#ch: vaylress

[tiredassmage]

so, I finished sith warrior. and this is basically my experience with act 3, lmao.

Baras can pretend this was about the Emperor all he wants. Vayl was going to whoop his ass for Quinn’s honor with or without the Emperor’s approval.

petty fucking bitch literally absolutely ensuring that he got to come along all ‘don’t u worry babe i am going to FUCK this bitch up for shittalking to you’ anyone who thinks this was about anything else for her is, unfortunately, so sorely mistaken

[tiredassmage]

went batting through my screens again like a cat bapping my ocs for content and i just can’t get over this mutual judgement.

they’re not impressed.

[tiredassmage]

News from the front my time with my Sith Warrior is that I am way too invested in watching this one-sided rivalry between Pierce and Quinn play out. Like, the fact that Vayl defers to Quinn on the regular pisses him off so much.

And Vayl just. Couldn’t give less of a fuck about it. Like, she totally respects Piece as gets-shit-done man, she trusts his abilities fairly enough. But Pierce has made the (by the power of mercy) not-quite-yet-fatal error of bitching to her about Quinn when Malavai Quinn is one (1) of the few people Vayl would burn entire armies for without so much as a blink or a second thought.

Quinn may have yet to straightly return her feelings, but absolutely no one on that ship gets to shit talk the man she’s head over heels for without consequences. She’s not a creature without mercy; he shuts up when she snaps back, so... he hasn’t been pinned to a wall by the Force or dropped off at some random space port yet. But don’t mistake that she doesn’t think about it.

Vette is also growing into like... kind of a sister to her. She did not expect to grow so protective over all her ladies, but she HAS. Vayl probably cracks some joke that there’s way too damn much testosterone on their ship now. She needs to take her and Jaesa out on a girl’s night for a break, but can she really trust that Pierce won’t try to start a fist fight over some bullshit while they’re gone?

She can’t leave the boys alone. Quinn she could trust to mind the ship. It’s his sanity she has to look out for because she doesn’t trust the other two to stay in line in her absence and if she has to make their lives a living hell for bullshit they’ve tried to pull on Quinn behind her back she will NOT be a happy Sith Lord.

I also took 999,999 emotional damage and about passed away on the spot from this conversation. You can’t do that to me, sir. You Cannot. I did NOT almost get into a bitchfest with Pierce two minutes ago over your honor just for you to shy away from this whole feelings bit again.

(The fact that he’s absolutely right that she’d chose him over some silly little murderous Sith objective is not at all relevant, okay?)

[tiredassmage]

🖊🖊🖊

THREE whole pens!!!! I'm starting this and I still have no idea if you'll get three whole ocs or three whole rambles about one oc, nonny, but I do have me some THOUGHTS, so off we go!

This is... once again, very long. As it always is whenever I decide to involve Tyr. So there's more under the cut, as usual, lol.

(You're absolutely correct that I'm never done talking about Tyr, next question).

I sort of toed into Tyr's thoughts on the Sith yesterday and there's so many of them I can specifically ramble about, so that's what we're doing!!! To briefly recap, Tyr was raised on Dromund Kaas - for the vast majority of his life, he believed it was born and raised, and then I had to go and say, no, your actual biological sister is a Jedi, have fun!!! But that's for another day (and a fic already exists on that reunion).

The household did contain at least two Sith - his mother and elder sister were full-fledged and Sith-in-training, respectfully. His exact relationship with them is practically non-existent insofar as that they'd maybe be listed as next of kin on his records, but any mourning from either side in the event of something unfortunate would more than likely be a socially-driven act than genuine despair. Mavis isn't the worst thing that's ever happened to him, but she was, nonetheless, a privileged menace that put a bad taste in his mouth that he kept to himself as a good soldier and citizen of the Empire does.

As a quick aside, of the small family unit, Tyr was marginally closest to his father, but really only in the capacity that the man was the least likely to go out of his way to make Tyr's life more complicated and served as the base inspiration for Tyr to adamantly accept an offer to join Imperial Intelligence.

