The Dark Academy on Korriban

Sylvain arrived back at the camp after the last of the tactical meetings with Captain Harad ended. The Queen was to make a display of the enemy chief, but Sylvain saw no need to be present for that moment... especially when casualty reports were shown him and there was a name that jumped out at him.

Entering the medical tent in the camp Sylvain began looking around the tent for the face of the last loyal Serasai in the Empire. Finding her blonde hair, matted down in spots with blood he came over to her side hurriedly and leaned up on her cot with both his hands.

"This is the opposite of being safe Kris." He said, obviously overcome by worry. He looked down and saw her hand missing and his eyes widened in shock.

Covered in medical bandages from quite a few strikes dealt to her by that Wookies lightsaber, Kristal appeared the wreck she was. A good portion of her torso was covered including the entirety of her left shoulder and arm. Glancing up in a drowsy state from both the pain and the medication she was most definitely on from being tended to by the Medical droids it took her a good moment before she realized it was even Sylvain.

When she did, she realized what he had seen and in a moment of embarrassment amid her self pity she tried to turn away and hide her left side. Words didn't come to her. Nothing made sense to say. Kristal Serasai, in this moment, was near completely broken.

Sylvain gently put his hand on her far cheek and directed her face back at him, "No."

He shook his head forcefully, "You're not running inside yourself right now. I'm here for you... whether you want me here or not."

He grabbed her remaining hand and looked worriedly into her eyes, "What happened Kris?"

Nearby Captain Harad was having an obsidian dagger removed from his shoulder, without armor it was easy to see that his right arm was completely cybernetic. He saw Kristal but saw that she already had company and was stoic as the droids worked on removing the dagger.

"I lost..."

Kristal's words were less, no longer holding that constant confidence in herself anymore. Right now her strength was depleted. Though he forced her to face back at him she couldn't bring herself to look at his face, and that his hand sought hers she didn't even have the capability to push his hand off her cheek. Not that she would have ultimately decided to, but that she couldn't became the first reason on why she wouldn't.

Had she noticed Harad at all, she might have had the chance at some comfort there. Certainly it would be welcome at a time like this, but the first matter to attend was the friend that took all of her attention.

Sylvain gently caressed her cheek with the hand that drew it over. There was concern in his eyes, not only for the injury but for a Kristal he rarely ever saw. Kristal was not one to be broken and vulnerable. He cursed at himself inwardly... thinking perhaps he was most certainly a part of her collapse. This girl had gone through hell in the last few weeks.. what could he do to make it not so horrible for the woman he still loved?

"It's alright Kris. You got me here... You're lucky your alive... I'm lucky you're alive." He said with a comforting smile and soft squeeze of her hand.

He had seen the knife Harad had in his shoulder during the strategic meeting right after the battle, it was good to see that he was taking care of it, but Kristal had all his attention for now.

Part of her just wanted to hit him. Hit him so hard that he would never forget it. Having played with her heart as he did and now.. now being the first to see her like this. The one to attempt at comforting her. Kristal was too broken to care, heart, body, and soul. That she could still wield her weapon wasn't much of a consolation, that she was still alive didn't even feel like a blessing.

"Nothing is alright.." she said, pulling her hand away. Kristal didn't want to hurt people... not the ones she cared about, not if she could afford it, but perhaps in her attempts to start pushing away so she could avoid it she was about to walk down that path anyway.

"Go.. leave.. find Moyr. She loves you, you know," she said, but there was a pause. Something that Kristal couldn't hide when she was like this. In truth she didn't believe Moyr actually cared for Sylvain at all. How could she? Moyr knew nothing about Sylvain. As far as Kristal knew. "Says I'm just your past, I was holding you back by thinking I could love you."

Another long pause as she gently took his hand from her cheek.

"If you love her... just.. go."

Sylvain looked down at Kris with heartfelt eyes. It seems that the conversation that Moyr had mentioned had done considerably more damage to Kris than it had to Moyr...

He sat by Kristal's side, holding her hand tightly as he looked back with eyes searching for something... she had been so walled up since he had told her, it was hard to tell what emotion was coming out of her now. He sought desperately for a clue of what may be the actual intent of her plea. Was it disgust for him; a kind of hatred that had replaced the love she had felt? Or... still did feel... somewhere deep within her, that she wouldn't even admit to...

"I'm not going anywhere Kris. Here is where I need to be." He said as fervently as he could.

"I would never abandon you... for anyone or anything..."

"Stop.." she said, trying to pull her hand back again but between the medication and the pain it was too much to collect the strength to do so. Nor could Kristal bring herself to look to Sylvain, she never saw the look in his eyes. She was running away from him, this moment, she knew she simply couldn't bear it and yet he still tried so. His words had proven enough to show her that it was true. Whoever this Moyr was he had some semblance of love for her. As long as he sat with her, her heart was bleeding.

"I wish you never told me.. I wish I never knew. I need you to leave, because I..."

Her words fell away from her. Not able to bring herself to speak the next. There was no hatred, no disgust, just pain.

Outside the medical tent Weaver waited with Biggs and Wedge, Biggs had his arm in a sling but the trio came through whole. They waited to hear word on Kristal, all they knew was that she was terribly injured by the enemy.

Shaisha paused at the sight of the soldiers outside. She knew Kristal had spent her time close to Harad's men, and these were most likely a part of that group.

"Any word?" She asked as she approached the soldiers. "Kristal is in there?"

They all snap to attention and Weaver speaks, "My lord, we have no word on her condition. We had hoped to find out, just a bit hectic."

Sylvain looked at Kristal as she kept her gaze on anything but him.

"Don't suppress it Kris... Face it. You're not the runner in our group... You're the strongest of us... And if you're in pain, how can I leave? My job is to smooth over those edges...I can't leave... I would never, ever leave you... There's nothing in this world that would pry me away from your side..."

