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uzumaki-rebellion · 27 days

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"Tethered to You" ("The Acolyte) Chapter 1

Chapter Summary:

Qimir's prolgue intro where he meets an imposter trying to trick him.

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"While I was tethered to you,

You cut it straight to the truth

And we're so one and the same,

So all my pain is your pain

You thought your soul was a necklace

That you could wear and take off

That you could rip then break off,

That you could trade in the dark

But you're mine…"

Victoria Monet"—"Power of Two"

Qimir leaned against the curved, key-holed style archway in the back of the dusty apothecary fiddling with a piece of half-eaten fruit in his hand. He wore a pair of dark shop goggles out of boredom and thought about what kind of meal he wanted for the evening to settle his stomach. Much of the food available in taverns and outdoor markets of Olega made him queasy. Bland spices on greasy meat cooked out in the open, and overcooked flatbreads paired with soggy tasteless vegetables was the norm in his immediate area. He much preferred simpler fare like homemade soups and grilled seafood freshly caught.

Waving his hand to shoo away an insect from his face, he glanced over his shoulder and sniffed the scent of the fresh decoction he created. Lavender and mauve spindly herbs boiled away in a scarlet glass pot on the workshop table where he used a mortar and pestle to grind some different dried plants he would boil and steep later for tea in the evening. For now the herbs filled the apothecary with a pleasant aroma of nature in the wild on a cool Olega afternoon. There were other edible plants and some off-world mushrooms covered in containers along the shelves across the room that he could use to make a savory broth. Perhaps he could finesse some taste out of some tavern vegetables left over in the small conservator behind the work table.

Strands of silky black hair fell against his cheek as he tilted his head to listen.

Footsteps approached the entrance.

She wasn't due back soon.

He had a sign posted on the door informing inhabitants that he was on a lunch break and would re-open in half an hour. Olega was rife with black market vendors, unscrupulous tradesmen, and con artists, so no one paid much attention when he took over the place after tricking the feeble humanoid mind of the original owner. Using his handsome face and seductive predatory eyes, Qimir led the old shopkeeper to believe that he had to leave immediately for an overdue vacation. The husky and very hairy owner removed themselves quickly and Qimir settled in temporarily with Mae…Mae who was supposed to be out scouting and not returning to the shop at that exact time.

The footsteps sounded like her, but with less aggression. She seemed to walk with hesitation and entered the apothecary with unfamiliar coquettish eyes. Her physical bearing was off-kilter. She was different. Mae not Mae.

An imposter.

This one tried to recreate the persona and mimicked Mae's style, but his real wanna-be acolyte never owned that particular black body wrap. The true giveaway was the lack of a mask across her face to hide her identity from the general public.

Curiosity rather than caution percolated in his mind.

"Hello…" she said.

He fought the urge to burst out laughing from the poor charade. Mae was always direct and didn't waste time on pleasantries with him. No, he was simply the stranger who did her bidding on the Master's behalf. He was there to assist her goal of killing four Jedi masters without weapons. Once her task was done, she would return to his planet and tell the Master that her quest had been fulfilled, and that she was at last ready to become his acolyte.

A restless anger lived inside of Mae. Hate even. Qimir had hoped that she would be up to the task and she showed great promise and focused determination. However, she lacked a certain quality that prevented him from accepting her outright. Until he witnessed that one thing she needed, he would have to wait for proof of growth and readiness. Or kill her.

"Oh, hello," he said, waving his hand at her.

She stayed rooted in place. Wary.

"Hi…you alright?" he responded, studying the imposter from head to toe while he placed the mushy fruit on the counter along with the goggles.

Carefully rounding the counter, he approached her as he normally would Mae.

"You're back so early…"

She was guarded and yet committed to the poor acting job. He followed suit, still amused to see Mae's face on someone else. She feigned confidence in her presentation. He sensed others advancing toward the shop. All Jedi. She was a pawn they used to shake Mae out from the shadows.

"I wanted to see you."

She intrigued him now. The awkward words tumbled from her lips and heightened the tension crackling between them. He touched his chest, "See me? Oh…Mae, uh, are you okay? Did the poison work? You're acting so strange."

