Loneliness.

Isolation. Fear.

Anxiety. Doubt. Depression.

What in the nine hells have I done to deserve this? None of you know what I have been through. None of you have seen the worlds we live in as I have. And you lock me in here? You imprison me--

Where have you even gotten me to? There's nothing in here, except my thoughts. It's almost as if--

Am I locked in my own mind? Is that what you've done to me? Am I forever frozen within the realms of my own imagination? Is my body locked in some catatonic state, with no hope of exit? Or am I even still alive? I must be, yes? To be able to speak with myself.

Is anyone else out there? Goddammit, someone say something!

Ok. Ok. I just need to stop and think rationally for a minute. There's plenty of time for anger when I destroy them. Whoever they were. I need to figure that out, too. I seem to recall... names, perhaps. Something. They weren't a single order or community, but rather, an alliance standing against me. They were playing a game. Or, no... they were the game. They were the... not game players. They were the guys. They Play guys. Play guys. Of course. And... who were they with. The Play guys, and then... the others. All burning up and red. Emotional. Like having a tantrum. Of course! The Play guys and Tantrum. That's it. Play guys and Tantrum. I will find you bastards when I am free of... this. Whatever this is.

Keep working. Keep moving. Stay in the moment. Be rational. Hold back the anger, maintain the focus. It will be time to destroy them soon enough. I know what happened, I just have to dig it out. It's in there. I know it is. Something is entirely familiar about this. It's cloudy. All tinged and bloodied. Turned red. Hidden under mountains of rock.

No. Not rock. Stone. Bloody, red stone.

You bastards.

I'm in a goddamn bloodstone!

Of course. The fouled memory, the forgetfulness. The haze. It's all so clear now. It has to be a bloodstone. I remember. It all returns. Those two. The Anzat and his human ally. Surrounded by the Chiss, the Epicanthix, and two more humans. They seemed to help, but it was the two. They held the bloodstone. Did they actually know what they held? They must have, for no random action will empower the bloodstone. A Master showed them the way. No one simply discovers a bloodstone, nor the power to use it. But who taught them the ways? Not the four. No, they helped, but theirs was a power less than a Master's. They helped empower the leaders of the Play guys and the Tantrums. It would seem I have many enemies. Why was it that they found me, and came after me? Was it that... Drax was his name? Were they friends of his?

It's all too much to remember.

But apparently, I have time. Years. Eons. They may be completely destroyed by the time I figure out how to free myself. Or someone comes to free me.

Ok. Start from the beginning.

Yes, again...

Loneliness.

---

The two men stood together in silence, joined across the vast distance by the wonders of the holonet. There was no need to meet in person, and quite frankly, though business required their own attention, they also knew that tension would likely remain if their forces were gathered. Though Plagueis and Tarentum were now acknowledged allies in the public eye, both Teylas and Farrin were acutely aware that it would likely be years before their respective Clans actually felt such an intimacy of trust among them.

"Once again," Teylas began anew, "I extend my gratitude for your help."

"And I commend you on your victory, as well as your leadership," Farrin returned. "I think I can plainly state that, without your guiding hand, Ramar, none of this would have been possible. None of us would have been able to succeed and bring about this resolution, nor this alliance, in your absence."

"You are far too kind, I'm sure," Teylas' words were rather dry, but he bowed slightly, and even shared a slight grin. "However, from here on out, I suggest we look to advance our alliance in less strenuous achievements, first, and with greater time and planning in the future. I believe it would benefit us all to be on closer terms before another emotional engagement meets us."

"I couldn't agree more with your wisdom," Farrin nodded. "If you don't mind me asking, what did you do with the bloodstone after it was sealed? Will you attempt to divine the identity of your offender?"

Teylas' jaw went slack for the briefest moment, and then his eyes squinted. Even though joined only by technology, Farrin could suddenly feel the emotion rise in his newfound ally. "You are the one who has the bloodstone, Farrin Xies," Teylas stated rather forcibly.

Farrin paused, quite literally, because he had no words to respond with. He shook his head, and found his voice. "I assure you, Teylas, I do not. When we sealed the entity, I was positive that I saw it in the palm of your hand, my friend. I would not deceive you, nor would I presume to lay claim to what was obviously your token. Your prize."