But I think there are really only two Sith lords that have ever genuinely terrified him - Darth Jadus and Darth Malgus, particularly in his recent... reappearance, rather than the spats on Ilum. Jadus was enigma in physical form and probably the most potent manifestation of Tyr's eventual bone-deep problems with the Sith, summed simply in one line, "I believe in the democratization of fear."

That single meeting in Jadus's chambers is something he'll never forget. In silent confidence and chilling belief in those ideals, almost no other Sith can compare. Sith like Mavis are at least predictable - their generally loose canons feeding on their emotions. Jadus is... not. Jadus defies every expectation he tried to set. Darth Jadus is not a Sith Tyr ever planned to talk back to or stand against. His scramble against the Eradicators had very little to do with believing it a viable, sound plan of action unlikely to get him killed and far more with an overriding sense to stick to what he believed was right that was far more valuable.

He could probably at least thank Jadus for being so utterly terrifying that dealing with Valkorian later wasn't a matter of fear, but sheer logic. Resignation to the 'if x, then y.' Tyr shooting at Valkorian at the top of the Spire on Zakuul pre-carbonite is not at all because he thinks that's going to work. Stars, it's not because he thinks a blaster can defeat the Sith Emperor!! It's once again because he assessed his options and decided that, at the absolute godsdamned least, he could go out for what he believed in.

Malgus is odd because its not... necessarily Malgus himself that terrifies Tyr so much as it is... all the circumstances around working with Malgus. It is and isn't Malgus. It's that Tyr has a wriggling little feeling that if anybody was going to look through him and catch him in the act of working for the Republic, it was going to be Malgus. This one still works on his nerves. And, y'know, fun memories of Castellan Restraints. He's so glad the Empire has changed so much in the years of having to deal with Zakuul. /Violent sarcasm.

Anyway, they aren't the only Sith that have left impressions, of course. Lana I basically covered in yesterday's post, so I won't rehash that one, but Marr occupies a similarly interesting and odd space as her. Tyr might concede that the Dark Councilor was... more pragmatic than some of his peers, but there isn't ever really a point that Tyr trusts him. Really, after the Castellan Restraints, I don't think you could convince Tyr to trust a Dark Councilor. He maintained his respect in interactions with Marr with only mild slips on Yavin IV - by then a point where he felt his honest opinion on developments with Sith Intelligence had been, one, asked for and, two, it's... maybe a subject of slight passion, after all. Still, it's more tongue in cheek in fashion rather than blatant resistance. Marr never really gives him a reason to go that far.

And then there's folks like Zhorrid, and Lord Razer, and Acina. He fails to ever puzzle out Zhorrid. When he first meets her on Korriban, he missteps with her by sticking to the 'you sent for me?' approach. Where her father was genuinely unsettling, Zhorrid he finds merely... unpredictable and, admittedly, a touch juvenile. She's scrapping to validate her position, so he mentally tags her more with 'approach with caution' than anything particularly alarming.

Razer is... Oh, Razer. The one Sith Lord Tyr has blatantly stood up against that he can recall actively making that choice. And it's a lot about being tired of Going Through It at that point and also, like... admittedly a developed sense of what someone reasonable (like Lokin, perhaps) might have called uncharacteristic and undesirable cockiness. He read Razer as someone he could take ground from, if he was assertive enough in taking command. He had just enough pull as the successful Cipher Nine, even as they gutted Intelligence, that he felt he had some weight to push back. There was no mourning for that one. So unfortunate, truly. (He had it coming.)

And then Acina. Ohhh, Acina. She's so interesting!!!! In her relationship with him because!!! It varies. You can't make me do large group heroics to save my life, but I did start the Dread Seed mission chain and he just... Once again, you couldn't pay him enough to trust a Dark Councilor. He mistrusts her scheming. And then, as Empress meeting her as the Commander of the Alliance, there's a little... little moment in all that goes down on Dromund Kaas that he might, might have just been a little inclined to believe she could be reasoned with, that maybe she was doing something with the Empire he wouldn't entirely be against. And then Iokath happened and, "Intelligence should have retired you when they had the chance!" happened and that naive little notion went right out the window and then she also kicked it, so... RIP.

