Arikan was exhibiting great potential as a Force-user. Evandris had decided it was time for his son to become a man, and decreed -- through Menh as mouthpiece -- that Arikan would enroll at the Tohran Academy. Disillusioned with his father and enraged by having the choice forced on him, Arikan found Evandris attending a gathering of allies in his home. The son challenged his father to a duel, claiming that he would earn his freedom from the Sol line by killing Evandris. Evandris mocked his son openly, blaming the outburst on the fiery passion of Shaevalian males, and told the boy that he would only be a real challenge once he had completed his military schooling.
Arikan left the family home and traveled to the isolated fortress of the Soreihan, intending to leave his family behind forever and join the brotherhood of his mentor. Evandris had been apprised of the situation by Menh, and the Grand General arrived with an armed escort of nearly 100 men, all of the Grand General’s personal guard. Evandris decided it was time to show Arikan who was father, and instruct the disobedient boy on the rightful place of a son. Arikan intended to resist, but the will of his father was too great, and Menh was -- above all else -- a servant of Shaevalis; the Soreihan elder turned on the boy and dispatched him, binding him in chains. From that bitter moment onward, the young Sol knew he could never trust his people again.
For weeks, the boy plotted to kill the Grand General after being returned to their home estate. For unknown reasons, Menh returned to the Sol estate and managed to stop the plotting boy. Arikan would never rebuild his trust in his former mentor, but the elder’s presence was enough to sway any further plotting. Instead, Arikan began preparing for the entrance exams and physical tests that would come in short time. He wouldn’t be able to kill his father, but by entering the Academy, Arikan would at least have physical distance between them to soothe his troubled soul.
At the Academy, the other students initially despised the son of their shogunate leader. They were incensed by Arikan -- who seemed disinterested in the entire affair -- seemingly “gifted to attend,” where other boys would have to work incredibly hard to attain such an admission. The truth of the matter, that Arikan had been tested perhaps even more strenuously, was never given second thoughts; the others had already passed judgment. Arikan and his fellow students often engaged in contests and disputes to challenge Sol's place within the academy, and sought on many occasions to create incidents in which Arikan would have been expelled from the academy.
As it became starkly clear that Arikan was being targeted due to his father, his impulsive reaction was to play into the idea of gaining revenge on his father through being expelled. However, as time passed, he began to see his father less the real enemy, and turned those attentions to the other students of the academy. It would be his ultimate pride and reward to see graduation with top honors despite all efforts from his peers. The fighting between Arikan and the other students halted after such an epiphany, even though the other students still attempted to goad him into any kind of altercation worthy of expulsion. With passing time, however, some of the students began to admire the tenacity and drive that Sol possessed, and eventually, Arikan won over some of his peers as truest of allies and friends.
Eventually, Arikan became one of the more respected and social members of the academy, and indeed graduated with top honors in his class of graduates. He was commissioned upon graduation, and served in a number of positions that culminated in a very distinguished, but short-lived career as the Commander of the Shaevani Battalion, a portion of the Shaevalian military that Evandris had commanded himself at one point many years before. During his last days leading the Battalion, Arikan's left arm was hacked off, and he was nearly killed except for an outburst of rage that called upon the Force -- the Dark Side to be exact -- which obliterated his foes and even some of his own troops. Arikan was removed from active duty immediately following the closure of the battle, under the pretense of allowing his wounds to heal, but the forgotten Menh had sensed ripples at the time of Arikan’s injuries, and had warned the elder Sol about it, as well.
Following a surgery which replaced Arikan's lost arm with a cybernetic one, the young man left the home of his father and the world of his people. The reasons for the departure were never known outside of the family home, if even Evandris knew the reason. Menh left the Grand General's home and returned to the Soreihan with the disappearance of the boy he had trained, and Evandris himself reacted to the situation as though his son had died of his battle wounds. The name of Arikan Sol was not spoken on the world of Shaevalis Prime again.
The Man
- "I shall seize Fate by the throat; it shall certainly not bend and crush me completely."