"It was not in my hand," Teylas replied, "and it seemed quite apparently in your palm, Tarenti. Whatever play you are making, I do not understand it. The bloodstone was gained through Tarenti means, and you are welcome to it. If you are seeking my blessing, I assure you, you have it. There is no need for this."

"Teylas Ramar of Plagueis," Farrin shook his head, "I give you my word and bond that no Tarenti has your bloodstone, and we have all been in agreement that it is property of Clan Plagueis. And this presents us with a rather ominous, and curious dilemma."

"So it would seem. Where the hell did that blasted rock go to?"

This fiction can also be found in the Forged Alliances fiction folder

Staff Changes

Before I get into the nitty gritty of the details of the above fictions references to Forged Alliances, first I want to address some staff changes. These will be short and quick, since the first two need no introduction.

Taking over as Rollmaster of Plagueis will be Kelly Mendes. Kelly has done an awesome job with our journeymen as a BTL, and then moved up to aedile for a short period. I have no doubt she'll continue to haras-- I mean, push ever so gently our journeymen into the world of the Dark Jedi Brotherhood. She's done some amazing work, and is really proactive about getting journeymen involved and acclimated. This will also leave open the aedile spot in Ajunta Pall, which I'm letting Drac fill on his own, with his own criteria and methods.

Next, taking over for our recently departed Quaestor of House Karness Muur, Callus, will be none other than former Rollmaster (of years past) of Plagueis, Eiko! Eiko is no stranger to the Plagueis summit, and I know he will do a great job as quaestor.

Finally, someone else whose application for Karness Muur was quite excellent I couldn't let slip by. After talking with Locke, I'm pleased to announce that Darkblade will be coming over from CNS to Plagueis to join our staff as aedile of Karness Muur. Darkblade had an awesome application and I know he'll bring a lot to the table as he settles into all things Plagueis. Without a doubt he'll be an awesome member of Plagueis for a long time to come! This also means there are now two of us Anzati to watch out for brain sucking and the like. Good luck to you guys...

Forged Alliances

Forged Alliances has now completed, and the official dark alliance between Clans Tarentum and Plagueis is solidified. The results for the last two rounds have been released, as well as the run-on and overall winners, but I thought I’d publish them here in case anyone missed them:

Round 3: Fiction I

1. Taranae Rhode
2. Eiko
3. Brimstone

Total Participants: 5

Round 3: Fiction II

1. Scion
2. Taranae
3. Kelly Mendes

Total Participants: 6

Round 3: Gaming

1. Dracaryis
2. Taranae
3. Kelly Mendes

Total Participants: 5

Round 3: Word Find

1. Brimstone
2. Taranae
3. Scion

Total Participants: 10

Round 4: Cryptogram

1. Eiko
2. Kz'set
3. Ranarr

Total Participants: 9

Round 4: Poetry

1. Taranae
2. Scion
3. Kelly

Total Participants: 7

Round 4: Cryptography

1. Kelly Mendes
2. Kz'set di Plagia
3. Dracaryis

Total Participants: 13

Round 4: Gaming

1. Dox Romanae
2. Strask
3. Taranae

Total Participants: 7

Forged Alliances: Run-On

1. Team 3
2. Team 5

Forged Alliances Team Totals:

1. 177
2. 116
3. 481
4. 75
5. 317
6. 270
7. 0

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Final Thoughts

Congratulations to team 3 (Brimstone, Taranae, Caesar, and Solas) for taking first place. After the first two rounds, it was hard to tell who was going to come out on top since most of the teams were within one competition's worth of activity of one another. In the end, slow and steady won the race and it really all came down to something that the Dark Jedi Brotherhood has been pushing for a while now: activity, and participation. The teams that came in first, second, and third also respectively had participation ranked first, second, and third. They were also the only two teams to coordinate enough to get all their qualifying posts in on time for the run-on, which is quite the accomplishment in itself.

A huge shout out to everyone though for really getting involved and doing stuff. Farrin, Slagar, Beef, and myself all know how tough it can be this time of the year with the holidays coming up, work, and for many people school. The turnout was great, and I can certainly speak for myself when I say it was well above and beyond what I thought it would be for not just Plagueis, but Tarentum as well, let alone in a cooperative event. I know Farrin has already pitched the idea to me during one of the earlier rounds about possibly doing something like this again, and it was certainly exciting and fun to do so it might be somewhere in Plagueis' future plans.