#they converted those who believed the jedi and sith codes were what failed them

[muses-darling]

A Seduction of the Darkside - A Star Wars AU - CH.3 Light in Darkness

"I’m told you’ve not been eating,” The voice of Darth Ignis was heard as light shined into the dark cell. “A pretty thing like you should not be allowed to waste away in the darkness, but should learn to grow strong in it.”

“I am a Jedi I gain no strength from the darkness. I serve the light.” His voice cracked dryly from the lack of water. He was dehydrated, weak from a lack of nutrition. Yet Kit despite this shone as brightly as the day he had arrived, no less determined. 

“Perhaps an audience with the Emperor will reinvigorate your appetite?” Darth Ignis suggested.

“Oh he finally remembered?” Kit asked. “Forgive me the hour is well whatever it is it feels rather long and my wit is all I have left.”

“Wit or none I think it goes without saying that you should watch your tongue when speaking to the Emperor.” Darth Ignis walked in bringing Kit to his feet with the force. “Come.”

“Or what you’ll leave me here in this cell? Not much of an improvement or punishment.” Kit added.

Ignis wheeled on Kit forcing the man back to the wall of the cell till their faces were close to each other’s. “I can make you beg for mercy.”

“Mercy or release?” Kit asked his face daring Ignis with those placid green eyes. He could feel the fear starting to form in Kit, the fear that started in all of them before they learned to harness it for the power that it was.

“And here I thought Jedi were prone celibacy?” Ignis let his eyes drift over the pretty face of the Jedi.

“We are,” Kit blinked innocently. “Would one not beg to be set free from all of this?”

Darth Ignis felt his face fall to a disappointed frown. “Of course. We shouldn’t keep the Emperor waiting.” With a step back he let Kit move from the wall.

“Your Emperor, not mine.” Kit added with some venom feeling the manacles shift closed on his wrist.

Were there time Ignis would have remarked on it further, however he knew the Emperor was not a patient man. Besides he had requested that the Jedi not be completely broken. 

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Korriban’s main temple was where the Emperor sat his silvered hair adorned with a precious metal adding to his stately appearance. Armor and robes of white and red with golden markings of the Sith in important places. He sat arms upon the chair palms pressed together a thin cruel smile. “Welcome, welcome Emerald Jedi Knight. I thought I’d give you some time to recover from your battle.”

Kit watched Darth Ignis bow and felt them try to make him do the same. Kit moved causing the guard to fall grabbing the polearm racing at the emperor only to freeze in place holding the blade just barely under the man’s chin. Kit couldn’t help the frustration he felt, the hopelessness. 

The Emperor gave an amused expression, “Even without your access to the force you are impressive indeed, Lord Ignis was right about you. Thank you for a demonstration. Interesting that I feel not a single bit of anger from you in your decision to try to end me. You had hope,” His face twisted into a grin. “Hope that is terribly misguided. If you kill me I will merely chose a new host to inhabit. Perhaps I will even chose you.” 

Kit saw the guard remove the weapon from his hands. He was dropped by the Emperor landing hard. 

“Lord Ignis, I give you the task of converting him into a most worthy ally. Convert him or kill him.” The Emperor waved dismissively before using the force to push back Kit. “Or perhaps I will let Darth Vesania do the honors? Seeing as you denied him. Do not fail me.”

“I will not my Emperor.” Ignis rose to his feet hatred growing, he would never state it out loud but Kit had been rather inspirational with his attack on the Emperor. While Ignis knew that Kit wouldn’t succeed, he had perhaps hoped that he would. He despised the Emperor, while the Emperor had guided them, he had also grown lax with power and victories. It was in the way of the Sith to strike down those who would Lord over you. It was only natural to wish to do the same to the Emperor.

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Ignis’ quarters were of stone and metal that gleamed in the light of the flames that burned, indeed some things of the past were worth using. He always had preferred the element over all others, it best exemplified the rage, the passion, and all consuming nature of the darkside. Kit was brought into the quarters behind him. The light of the flames suited him, making the hair on his head shine like the corona’s of a sun. 

Dark markings etched into the stone, of the sith, the darkside, all manner of evil filled this room and yet the man before him kept a sources of light spread through the room. Warmth radiated from them and Kit neared them reaching out a hand letting the flame’s warmth caress his skin. Time in the dark, cold, and rank dungeon had left him starved for such things. The sun, he missed feeling a Sun’s glow on him. This source of light though was good enough in the cold and cruel Sith Temple.

Ignis watched him with the flames curious what the Jedi would do. “You were in that dungeon for a few days, according to those that brought you food, you were meditating. On what I can only guess. I suppose whatever morals and such the Jedi teach.” He crossed his arms. “You should bathe.”

“Oh Prisoner’s get baths now?” Kit asked. 

“You are more than a prisoner,” Ignis informed him.

“A slave then, a prisoner with a job how kind.”