- ―Ludwig van Beethoven (1770 - 1827 AD)
Within the realms of Eos, I found tutelage and experience. Kumba, the last of the Dark Prophets of the bygone age, was Headmaster. Kumba had been of Tarentum, though I was not aware of this initially. Perhaps it was merely a connection of the Force. With my initial training in the Brotherhood commencing, I was forced to make a choice, to find a place I would call home. That choice was defined by the Order I chose to reside within, the Krath. With such a choice, I found Tarentum awaiting, and House Gladius became my abode.
The Dark Brotherhood (9 - 13 ABY)
Sith Bloodfyre first came to the attention of the Brotherhood many years after the disappearance of Arikan Sol -- around 9 or 10 ABY. Though he appeared to be physically young, Bloodfyre's cold intellect suggested that he had lived a great many years beyond youth. The Shaevalian quickly made his way through the initial training of the Shadow Academy under Headmaster Kumba, the last of the Dark Prophets of old. Once finished with his initial training at the Shadow Academy, Sith joined House Gladius of Clan Tarentum as a member of the Krath Order. Bloodfyre completed additional training both back at the Shadow Academy and within Gladius itself, then joined with several others of Gladius in forming the once-infamous Phyle, the Mystics of the Black Arts.
In those days, the Mystics Phyle was feared and respected among the Krath Order. First among the nicknamed “insane ones” were Ciara Tearnan, the Phyle-dubbed "Queen of the Mystics"; Aari Nikus; Jaya Cypher; Kryndath Del'Chanar; Kidouses; Deathlord; Sith Bloodfyre, himself; and finally, Telona Murrage. The reputation following the Mystics was one of cunning insanity, a reputation that spread both within Tarentum at first, and eventually throughout the rest of the Brotherhood. The Mystics were not inane and juvenile, but instead, were thought to be profoundly and incurably mad, twisted and truly evil -- a cursed form of madness that brought with it a misunderstood and dreaded darkness. Despite such madness, however, the Phyle was known to be insightful in regards to the Force, and a powerful detachment bearing some of the Krath Order's finest.
Advancement within the Krath Order and Tarentum itself came fast for Sith; in relatively little time, he was jaunted through the Journeyman ranks to be elevated to the standing of Dark Jedi Knight, and Aedile of Gladius under Aari Nikus, and then shortly after to the rank of Krath Priest and Quaestor of Gladius upon Aari's departure. Sith made a name for himself as a dedicated leader, and as one of the respected members of his Order. During one particular conflict involving the Krath, Sith proved himself to the Krath High Priestess at the time, and he was elevated to the rank of Archpriest. For more than a year, Sith Bloodfyre led House Gladius, and the House helped to maintain the reputation of Tarentum that it had enjoyed throughout the ages.
At the time, Tarentum was led by Ciara Tearnan, an ally of Bloodfyre's from the Mystics, and a respected veteran of Clan Tarentum. With her Proconsul Proton, the Clan continued to do well for itself. During this time, the Quaestors of the three Houses of Tarentum -- Ziguarath of Cestus, Sith Bloodfyre of Gladius, and Wil Striker of Tridens -- began to form a bond of loyalty among themselves and their respective Houses. The three worked well together, but rumors were bound to circulate that the three were the true rulers of Tarentum, and that the Clan Summit was effectively nothing more than a figurehead Summit. As had happened within Tarentum several times during its history, rumors and hearsay caused strife, and eventually led to a conflict between the Consul, Ciara Tearnan, and the Quaestors, particularly between Ciara and Bloodfyre, who were rumored to have been more than simply allies for a time. Eventually, the conflict came to a climax that ended with Sith Bloodfyre leaving the Clan to wander in solitude away from Yridia.
Time passed. Following the rift between Ciara and Sith (though not truly linked), a rift formed and became violent revolution between the leadership of the Brotherhood, and the leadership of their Imperial allies. Firefox, Grand Master of the Brotherhood, declared a separation between the Brotherhood and the Imperials, and all loyal to the Brotherhood itself left Imperial space. Some of the Dark Jedi remained behind, claiming loyalty to the Empire, and not to the Dark Side of the Force. Just prior to the Exodus from the Imperials, Sith began to get in contact with some of his allies from Tarentum. Bloodfyre had felt a call from the Force, and knew his friends and allies needed him. As the Brotherhood splintered and most moved away from Eos, Sith Bloodfyre returned to Tarentum, and soon helped bring home several former scions of the Clan, as well.
