A single candle sat illuminated in a dark room, its orange light flickering against the shadows and black veil of darkness. Seated behind a desk, with a spider mandible touched with black ink in his hand, was Chib Nyac. He scratched his thoughts down on old parchment, created by the Iwu Krouh for their new chieftain.
The Ithorian was clearly emotional, his eyes filled with tears and his hands trembling.
“I have failed. Both my brothers and sisters in my tribe of Odan-Urr and myself.
“The Iwu Krouh were blind, lead by a madman that was fueled by morbid curiosity and a dark thirst. They were twisted, fed lies and led astray by shadows and filth spewed forth by this sorceror of evil. He disrupted the natural order and used crystals and strange magics to mend their wound and give new life to rotten and dying limbs. The Krouh were abominations, their own religion becoming obsolete the more they followed the one they called Sa’meel. We, however, know him as Samael Ozriel, a pox upon this galaxy and a pariah to civilized life.
“My superiors, those whose wisdom I bow to even when I disagree with it, would much rather have the man die than try to understand him and rehabilitate him. Perhaps this was my first failing, for deceiving them and betraying their trust. When they asked me what happened when I took over the Iwu Krouh, when the battle between Samael and I was over, I could do nothing but lie.
“And that is when I failed. Samael Ozriel lives, and a small piece of myself has died.”
Chib pushed himself away from his desk, placing the mandible in its inkwell and rubbing the cramp out of his hand. He breathed heavily, positioning himself in his chair until finally prying himself away from it and walking into the shadows. Engulfed in the darkness, the Ithorian lit another candle and banished more of it away. The light of the flame kissed the pale skin of the captured Sith, his muscles bulging and spasming as he strained to get out of his bonds. The chains jangled and chinked the more he struggled, and the effort evoked a sigh from Chib.
“Must you fight?” asked Chib, grabbing a cup and pouring some of his tea into it. The steam rose quietly from it, the scent of venom inside it causing Samael to snort.
“Must you waft that bile in front of me?” spat Samael, lurching forward to try and grab the Ithorian.
The chains became taut, his hands trying to grip the Ithorian’s throat. His eyes were filled with murderous rage, saliva rolling down his chin and wetting his beard. He struggled only for a moment, then ceased his efforts. The Umbaran went slack, his eyes falling to the ground, the chains being the only thing keeping him upright.
“Please. Kill me.” said Samael, the words barely audible to the Ithorian.
Before Chib could respond, the large physique of Kah Manet walked through the Ithorian’s tent. The Gungan glared at the chained Sith, the crimes of the Dark Sider still fresh in the mind of the Jedi. Kah could hear the screams of his victims in his mind, the Gungan gazing into the mind of the Umbaran and not liking what he saw. The presence of Kah inside Samael’s mind to chortle loudly, the Sith focusing on all that evil things he had done. The screams of his victims creating a cacophony of sound inside the Odanite’s mind, the Jedi being unable to take it.
The Gungan rushed forward, knocking Chib into his chair and placing a hand around the throat of the Dark Sider. The Jedi clicked aggressively, the Dark Sider smiling as his windpipe was slowly being crushed by the Odanite. The Tarenti would have laughed, but the iron tight grip of the Scourge made that impossible. The Ithorian placed a hand on Kah, trying to calm him down.
“Kah, you are better than this.” said Chib.
“Or are you?” said Samael through the iron grip, his words coming out slightly squeaky.
Kah thrusted the Umbaran back, his head knocking against the stone wall that Chib’s tent was built around. He repeated the action two more times before letting go of the Dark Sider, Chib patting the Gungan on the back when he did so.
“Are you serious? Come on, you two! KILL ME!” roared Samael, “End this miserable thing that is called my existence. Please, I want you to.”
Kah pulled out one of his daggers and brought the blade of it to Samael’s throat, the Umbaran smiling widely as he saw it. The absence of his lips made the grin slightly unnerving, but the Gungan did not waiver in his conviction. Chib, however, intervened once more.
“Killing him does not make him pay for his crimes. Killing him makes us no better than he. We are Jedi, we don’t kill.”
“You. Are. Pathetic!” spat Samael, “Do you know what I felt when my fingers ripped into the soft flesh of my last plaything? What I felt when his screams entered my ears? How his blood tasted? How it smelled when his fear caused him to soak his pants with urine? Euphoric.”
The Umbaran rose back to his feet, his eyes proudly looking into the Gungans. The Sith smelled the Jedi for a moment, his lipless smile growing as he probed the Odanite’s mind. The Scourge couldn’t help but think of his family, the murder of his father and mother, the rape and torture of his sister. The note Kah received when he had learned that his sister could not live with herself anymore, the sight of her neck and the ligature marks the rope left burned into his mind. Without even realizing it, the hands of Kah were around Samael’s throat, the Umbaran giggling as best he could with no air flow.