Ignis rolled his eyes. “Not a slave, you are worth more than that.”

“Slaves are people too, they should be treated as such and given freedom.”

Ignis chuckled. “What do you a Jedi know about being free? You cling to that ridiculous code.” He held up his hand. “Don’t say it I know it, you’ve said it quite enough. Has it given you enough hope?”

“We are all bound by something, for me it is hope.” Kit leveled him with a gaze. “More hope than a cruel bastard like yourself has ever felt in a lifetime.”

“Can’t say that you aren’t right about that, I’ve lived many lifetimes. Then again I don’t put myself in situations where I have needed hope.”

Kit frowned turning his attention back to the flames. “So where might I refresh myself?”

Ignis gestured to the room adjoined to his, “You may take refreshment in my personal room.”

Kit looked to the room beyond entering it, and was surprised at the beauty of it. Black stone pillars around the room with carvings inlaid with golden sith motifs. A bath made of the same stone sat in the middle deep enough to stand and the water would come to one’s chest in the middle but on the outer parts one could sit in the water and have it come up to one’s belly. The bath had an outer rim of stone that one could lean on and the stone and whole of the bath was heated through. Attendants came to him to undress him. “Oh no that’s alright I can remove my own clothes thank you!” They ignored him removing the old green robes he had worn often.  

Ignis gave in to take a peek only able to see the body from the waist up, if only to be certain that he wasn’t giving the attendants a hard time. A flash of the man’s shirtless gave him all the ideas he needed. Maybe he should try the passion element of the darkside first?

The water was warm very warm almost searingly hot, it felt glorious after the dungeon and the battle before. He was still getting used to feeling other hands on him with various tools of cleaning him. Kit let out a soft sigh as muscles that had tensed up loosened. Oils and other means of luxury were applied till he was presented with not his Jedi robes but a black set of clothes. 

Kit looked up shock on his face his lower half just barely covered below the navel. “You cannot be serious?” He called out to Ignis

“What we can’t have you running around in those filthy rags you Jedi call robes.”

“Those robes I will have you know were custom!”

“And now they have been fed to the fire, they were musty, moldy, and ruined after battle, the dungeon and whatever you have put them through.” Ignis smirked at the thought of him. “Now you can wear what you have been offered, or you can show off to the whole of Korriban what a human Jedi looks like beneath their robes. I don’t think we will mind the view, might get a bit cold in the temples, and scorching in the desert above.”

Kit swallowed and took the clothes offered changing into them. Coming out to the bedroom he stood his wrists still had the force dampening cuffs. “So what becomes of me now?”

“Now?” Ignis asked. “Now I begin the task ordered to me by the Emperor. Or at least I should but I’d like to get to know you first, what would you say to dinner? You haven’t eaten since you got here, I assure you while spicy the food here is quite delicious.”

Kit wanted to tell him that he wasn’t hungry but his stomach betrayed him. “Dinner would be appreciated, as are the clothes thank you.” Kit let his eyes go to Ignis. 

Ignis looked to one of the attendants and they went to get food. “I think conversation would be an excellent use of our time Jedi Knight Kit.”

“I think Kit works better than Jedi. I think I’ve heard that word hissed more times than I care to count.” Kit added.

“Then you may call me by my birth name Hades.”

“This life or?”

“I’ve always been Hades.”

“Hades,” Kit tried the name.

Ignis felt his ears prick at the sound of the name none dared call him anymore. Persephone so long ago had, and to hear another speak his name well, it was intimate. He certainly looked forward to Kit speaking it again.

Kit swallowed, “So you have lived many lives, how many?”

“More than a few millennia if not more.” Ignis said. “And you do you believe this is your first life?”

“Who knows, I don’t think I have lived before, I would think I would remember.”

Ignis poured him a glass of  an Alderaanian vintage, sending it to him with the force as he poured himself a glass.

Kit took it sipping it grateful for the soothing liquid. “What of you do you remember it all?”

“If I focused hard enough I might, but the past is the past, and one should only ever look to the present and the future and use the past as a reminder.” 

“You almost sounded like Jedi Master Gabriel.” Kit told him.

“That old man?” Ignis asked. “I certainly hope not, he is foolish.”

“As are all Jedi in your eyes?” Kit asked swirling the dark liquid in the glass.

Ignis looked to him. “Yes, and with good reason Kit. They let themselves be blinded by a Code that keeps them from truly attaining that which they think they can.” He sipped his wine letting there be a pointed pause. “Peace.”

“What do you have against peace?” Kit asked.