Ascending The Ranks (13 - 16 ABY)
Just after the Split, Sith initially returned to lead Gladius, serving again under his friend and Consul, Ciara Tearnan. Ciara had grown weary of the conflicts, and felt the Dark Side had other pursuits for her. Ciara stepped down as Consul and named Ziguarath, former Quaestor of Cestus, as her successor. Sith was honored to serve as Quaestor of his old House, but was soon tapped to be the Proconsul of Tarentum, serving as second-in-command for the often-absent Ziguarath. Though Ziguarath was a willing leader, forces transpired to end his reign; Ziguarath was called away into the Unknown Regions, a journey from which he would not return as the same man he once had been.
Sith Bloodfyre became Consul of Tarentum upon Ziguarath's departure. Though Sith had returned as an Epis among the Krath, it was not long before he was elevated to the status of Pontifex, due to clear and concise leadership, as well as through dedicated vision that enhanced Tarentum as a whole. Some refer to the first term of Sith Bloodfyre as Consul to be one of the "golden ages" of Tarentum. It was during this time that Tarentum's dominance re-emerged, and much of the new became rejoined with the old. Sith helped to bring about the return of figures such as Maxamillian von Oberst and Sirrus, as well as the revered Master Zero to the Clan.
Sith remained among the Krath for a small time, but soon joined his banner with that of the Obelisk, feeling the call of the warrior Order at a time when it was led by the infamous Khobai Wrathraven. While the Shaevalian had felt drawn away from the Krath for some time, his stay among the so-called "Blue Order" of the Brotherhood was short-lived. Eventually, Bloodfyre recognized that his true calling lay among the heirs to the ancient Sith, and the man claimed position as a Warlord among the Order and continued to direct Tarentum towards its full potential.
War eventually came upon the entire Brotherhood. During this War, a "Consciousness" began to infect the Brotherhood on every level with the absence of Grand Master Firefox; even the Deputy Grand Master Jac Cotelin was tainted. During this period, Bloodfyre served as Jac's Praetor, and it was in the midst of this troubled situation that Tarentum gained the status and position of Guardians of the Shroud of Antei. Jac called upon Bloodfyre and Tarentum's forces to seal off the Shroud, and Antei itself from the rest of the Brotherhood. The conflict continued to rise, and eventually, even Tarentum's forces could not keep the rest of the Clans away from Antei. The War came to a climax on Antei's surface, but was eventually resolved by the return of Firefox to his throne and the defeat of the Consciousness, which was actually a collection of beings including the ancient Sith Lord Okemi.
At the conclusion of the War, Taldryan was named the supreme victors and greatest warriors of the Brotherhood, but had only managed to edge out Tarentum of this victory by the narrowest of margins. No one could doubt the prowess of Tarentum, and the position of Guardians of the Shroud was given fully to the Clan of Life and Death in honor of their actions and strength. Bloodfyre and his leadership were hailed throughout Tarentum, but the Dark Council had taken notice of the Shaevalian, as well. Though Jac's actions were not entirely his own, Lord Cotelin had been impressed by the obedience of his Praetor, and the determination of the man to defend both Lord Cotelin and the throne world of Antei with all his power, and the entirety of Tarentum's resources.
Beyond Lord Cotelin, another mysterious Grand Master had taken notice of the Shaevalian, and a new Dragon was called forth. Lord Chi Long, the potent Fire Dragon recognized the power growing in the Consul of Tarentum. Taking the Shaevalian to his secret abode, Chi Long trained Sith Bloodfyre to harness all that was within himself, and a being that can only be called Death emerged. Among the students and children of the Fire Dragon, Sith Bloodfyre was now known as Gwei Long, the Ghost Dragon -- the living embodiment of doom and destruction. From that point on, Sith was a power among the Dragon family of the Brotherhood.
The Dragon
- "Character may almost be called the most effective means of persuasion."
- ―Aristotle (384 - 322 BC)
During this time, my own personal quests for power and knowledge strained me. To be pulled in as many directions as I was could never be sustained. And yet, I was so caught up in my own legend that I truly believed myself capable of all deeds, and infinite glory. Capable I may be. Powerful... perhaps I am. Yet godly I am not. Yet or ever, only time will tell. But for now, godly I am not.