He paused before letting out a painful and frustrated sigh, "If you tell me I'm not needed any more... You tell me you don't want me around anymore and I'll leave and never come back... It'd be a fate worse than hell for me... but it'd make us even after what I did... if that's what you want... I'd do anything to make you whole again... Even sacrifice my own happiness..."

With those words she finally looked to him, and finally broke.

"I can't... I can't face it because it's you. You made me feel wanted when I had no one else... nothing... you made me fall in love with you and you tossed it away. You took the highest level of trust I've ever given a person and treated it like trash. Discarded on the first woman you saw... or.. I don't even know, maybe you met her before me and I never meant anything at all to you."

There was anger, passion mostly, pain throughout all of her words. Working up the strength she made a fist and weakly beat against his chest with all of the no strength she had. It was, in terms of strength alone, pathetic.

"Then you come back, again and again and want to be part of my life. You tell me you love me again and again and how am I supposed to deal with that?" she hit his chest again. With more of her strength this time. Physically, it still didn't really leave much of a mark. That she could only hit him with the one arm seemed to distress her even more.

"You betrayed me, you broke my heart, and you keep breaking it... again and again..."

Kristal hit his chest one last time. This time weaker, followed by her laying back against the cot she was in. Having used every ounce of energy. Making her next words just come out exhausted, tired, and defeated.

"I can't bear it anymore... I'm not that strong..."

Slyvain looked into her eyes during her outburst. There was no look of pity or sympathy, only a look which sought to fully receive of her emotion.

When she laid back down on her cot he looked down at her hand and with a saddened tone, "Tell me what you want Kris... I would gladly do anything to fix what I have done... I never thought of your love as trash... I am not worthy of your affection, I betrayed that trust... I want nothing more than us to be together again... I would prove to you that I never have loved nor will love anything like I have loved you..."

He then looked up, "But if my love is unwanted... just tell me to leave.. you needn't worry about it ever again..."

Biggs adds, “This is pretty heavy stuff maybe we should uh give them space. I am starting to feel a little uh uncomfortable.”

Wedge says, “I find it romantic.”

“You two are idiots,” Weaver says in response.

Sylvain turns around to see the three gawkers commenting on something they knew nothing of.

"Go... now..." He said with a coolness to his voice, one that held back the rage in his heart, and opted for a gentler approach to dealing with the nuisance.

---

D10 MN Coercion, Influence: 2eA+1eP+1eF 2 successes, 1 advantage, 2 Light Side


(OOC: Destiny for 2 more successes, Conflict Strain)

Biggs and Wedge nod and scurry off, but Weaver folds her arms, "I answer to Sith Serasai, my lord. She is my commander, not you. Maybe it's you that should go, this does not seem the time or place for a heart to heart. Other soldiers need to be seen and space is limited."

OOC: Threat used for Weaver to stand on the grounds of her commander.

Weaver Discipline + Destiny: 3eC 2 failures, 3 threat

Sylvain's words were like tiny little daggers. Lies, as she could only perceive them. That talk with Moyr had put a great deal of things into context for her. Before she could never be sure if she could ever learn to trust him again. Now... now it felt like she had that answer as he weaved his words. Whether he meant it or not they appeared like a tapestry to her. Woven together to create a stunning show but a show nonetheless. It wasn't real, but it felt so warm.

Being forced into a decision she couldn't bring herself to make she just laid there in distress. Stuck between the two points.

That was when she witnessed Sylvain use the force to turn away Biggs, Weaver, and Wedge. That was when she wanted him gone. That was when she recalled the coldness, the complete lack of respect, the part of him underneath that allowed him to remove the head of a deceased woman, sell a friend, and play with her heart.

That was when the fire in her re-lit.

"Sylvain," she said with that cold flame under her voice again.

"Leave. Go find those two and tell them to come back, and I do not want to see you again," she demanded before Sylvain could have the chance to respond.

"Shut up, idiots," the pureblood growled and stalked past them into the room.

"And prince Charming can beat it too, unless he wants to twist the knife more." Shaisha glared at Sylvain. Weary and hurt too, she looked more than willing to press it into a physical confrontation if Kristal gave the indication.

Sylvain turned at Kris's voice. Nodding his head, "Very well Kris. Goodbye."

He did not pay any attention to the others who were in the room. His anger was too great to control much longer. He brushed past Shaisha without so much as a second glance.

Passing the two cowards outside he merely stated, "It's all good. Go in."

He then walked out through the camp, emotions churning and burning inside of him. He did not enjoy the sensation of falling on his own sword... The wound seemed to be something that would not be repaired soon...

Kristal had maintained a strong position again as Sylvain made his exit. Pushing herself up in the cot. Though, when he was gone, she allowed herself to relax again. Not able to really hold up that type of front in her current state.

With her hand she beckoned them all closer. If they had come to see her, she would have them see her. Weaver and Shaisha got the most appreciative looks of the group. Giving a nod to each as well. They were there for her. Something a Serasai would never forget.

Weaver nods and says, “My Lord.” She steps back to allow her betters to speak while Biggs and Wedge peak in before moving to stand by Weaver. There looks were that of concern but some relief that Kristal was at least talking and being active.

Weaver adds, “We can go if you two need privacy, my lord. We just wanted to make sure you were well and thank you for eradicating that Jedi scum.”

“My Lord, you have a priority call coming in for you, Darth Baras,” a communications officer says as he is striding through the camp.

Sylvain paused. There were very few things that would make him stop, and this happened to be one of them.

Nodding to the man, but saying nothing, he followed to where directed. Upon being brought to the communicator he answered.

"My master." He said with a bow.