The Dark Academy on Korriban

Zeno entered Zash's office, looking for his master. He has a question or a request and is hoping for a good answer.

Zash is meditating and looks up, “Yes, my apprentice?”

"I had a query Lord Zash. About the Holocrons of Lord Hazzan and Gyn Hothe. Is there a great deal of overlap in the data they have, short of the ritual?" She could probably guess where this was leading.

“You want a prize for all your hard work?” she says from her seated lotus position.

"It would not be unappreciated, especially if it is of less or no use for you anymore, having Lord Hazzan's own holocron. You've gained access to the tomb as you intended and it would still be available to you as you wished. But then your apprentice could study the findings of Gyn Hothe so that he could be of more use to you," Zeno replies.

"There is still one holocron unaccounted for, apprentice," she says calmly.

"Yes. And the last I spoke of it I can only repeat. It's not in my care," he says. "I tried to ask for it back but I don't know who carries it."

“Then you have your task if you wish to have your prize,” she says calmly closing her eyes.

Zeno nods to Zash. "Already tried to gain it back last night. But the tension between them and you means there won't be any budging on the issue. And I don't know who among them holds it. It seems I've learned a valuable lesson. Misplaced trust, even if only temporary..." he shakes his head. Perhaps I should let her know Sylvain had it last. I trusted him to hold it temporarily and after he contributed so little to obtaining it. Bastard.

“A Sith completes their mission to their master’s satisfaction. I am not satisfied,” she says, eyes closed.

"Then I regret to inform you that you are likely to be quite unsatisfied Lord Zash. My natural talents tend towards killing and breaking things, and working well as part of a unit. And the unit that I was dealing with is the one you want revenge against... and they hold the holocron from me because you desire it. I don't have the ability to acquire something if I don't know where it is, otherwise I would be able to cut through what stands in my way to reach it," he replies solemnly.

“I see a chance for you to grow then apprentice, achieve my satisfaction or deal with the consequences. That is the freedom of all Sith,” she says in reply.

“You are dismissed.”

He takes a deep breath, as he is looking at her. Eyes closed, dangerous, and powerful. "Consequences," is his simple reply, defiance in his tone.

“Do these friends mean this to you, that you would rather suffer my wrath than simply fetch this holocron? You fear losing them more than you fear me?” she says eyes closed.

"It's not about losing friends. It's not about fear. It's about recognition for things that I've already accomplished. It's about the fact that I've shown more mettle than any other student in this damned academy. Look at the marks I've been given and ask yourself how many Lords and Darths would have me as their apprentice. How many of them have the temperament and ideals I share and can see the potential you've seen? When I came to you I did so with Gyn Hothe's holocron, something you'd been seeking for a long time. Perhaps it was fate that drew me to it. But I drew it to you and have served you well," he says, an edge on his tone.

"I understand that there is a dynamic of the master and apprentice relationship, but we have been working together for nearly two months and you know me by now. I am conflict and I am violence... but I am also loyalty and determination. I walked into Death's Shadows lair and was nearly killed in the process of making sure those I stood with survived. And then I returned to end a threat that had been stalking this planet for centuries despite the threat I knew it posed."

"If you did not want an apprentice that took loyalty to the extreme you may have chosen poorly. If you did not want your apprentices to expect to be recognized for their successes and strengths you have chosen poorly. If you did not want an apprentice with a fierce sense of personal pride then you have chosen poorly. And if you did not want an apprentice that would not hunt down and kill those that have bled and fought for them you have chosen poorly."

"You could kill me in an instant, with barely a thought. I understand that. I am as expendable to you as any other apprentice or student such as Faln or Gerald. Again understood. I have understood that for weeks. And still I came back to you because your fervor and determination feed my drive for a future where I can reach new heights and attain any goal I can conceive of. But I am an individual... not your clone. If you cannot deal with that I may not be the apprentice for you."

“I am still going to make them suffer,” she says with a smile.

“It’s the little things like that that make life worth living. You can have the holocron since it seems to mean so much to you. I am sure I will have to punish you one day but I am not in any mood to silence your initiative nor do I need a slave.”

“I do think you should assess how much loyalty you give to others. They are or will be Sith, they are not your friends. If they are truly Sith in action and deed then you are their rival.”

“Now you are a smart boy, so we shan’t have this conversation again. Understood, Apprentice?” she says sweetly.

"Yes Lord Zash," he says, in a serious tone, bowing his head. "Understood."

She sighs and adds, “Is there anything else you wish to rant about? Might as well get it out now while my mood is pristine.”

"Yes," he says. "When we get to Yavin I wish to be challenged. If you have knowledge of any locations that you wish plumbed I would like for you to send me on my own. I may be a pain in the ass but I do wish to prove that I will be worth the trouble."

“I will contact you when you are on the surface, should give me time to find something suitably suicidal to test your skills,” she says with a coy grin, eyes still closed.

"Thank you master," he says with a bow, heading towards the exit unless stopped.

/collecting the holocron as well I guess?

“Oh and please give Baesal and Moyr my best, Apprentice,” she adds before falling back into her meditations.

"I will. I'm sure they will appreciate it," he replies.