The Dark Council (16 - 18 ABY)
With the end of the War against the so-called "Consciousness," the Dark Council called upon Tarentum to fill a vacancy; the Sith High Warrior, Xanos Sadow, had resigned his post. Sith Bloodfyre was called to lead the Order. During the final days of the War against the Consciousness, Sith had been raised to the level of Elder, attaining status as an Adept of the Sith; shortly after his elevation to Sith High Warrior, Bloodfyre became a Master within the Order, and began to delve into the tomes and holocrons, and all the stored knowledge of the ancient Sith. It seemed that a time of rebirth was slowly coming about.
Serving among the other Order Leaders -- first Shaithis Var'rek as Obelisk High Commander, followed by Korras from Tarentum; as well as Telona Murrage of Tarentum, who had succeeded Alanna as Krath High Priestess -- Sith managed to help evolve the practices of the Brotherhood and the Clans to a noteworthy degree. Jac Cotelin succeeded Firefox as reigning Grand Master, and while Sith had continued to serve as Cotelin's Praetor for a time after being positioned as High Warrior, eventually Bloodfyre and Lord Cotelin recognized a need to retire the Shaevalian from assisting the Grand Master on the same basis. Bloodfyre turned exclusively towards his duties among the Sith.
The Sith Order changed and evolved under the leadership and attention of Sith Bloodfyre, but as always happens, time changed both circumstances and people. For more than a year, Bloodfyre reigned as Sith High Warrior, but chose to resign and return to Tarentum. Bloodfyre's departure from the Dark Council preceded the choice of the Grand Master Cotelin to dissolve the Order Leaders of the Brotherhood. In recognition for his excellent service as Sith High Warrior, Bloodfyre was honored with the Silver Sash; few wear the Sash in these modern days, and it is a great honor to bear.
Information circulated outward from the Dark Council to specific circles that Bloodfyre's departure from the Council was precipitated by a fracture in his relations with the Grand Master. While Sith had previously ingrained himself with Lord Cotelin on numerous occasions, the masters of the Dark Side often come into aggressions toward each other. The exact nature of the dissipated relationship between Sith and Jac has never been revealed, but there remains a certain tenseness that is palpable to all whenever the two are within earshot of each other.
The Madness Returns (18 - 20 ABY)
Tarentum had aligned itself with a mysterious sect of beings rarely spoken of outside of the Clan. However, some information did escape Tarentum that a race of so-called "Keepers" were now in alliance with the lords of Yridia, and that the dark necromantic arts that began to spread throughout the Clan were a boon in recognition of the alliance. Sith's return to Tarentum found him among the sons and daughters of Tridens this time, instead of his previous home of Gladius. Sith was tapped for leadership in the House that guarded the Castle of the great Clan, first as Aedile to JKast and then as succeeding Quaestor. Sith chose the veteran Doni Tzu as Aedile, and the two sought to usher in a new age for Tridens, and for the Clan as a whole. In serving Tridens, it became obvious that Bloodfyre would always be linked to leadership within the Clan.
War came again to the Brotherhood, and this time the Brotherhood would be fractured into opposing factions due to the appearance of two Jac Cotelins. It seemed as though the Grand Master had been cloned for unknown purposes, but at the root of the conflict lay the Lord Hegemon, Kaiann. Tarentum initially refused to take sides in the conflict, seeing it as a dispute among the Dark Council for its own life and leadership, but as with almost every conflict of the Dark Council, the Clans were swept up into the chaos. The two Jacs fought for control of the Brotherhood, with a portion of the Council and Clans following each supposed Grand Master. The end of the War is shrouded in mystery; neither of the Jacs was ever verified to be the real or the clone Grand Master, but after a fight between the two, one Jac emerged, and the Council and most of the Clans were willing to see this figure as the "true" Jac Cotelin. The conflict had ended.
Rumors of treachery ensued as the respected Warlord Welshman Corsair, the reigning Consul of the Clan, retired from the position and bestowed the position upon Sith Bloodfyre, rather than his Proconsul Telona Murrage, as was generally custom in the Clan. Telona did not serve Bloodfyre as aide long, and retired from leadership. Sith chose the infamous and aggressive Maxamillian von Oberst as his Proconsul, when others thought Sith might return his former Proconsul, Rekio Corsair, to the station.