“Peace is a lie,” Hades neared Kit. A lie that had cost him Persephone. A lie that had caused his never ending darkness. A lie that had given him to the fires and hatred of the Darkside, leaving him steeped in it forever. He had known the lie of it all once, back then he had been a woman by the name of Plutonia. In that life Ignis had loved a woman named Persephone, a Jedi much like Kit one of the first of her kind and at that time his too. Hell he had helped found the bloody order to begin with, they had been fighting a terrible scourge of the Darkside a Sith Lord the first of his kind by the name of Andeddu. In the end Persephone had not survived. How could there be peace without Persephone? The Force no longer felt so calm without her, in her death had died all the goodness that Plutonia had held. Her death had forged the path, hardening Ignis to the horror that was his life now. Seeing Kit though made him feel that something, something in her death he had forgot. What it was he wasn’t certain he wanted now.

Kit had noticed the silence and was thankful when the attendees came in bearing plates of food for them to eat. A stew made of spices, meat, and vegetables, a flat bread, and crisp, cool sweet fruit for dessert. Kit felt his mouth salivating at the smells that came to him sitting down at the low table he looked to Ignis “I believe you were the one to invite me to dinner, I don’t think I should start without you as you are my host.”

“A Jedi and a gentleman.” Ignis smiled sitting down opposite of Kit, not that they were far indeed the table was longer than it was wide. 

Kit smiled. “You aren’t the only one capable of surprises darling.” Kit gave a wink.

Ignis chose to ignore what that wink suggested, Kit had already made it quite obvious that he had an idea of what he was doing but not on how to follow through with it. “The stew is eaten with the bread less dishes to do tastier too.” He ripped the soft chewy bread forming a piece dipping it into the stew grabbing a chunk of bantha meat. He held out the morsel for Kit to eat.

Leaning forward Kit took the bite from Ignis’ hand, eyes closed his movement’s gentle. Kit was surprised at the flavor of the stew, it wasn’t what he had expected as the day had already shown him. He assumed it was daytime or nearing the end of it. Given that Ignis had mentioned dinner. “It is good.” Kit smiled. “Better than rations.”

“Anything is better then rations.” Ignis made a face his fingers tingled from where Kit’s lips had touched and his mind certainly went to far more imaginative places. “Everything here is made from scratch, Acolyte Ashe-sorry Darth Ashe runs the kitchens with an iron fist among other ventures.”

Kit’s lips felt numb and it wasn’t the spices, where they had touched Ignis, the numbness became warm. He did as Ignis had shown and began eating the food was without a doubt better than anything at the temple, while there was good food and Aziraphale had certainly improved it over his time there, this was something else! 

Ignis’ eyes lingered on various features of the Jedi before him. Golden rings of hair wreathed his face catching the flames, brilliant green eyes that held him in their lush gaze, and those lips still left a ghostly tingle on where they had touched. His appetite shifted from food to something far more needing, a greed to possess the man before him if only for a night. Passion was of the darkside and it would be a shame if he were to let this man never know a taste of it. 

Kit felt the lingering glance and looked up at the Sith, his dark hair had strands of starlight silver threaded through it and in a most becoming way. He was oddly meticulous in appearance, rather reserved for a Sith who up until this one Kit had only seen caught up in the savagery of battle. Darkness radiated from him in the force but even those yellow and red eyes were captivating. His lips still felt the ghost of pressure of the man’s fingers brushing against them. Kit was rather touch starved, Jedi weren’t exactly known for intimacy, while some did marry it wasn’t a common practice and most certainly was frowned upon. Exceptions did exist, the late Revan and his wife Bastilla Shan. Both were of the force both served as Jedi. They both stared at each other caught in something, neither could explain.

Ignis stood the movement making Kit stand as well out of habit likely, he approached the younger man and reaching out took hold of Kit pulling him into his arms and pressing a kiss to Kit’s lips claiming his mouth with his.

Kit eagerly accepted the kiss, it wasn’t his first kiss, there had been that moment with Senator Shakespeare of Naboo. They had kissed and kissed it had been a body guard mission however nothing could come out of it Kit was with the Order and Will had his duties to the people of Naboo. This kiss was different, there was something else behind it as Kit’s hand reached up to Ignis’ hair, caught up in the moment.

Ignis force pushed him against the wall gently, pressing kiss after kiss to Kit trailing down the Jedi’s neck and to his collar bone, only to be interrupted as Kit pushed him back.

“Hades,” the name had come out as a desiring whisper before eyes widened. “We cannot,” Kit said cheeks flushing. “I-I am a Jedi.you-me-we. Can’t.”

Ignis sighed, staying back. “Yes, you make it very clear.” He took a step back letting Kit move from where they were. 

Kit went to the balcony of the quarters trying to calm his breathing. What had been all of that? Where had all of this come from? His emotions were mixed as he leaned back against the wall breathing heavily. A Hand going over his face and through the dense curls.

Ignis left for the night instructing the Attendants to keep their eyes on Kit and to keep him from leaving. 

Kit slid down the wall and attempted to meditate but found no peace, at least not the kind he could meditate as sleep filled his mind he went in finding Ignis’ bed and sleeping upon it.