He tilted his head and watched every facial tic in her round light brown face. Mae always had intense eyes reminding him of meteors blazing across the darkness of space. Fake Mae held the same fierceness. It was time to let her know he was on to her.

"Wait," he said, easing ever so close to her. "You killed Torbin without the poison. He will be so pleased."

He hoped it was true. The yellow elixir he made for her couldn't even touch skin without harming someone. It was that powerful and deadly. The imposter's eyes flickered the truth and an inner part of him slumped with disappointment. He gave her a sly smirk. She lifted her chin up.

"No, I used it. I just wanted to thank you…"

Her eyes almost became watery and he gazed at her lush lips, struck by how easy it would be to kiss her trembles of fear away. His mask slipped. A part of her knew he discovered the ruse. The corners of his lips dropped the smirk from his mouth. She kept stretching their farce with shaky bravado in her stance. He stepped to his full height in front of her, his gaze dusting across her eyes, rounded nose, and full lips once more up close. So close. The temptation to trace the calloused tip of his thumb across the outline of her lips beckoned, but he resisted crossing that frontier. The Jedi would barge in on them at any minute. He'd have to take on the caricature he played for Mae again. The imposter caught a glimpse of the real him and he let her see more.

Those dark brown eyes stared at him and something new flickered in them.

Interest.

In him.

They were both mysteries to one another. She teased hungry eyes. Beautiful eyes. They compelled him to step into intimacy. Her breath came out in a tiny gasp that only lovers shared when they were about to touch for the first time. His body became aware of the heat from hers. A nervous tremble quaked her body and he ignored it, enraptured with those luminous eyes that would haunt him the way Mae's never did.

He knew of a long dead twin sister. Mae told him about her when he trained her. With his helmet snug on his head sporting a twisted, sinister cortosis smile and his light saber holstered to his hip, he listened to his young charge spill out the secrets of her life among exiled witches on Brendok. It had to be her. There was a coolness to her that he liked. Mae was the hot-headed one. But this one…

Was she force sensitive too? His eyes narrowed at the possibilities until he sensed the pulsing energy of the force within her. He opened himself up more and a wave of incredible energy rippled across his body from her. The tendrils of his innate power uncoiled and reached out to her in a subtle test seeking light or darkness. He had to be careful. He was pretending to be a nobody, a nameless minion for her twin.

The dark power was in her and he almost salivated. He embraced the idea of having two strong acolytes at his fingertips. The imposter already looked mesmerized by his presence and he was ready to seduce her further. All he needed was a few more minutes alone with her.

"You look exactly like her…"

He left his real self wide open for too long. Her keen senses reacted to his pulsing desire that thread itself around her mind. Panic set in, and she jumped back, leveling a weapon at his face.

"Whoa…whoa, whoa, whoa, wait!"

He threw his hands up and a tall Jedi with short locs and an agitated tone dashed in front of the imposter wielding his light saber. A second Jedi with lank hair and a weary battle-worn face strode in, and still another snuck up behind him. Qimir slammed the mask of his false self back down and quickly became the bumbling stranger who knew nothing. They wanted Mae, asked him questions about her whereabouts and threatened him about helping her poison a Jedi. The older Jedi pounced on him with an offer. "If you will cooperate, we will consider letting you go with a warning."

Qimir held his hands up in a defensive stance making himself appear small and meek. He wanted to keep the imposter close and was willing to give up Mae in the process. The Jedi weren't interested in arresting him or punishing him for assisting with the murder of Master Torbin. They only wanted Mae.

"If you want to get to her, she'll be back here tonight. I'm holding some things for her," Qimir said.

"Yord, secure the peremiter. Keep an eye out for Mae," the older Jedi said.

He brushed past Qimir with a dismissive whoosh of his robes and the other Jedi followed him.

Qimir gave another glance at the imposter. Her eyes latched onto his for a split second longer than necessary before she swept her way across the threshold leaving him alone in the shop.

His soft fleshy lips swept up into a dark delicious smile.

A flame had been sparked in her eyes.

Ignited by him.

Chapter 2 HERE.

#The Acolyte #Oshamir #Uzumaki Rebellion #Star Wars #renew the acolyte #save the acolyte #Youtube

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