The duo of Bloodfyre and Oberst became rather notorious among the other Clans and the Dark Council as a whole. Initially, it was thought that the presence of Sith Bloodfyre as Consul would reaffirm the relations between Tarentum and the Dark Council, as had happened during Bloodfyre's previous term. There was a short quiet that was brought in, but hopes for a continued peace between Tarentum and the Council could not last. It was suggested that the fallen Sith High Warrior may have been touched by a bit of the madness that had infected the Brotherhood, and was not entirely healed of the Consciousness. Others suggested that the fire of the Dark Side was destroying the Shaevalian from within, and that the man was likely to eradicate all of Tarentum with him if given the opportunity. Within the Clan, however, the Tarenti believed in the powers and leadership of the Shaevalian, and expected a return to the "golden age" of his previous term as Consul.
The Fallen
- "All speech is vain and empty unless it be accompanied by action."
- ―Demosthenes (384 - 322 BC)
And though I could fall no further, I seemed all too willing to wallow in my own depths of mediocrity and helplessness. I blamed others for my failures. In truth, I simply did not wish to rise up. I did not wish to ascend. I did not wish to be glorified. I think I simply wished to be angry. The Dark Side wished me to be impotent. And though I had learned such a lesson many times, I realized here that if I was not always the master of the Force, the lord of the Dark Side, and the will behind the abilities of the Sith, I would always be the pawn.
I am the lord. I am the master. I am the potent will that devours worlds. I am now, and shall always be Sith Bloodfyre, Master of the Sith Order.
The Dark Times (20 - 22 ABY)
As Tarentum and the Brotherhood as a whole entered and then ended the period referred to as "Second Darkness," a conflict of training and testing for the Clans and the Brotherhood, Antei found itself under assault by strange aliens. At the end of the "Second Darkness," as the ceremony of celebration to honor the victors commenced, the Brotherhood fleets came under attack from these strange beings without warning. The initial attack came suddenly, and many Brotherhood ships fell victim to the alien intruders. It seemed that only Tarentum was able to defend itself adequately, as none of the Clan's ships took any serious damage.
The assault from the aliens lasted a mere six days, but in that short week, many of the Brotherhood fell wounded, or were slain. The invaders pursued the Brotherhood ships from outside of the Shroud back to Antei itself, where the final defeat of the Brotherhood forces seemed assured. This complete disaster was narrowly averted by the sacrifice of Grand Master Sarin's own flagship, the Autarch, though Sarin himself was not on board the vessel at the time of its destruction. The Brotherhood forces fled, and because of the heavy losses the invading aliens suffered in the sacrifice of the Autarch, the intruders let the Brotherhood forces flee. Antei was now under control of outlanders, and the Brotherhood was now an order without a home; the Dark Council now a leadership in exile.
Tarentum returned home to Yridia, but her Consul was soon called away to meet in private with the wandering Dark Council. Each of the Clans' Consuls met with the entirety of the Council, and was informed of a new fleet of Brotherhood ships, and a new directive from Grand Master Sarin to ensure the survival of the Brotherhood: go underground. Each Clan was directed to move itself out of the public eye, and to seek deeper into themselves to discover new strength and power that would ensure the survival of the Brotherhood. After the days-long meeting with the Council, each Consul left with a new fleet of ships in tow, new additions to their forces to bolster the fists of the Clans.
Bloodfyre returned to Yridia with the Clan's new fleet, leading the procession from the Clan's Imperial-class Star Destroyer, which would soon be named in honor of House Tarentum's Founder and first Quaestor, Magnus Kaerner. The first action that the Magnus Kaerner would see was a rescue operation over the moon Koros, that ended up being the final battleground and resting place of the Tarentum's long-time flagship, the Victory-class Star Destroyer Corsair. With the destruction of the Cestus Complex, and the eradication of most of the Cestus undead, the third House of Tarentum was reborn under the direction of the Shaevalian Consul.