“I...I bet...she….just laid there.” said Samael, the murderous rage inside Kah burned in his eye.
“Kah, remember what we discussed.” said Chib, the Gungan nodding slightly to the Ithorian. The Jedi released his grip and walked out of the tent, muttering something about wearing the Umbaran’s skin.
“Forgive my friend.” said Chib, “Sometimes he lets the shadows of his past control the waters of his future. I, on the other hand, know that those very waters are always changing. I know that nothing is set in stone, and that people can change. You can change.”
The Umbaran laughed heartily, the end of which was punctuated by one large loogey being spat in the Ithorian’s eye. Chib wiped it away, unbothered, and looked back at the Sith. The hands of the Odanite slowly grabbed a vial of some unknown liquid and smiled, showing it to the Dark Sider.
“Drugs? Now it’s a party.” said Samael. The Ithorian chuckled slightly, looking at Samael and pointing a finger.
“See? You can be tolerable, Sam. In this vial is roughly three different types of hallucinogenics. You remember the spider toxin you used to give religious experiences? I’ve done a little experimenting and I’d like you to help me test it.”
The Ithorian took a syringe and filled it with the toxins, finding a vein and injecting it into the Umbaran. Slowly, the syringe emptied into the bloodstream of Samael, and his eyes widened as it worked its way into his system. The Umbaran gritted his teeth as he felt every little sensation. He felt the slight breeze kiss his exposed teeth, the sensation of his hair moving with every slight motion, the feeling of his own heartbeat. Everything. The Umbaran winced at the thrumming of his heart, the sight of Kah entering the tent once more causing it to beat faster. For once, Samael was afraid.
“Oohhh, ookay. Joke’s over. Chib, you call yourself a pacifist?! You’re a sadist!” shouted Samael. The feeling of his voice in his throat, the tensing muscles, sent spasms and shots of pain throughout his body. The Umbaran realized when he looked down at Kah what was about to happen.
“I gave you a chance. Kah, remember what we’ve discussed.” said Chib, “Goodbye, Samael. I hope to see you on the other side.”
The Ithorian departed the tent, but not before whispering something to Kah. He looked back at Samael, and left. The Umbaran had never been on this side of things. He had always been in control, been the one that dealt the pain and watched the expressions. To be perfectly honest, he had a very low threshold for pain. He was afraid, for the first time in his life he was the fly and not the spider.
“Look, Kah, I know I may have done some things that some would call bad. I know you don’t like me. I know I may have said some things that you may not have liked. But whaddaya say you put that knife down and we let bygones be bygones.” Samael flinched with every word, the tensing muscles hurting with every syllable.
The Gungan went to him, and whispered in his ear.
“Wesa gonna make yousa feel what deysa felt.”
“Wha--”
The Gungan slicing into the skin of Samael’s chest, the alchemical symbols on his chest now covered in blood. The Jedi continued his work, doing his best to keep his mind off what he was doing. He didn’t like it, the screams of Samael echoing in the tent. Every so often, an Iwu Krouh tribesman would hear and try to enter, only to be prevented by Chib.
The Ithorian entered the tent once more, seeing the Umbaran being torn up by Kah. There was not many locations on his body that were not either battered and bruised or cut up. The Ithorian looked away, trying his best to not listen. He sipped his tea as the Gungan neared the end of his work.
Again the blade of his dagger entered Samael’s flesh, the meat of his bicep twitching as it became disconnected. Kah took out the blade, punched Samael in the face, and began slicing up his leg. The dagger created long gashes in his thighs, and with the blade’s entry came screams from the Umbaran, his teeth gritting against it.
The Umbaran continued to spasm and move, bleeding from the days endeavors. The Gungan placed the dagger down and stared at the Umbaran, grabbing him by the beard and hoisting him up. The sensation caused Samael to growl, his eyes full of anger and pain as he looked at the Gungan. He tried to mouth the word please, but a lack of lips made the attempt futile. Kah then reached back and pounded the Umbaran square in the forehead, rocking the Umbaran’s brain back and forth. The Dark Sider fell unconscious, his body falling limp.
The Umbaran awoke in a strange room, lit by torchlight and covered in shadow. The Dark Sider got up, finding himself surprisingly limber and free of injury. Samael began to question if what had just transpired was all just a dream or if now was the dream, but either way he was pleased to be away from the Gungan for any amount of time. He pried himself out of bed and decided to walk around. He left the room he awoke in and found himself in another, very large dark room.
The Umbaran, however, knew he wasn’t alone. He lingered in the corner, bathing in the shadows and waiting for more movement. It wasn’t long until those shadows were banished and replaced by light, revealing another Umbaran in the center of the room. Samael came out of his corner and approached the other Umbaran, feeling a strange sense of familiarity coming from him. When he got closer, he knew who he was.
