The Differences Between Us

[Xyll Vanth]

1 year ago, somewhere on Korriban.

A landing ship behind us, a desert in front of us; and a bunch of soldiers looking on from the sides as a Sith berates and tells us the odds of our survival. The others there, those who would call themselves my peers, quickly set off; treating it as a race to see who will get to the academy first. Each of their forms suffused with eagerness, or fright. Eager for reward, frightened of punishment; they are subservient to the whims of others either way. As for myself, I have yet to feel motivated enough to follow in their endeavours.

"It appears you feel this to be beneath you," the overseer says, pushing himself off his speeder, eyes looking down at me as he approaches. He carries himself with the pride of someone completely convinced of his own immense worth; and his gaze reveals his utter disdain for the student he is supposed to be teaching.

I will enjoy robbing him of his delusions of relevance, but he's not wrong. This is all so very much beneath me. His little speech aimed at inspiring fear. His little test of stamina and self-reliance with which he hopes to weed out the weak and discipline the rest of us into submission. What were the words of the past again? I can't quite remember. Something how about one's time will come? There can be no doubt, these days will be transient and I will return to where I once was.

Suffer these arrogant fools for now. Observe them. Learn from them not in the manner they intend, but in the manner of a predator. One that seeks to understand its prey in order to aid its own hunt.

"Yes master," I answer the voice in my head. Is she speaking in the now? Or is this just another memory I conflate with the here and now?

"You should consider yourself profoundly lucky," the worm says, now towering over me, "should anyone ever deign to become your master."

How do they interact with one another? What hierarchy exists among them? What strengths do they flaunt? Which do they hide? What of their weaknesses? Does the herd move as one? Whence did it came? Where will it go? Observe and understand.

"Yet I am to be one of them," I answer in retort. I understand her intention of course, but I press for more.

"You? A master? A nobody too afraid to go into the desert?" The notion appears to amuse the overseer almost as much as it incites the rage inside him. "As it stands, you're just a lowly aspirant with a rapidly shortening life span. Allow me to demonstrate to you just how far removed you are from your betters."

It is true, they are not prey to you as the Ysalamir is to the Vornskr. Not exactly so, at least. But neither are they to be your equals. A natural predator studies the herd so that they might learn how to feed themselves with the least amount of effort. You on the other hand, must study them so that you might move among them. Simply wearing their skin is not enough. You must become as they are in words, in thoughts, in actions.

The Force touches my skin, a distantly familiar feeling that grips my throat with unseen tendrils of hate, inflicting upon me the minor inconvenience of denied breath. There is even a certain amount of pain involved with the sensation. Such insolence I can not tolerate just for the sake of my studies. Boundaries must be set. Thus as he did, so too do I reach out through the Force.

The speeder with which he thought to make a leisurely trip back to the academy comes hurtling through the air toward us. He releases his ethereal grip in confusion, before it crashes into him with a very satisfying thunk. It would've struck me a fraction of a second later of course, were it not the case that I am clearly more favored by the Force than he is.

The soldiers, in turn, leap to attention with their weapons at the ready. They are ready enough to act, but uncertainty prevents them from interfering. I choose to ignore them, lifting the speeder back up and off what I assume will be a fine red paste. It is with some dissappointment that I find the overseer bruised but intact. Perhaps the manufacturer should be commended for producing a vehicle that looks far heavier than it actually is.

To add further insult, he is even still conscious. Though at least he's in a bad enough state to satiate my ego part-way to where it should be. I've certainly endured worse setbacks.

But no matter how high you rise among them, remain mindful. Always remember your past. The weak and ill-treated can still plunge a dagger in the back of those stronger than them. And even the strongest of all may one day fall from their place through the folly of their own designs. After all, darkness brings power. Power invokes strife. And strife brings ruin. You know this, apprentice. You know this most of all.

I set the speeder down next to him, rather than letting it drop back on top of him as I'd considered doing. There are times when we must all do things we don't want to for the sake of tomorrow. Unpleasant deprivations in the here and now so that we might accomplish a goal of greater importance than that of instant gratification.

"I will play along," I say to him, now the one towering over the much larger man on the ground, "but touch me with the Force again and you will come to truly and fully realize the difference between us."

He stares at me in silence, but with bewildered rage burning in his eyes. It is a suitable enough response, and one that promises many future amusements to be had. No doubt he is already fantasizing about his glorious revenge on me. It is the nature of the Sith. I only pray he'll be creative enough to provide a challenge.

"Good boy," I let out a giggle, taking out my mask before setting it in place. "Let's have some fun then, shall we?"

And I set off into the desert, looking forward to the days of study ahead.