The praised times of the first reign of the former High Warrior would not return, however, and hostilities between Bloodfyre and the Council, primarily between the Shaevalian and the Grand Master, came to a climax. Sith had come to despise the entirety of the Council because of its devoted allegiance to Jac Cotelin, an allegiance that had once been strongest in the Shaevalian himself. Even though Sarin now reigned as Grand Master, Bloodfyre felt as though Lord Cotelin was secretly manipulating circumstances, and acting against the Shaevalian due to the heightened tension between the two. Sith cursed the Grand Master and his subordinates, and resigned his position as Consul of Tarentum once more. In his stead, Anshar Kahn, who had been serving as the Headmaster of the Shadow Academy, answered the call of the Grand Master to try and restore the power and stability of the Clan in Yridia.
Tensions continued within the Clan for a short time, however, as Anshar had to fight with the personality of Oberst, whom Anshar had chosen to continue to serve as Proconsul to assist with restoring stability in Yridia. The two would work out their own differences, though, and the storm that had erupted with Bloodfyre was soon settled, and Tarentum looked to rebuild. In the shadows, however, Tarentum could not understand the enemy that lay beneath the waves, an enemy that the Clan had welcomed in as friends and allies.
Rebirth Among The Tarenti (22 ABY)
While Anshar and Oberst settled into an alliance and worked to restore Tarentum's stability once more, Sith Bloodfyre began to recede away from the daily activities of the Clan and its Houses. Sith numbered himself among those who had reformed the lost House of Cestus, and secluded himself on Koros. Though Bloodfyre was generally willing to interact with those of his House, the days when the Shaevalian was a regular visitor to all Houses and functions of Tarentum seemed long since past.
As Cestus rebuilt, however, the Clan found a not-entirely-unfamiliar ghost out of Oberst's past to keep it occupied. The ghost appeared as the Renegade, a ship that had once been utilized by the Infiltrator Wing, a portion of the former Emperor's Hammer that Maxamillian von Oberst had once served as both IWXO and IWCOM, the top two positions of the Wing. The incident has not been spoken of outside of Tarentum, though the presence of the Renegade was reported by several passersby to the Yridia system. For quite some time, the old ship was noted among the fleet of Tarentum, but its disappearance recently has been noted. Tarentum has not divulged anything regarding the ship's appearance or subsequent disappearance at all. Whether or not the Shaevalian may have been involved with the events surrounding the Renegade is up for debate.
As Tarentum moved on, Sith turned farther into his own pursuits and his own darkness. Though the final rebirth of the Shaevalian was still some distance off, it became readily apparent that the Dark Side was either testing the Sith Master, or attempting to undo him. And while there is certainly power within the Dark Side, Sith had always stated that he was the master, and not the pawn; that it was Bloodfyre himself who commanded, and the Dark Side of the Force that served his will. Sith sank deeper into himself, and into his own pursuits as he sought to negate the effects of the Dark Side asserting itself, and return the power of his own will to ascension.
As Tarentum continued to come out of its shell during the reign of Anshar, followed by that of Oberst, the Clan evolved. Cestus, Gladius and Tridens were swept away in change, and replaced by new Houses that honored first the founder of the House that became Tarentum, Magnus Kaerner, and one of the greats of the first days, Erich von Reinthaler. The rebirth of the Houses brought with them added productivity to the members in general, and an optimism that had been sorely needed in the Clan. The reign of Oberst was considered to be successful and stable, which evolved into the reign of the hound's Proconsul, Ronovi Tavisaen.
The Shade
- "Character is like a tree and reputation like a shadow. The shadow is what we think of it; the tree is the real thing."
- ―Abraham Lincoln (1809 - 1865 AD)
It is entirely possible that my own existence is linked with Tarentum, as the two seem to mimic each other. Or, perhaps the greater truth is, my powers wax and wane according to the strength and health of my kin. I had seen such deceit and betrayal among my own kind -- from my own father -- that I had denied the power that binding relationships can have upon us.
If Tarentum is strong, then the Ghost Dragon may be godlike. If the Clan is weak, then Death itself is impotent. I am bound to it for eternity.
The Old Rites Reborn (23 ABY)
Sith was tapped for a short time to serve as the Combat Master of the Antei Combat Center. However, many of the harpies that surrounded the Grand Master bickered about the choice of the Ghost Dragon as Combat Master, and turned their flocks away from the Center. As such, the decision was made between the Grand Master and the Shaevalian, and Sith returned to Tarentum.