“You!” said Samael, “No! Bad! Granny got rid of you! She made you go away!”
The Other Umbaran turned around, and Samael could see his mirror image. This version was different, this version still had lips and a nose. This Samael had no tattoos or alchemical symbols, nothing blemishing his flesh. This Samael was pristine, wearing black training robes. Around his neck hung a small bag that seemed to be stained with blood, the beating of a heart coming from it every so often. The Sith further studied this image of himself and noticed a large braid of what appeared to be wood coiled around his wrist. It emanated with the essence of the Light Side, sending shivers down the Dark Siders spine.
“Welcome. It’s time we chat.” said Light Samael.
“No. Nothing you can say will change my mind. You were banished, we made you go away, it took hours. You shouldn’t even be here.”
“But I am. And I know you. I know everything.”
“You know nothing! You never did! You were weak, you are why our mother is dead and why our father never loved us. You are why our Uncle abused us and sent us away.”
“YOU are why our mother sought a ritual that had her killed as a product of it. YOU are the reason our father was butchered and maimed. YOU did that. YOU left our Uncle hanging by his own larynx.”
The Dark Sider looked at the Other Umbaran and scowled, shaking his head and stomping feet. He repeated the word “no” over and over again, wishing the Other would stop.
“I know who it is you pictured every time you snatched a victim. I know who it was who you really wanted to stab a knife into, whose life you viewed as worthless. I know whose very existence you wish would just stop.”
“Stop it.”
“I know you want your life to be over. You inflict pain on others because you have grown numb to your own. You thirsted for it because each day had no meaning for you, thirsted for some reason to live. You thrived on terror, feeding on the lives you consumed through your impulses. But in truth, you were too much of a coward to end the one life you have always wanted to end.
“But I can give you a better out. Let me out. Your pain can cease and I will endure it, I will bear the brunt of what you’ve done and I will spend our time righting the wrongs you have created. To every darkness you have summoned, I will purify with my light. If you allow me, I can be your penance. Let me out.”
“No.” said Samael, glaring at his mirror image. The Light Sider before him glowed with serenity, calmness washing over the Other.
“Let me out, and your pain will end.”
Those words caused the Dark Sider to thrust forward, and attack the Light Side Samael. He threw a punch, then another, each making contact but each seeming to phase right through the Other. The Light Sider smiled, which only fueled the anger of the Dark Umbaran. He punched again and again, each moved through the Light Sider and had no effect.
The Other raised a hand and flicked it to the right, the Dark Sider flying to the side and colliding into a wall. Another flick, and Samael was flung to the left and rammed into the ground. The Light Sider rushed forward and grabbed the Umbaran by his beard, picking him up by it and staring into his eyes.
“W-what the...frakk are...you?” asked Samael, his hands trying to pry the Other off of him.
“I’m what you could have been. If you didn’t let Granny cloud your mind and fueled your dark impulses.” said the Light Sider, sending the Dark Sider sailing through the air once more.
“You can’t beat me in here, Sammy. I’ve been locked in here for years. Locked away with nothing to do but learn. Everything you’ve seen, everything you’ve forgotten, I have absorbed. Every mental connection you’ve made, I’ve tapped and siphoned what I could. Your time with Granny made you strong, but you cannot imagine what it did for me.
“I wish you nothing but peace, but that peace will not be lasting unless it comes from within you.”
“And if I refuse?” asked Samael, each failed attempt at killing his Other, every second of pain he endured filled him with an anger he had not felt in some time. Failure was the only thing that ever enraged Samael, but it was his personal failure that glared at him every morning. His personal failure that gnawed away at him. His personal failure that caused him to fall to the dark side. His personal failure that caused his mother to die. His personal failure that made him unable to forgive himself, and made him fall further each day.
Samael lunged forward and tried one more time to kill the Light Sider, his lightsaber entering the form of the Other, who looked down and frowned. He threw the Dark Sider once more, smashing his head hard against the floor.
The Gungan stared at the Umbaran, hanging limply against the wall. Every so often he would pick up the Umbaran’s head, trying to feel some sense of life in the Dark Sider. Then, when the Jedi gave up hope, the Umbaran rose to his feet and stared at the Gungan, his bloodied eyes full of joy to see the Odanite.
“You.” said the Umbaran, then howled in pain. “Please, antidote for the toxins. I’ll do anything, anything you want, just make the toxins go away.”
Chib hurried over with a vial full of clear liquid, quickly injecting it into the Umbaran. The Sith smiled as the liquid entered his system, hoping the pain would subside soon. The Gungan glared at the awakened Umbaran, trying to sense if any change occurred. The Umbaran could be a great asset to Odan-Urr, and the Gungan was told by Chib that this was all worth it. If they failed, their betrayal to their brothers and sisters would have been for nothing.
“I-I have a lot to answer for.” said Samael, “But I have the courage to take the first step on this new journey.”