As the evolution of the Clan continued, the Brotherhood began to devolve. Everything was changing, and moving towards the old. Numbers among those who followed the Dark Side dwindled due to attrition in war, and the inability of recent initiates to properly control the Force. Not long after Sarin gave up the Iron Throne in favor of Muz Ashen, the new Grand Master decreed that all the Houses that had once Clanned would become Houses once again. Clan Tarentum became House Tarentum anew, as did every other facet of the Brotherhood. Some saw it as a defeat and an insult to the honor and pride of every Clan-become-House; Sith Bloodfyre did not.
The Shaevalian moved to take advantage of the closeness and unity that Muz sought to reinforce in striking down the grandeur of the Clans that had been heaped upon the masses. With the knowledge of the ancient Sith that had been hoarded by the fallen Sith High Warrior in the days before the Order Leaders were done away with, Sith began to research the so-called "Rite of Sin." After months of preparation, and calls placed throughout the Force, a new sect was gathered of the worthy and elite, and the ritual was enacted.
In Tarentum itself, very little was known about those who were called "Sinners." Outside of the House, next-to-nothing was known about what was called the "Cult of Bloodfyre." The Shaevalian himself was often referred to as the "First Sinner," but there is little evidence to suggest that this title is an official one, or used inside of Tarentum or the cult itself. Whether intended as some permanent circle or not, the Rite apparently failed, and the circle was broken. The Sith Master fled Yridia, perhaps, or simply disappeared into the depths of the Asylum; no one is entirely certain. The currents of the Brotherhood moved along, and swept history away with it. Bloodfyre would not return until the situation had changed, and drastically so.
On Death's Door (24 - 34 ABY)
By time the Shaevalian either felt the call, or someone sought to draw him back to the here and now in the Brotherhood, the Jedi had made appearances. There was a person known as Omancor Crask or Darth Carnus on Antei, and then a new iteration of Jedi upon a world that was to be known as New Tython. The Brotherhood seemed to ride the tides of these storms well, but Tarentum continued to suffer. Though there were faithful to the banner of Tarentum as always, they seemed to be fewer in number. As Tarentum itself seemed to wane, so too did the days of Muz Ashen's reign on the Iron Throne draw to a close. Ascending the Iron Throne was a Sith Lord hailed as Darth Pravus, who was said to be the murderer of the former Grand Master Sarin.
Pravus made the curious move to raise all the Independent Houses to Clan status once more, though a few had previously attained that status under different means. At the end of this change in House to Clans, Tarentum itself was changed: Scion Altera and Hades were removed as Summit, replaced by a former Tarenti, Raiju Kang, and Korras Tarentae, who was now being hailed as Darth Aeternus and was possessed of a noticeable darkness and ferocity that the former Obelisk High Commander and former Master-at-Arms had never before exhibited. As the change in leadership occurred, a renewed vigor came among much of Tarentum, including a return of Bloodfyre. The Sith Master emerged from the bowels of the Asylum that had been his home among the Mystics a darker individual, and all things in the Clan of Death shifted.
The Risen
- "The Hell's Angels try not to do anything halfway, and anyone who deals in extremes is bound to cause trouble, whether he means to or not. This, along with a belief in total retaliation for any offense or insult, is what makes the Hell's Angels unmanageable for the police and morbidly fascinating to the general public."
- ―Hunter S. Thompson (1937 - 2005 AD)
Perhaps Raiju Kang had the credit to buy Tarentum a new lease on life that could not be paid by others. Yet, for all his promise, he abandoned us once again. And perhaps therein was his actual gift to us -- by leaving once more, real strength began to grow in the Clan of Death once again. A growing body of Clansmen who walk their own path had sprung up, and the Grey Wolves and their kind remind us that Tarentum always walks its own path, and controls its own destiny.
Farrin Xies rose to the head of our Clan, and the Brotherhood would remember the value of the Clan of Life and Death. It appeared a new golden age of Tarentum might emerge.
Reanimation
Death is cerebral.
The Ghost Dragon haunts my dreams.
My hands bathed in blood.