Okay, ONE pen down, my goodness. Anyway, I also feel the need to share some Lensan lore(tm) because he's also my latest obsession and, unfortunately, against all my plans, he has grown on me.

One, I'd like to reiterate that the amount of blaster pistols I keep in this man's inventory for outfitter purposes is obnoxious. Lensan absolutely actually has a large blaster collection because of this happening.

I was workshopping several background ideas for this bastard before I finally settled on Imperial Military Black Ops discharged or retired and one of them, surprise surprise, involved him being an agent for Imperial Intelligence, either previously as a Main Job or picked up after he left Black Ops after the Treaty of Coruscant as a disgruntled soldier displeased with the truce. This potential plot involved him posing as a the titular Bounty Hunter PC to investigate the Empire's Mandalorian alliance and report back on whether or not it was still a sound partnership. This idea has not left me alone, so it may or may not still appear in a version where I play IA with him because I'd do that, I'm insane enough to make more agents, I can't be helped, just leave me here.

I'm trying to keep these last ones shorter because holy shit have I gone off akdsfnlsdfnsd

Let's revist Vaylress!!! My first, like, consistent Sith Warrior. I miss her. Wife. Queen.

Vayl's was initially meant to retain loyalty to the Empire. While her journey as the SW makes her realize not everything the Empire is doing is great, she still identifies predominantly as a Sith of the Empire first and foremost. Especially with Quinn at her side, the pair of them were ultimately loyal to what was best for the Empire (even if he was absolutely correct that she would risk it all if it protected him. That's her kryptonite.)

This sort of potentially changed when I realized the pair wanted kids. Particularly in the way things go with Zakuul, I think her potential withdraw from full support of the Empire would largely be to focus on her own family - her husband and their young daughter. In ousting Baras and becoming the Emperor's Wrath, Vayl saw a lot of what she valued - the people she valued in her crew - threatened by the path she was walking. Power plays are a massive part of Sith life and, she realizes, unstable long-term. This decision would largely be about deciding to prioritize herself and her wants first for a change than any real swapped loyalties between galactic powers.

She got the scars on her face from the cave-in attempted murder on Quesh and went through a period where she covered these with a mask (Arcann's, fun fact, bc I think its a cool asf mask and she's one of the few characters I have that would potentially wear face-coverings consistently) partially to conceal her identity from any potential spies reporting her movements to Baras and revealing her and the Hand's movements too early, and partially to let them (and herself) heal from both the physical wounds and the blow to her pride for not expecting something. Vayl was always conscious that it was a possibility - and even a likelihood - that Baras would one day cut her loose, but it didn't lessen the sting of betrayal. She was still incredibly offended, ultimately. But what really sealed his fate, tbh, was using Quinn against her. Sure, she was already plotting his downfall for the Hand, but that made it personal.

Like I said, she has priorities. Those priorities tend to take the form of Malavai Quinn. Oops. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[tiredassmage]

Hacked together my emotions about The Incident TM between Vayl and Quinn bc not that it hasn’t already been established but I love him and so does Vayl and she can and WILL make poor decisions about it and so help her, she is going to get it through this man’s head one day that she doesn’t just think he’s pretty, she thinks he’s REALLY pretty and also she cares about him a lot.

So spoilers for That Thing We Know About If You Know and if you don’t, just late SW act 3 spoilers and my terrible fit for Malavai Quinn in another little expansion of a cutscene to tell it how my kiddos saw it.

[tiredassmage]

✂️ - What kind of thing would have your OC cut someone out of their life? How likely are they to let someone back in?

Thanks for the ask! <3 list here (x)! Once again, some XIV ocs and some SWTOR beans bc... I have too many ocs and I care them very much. >.>

Astor, in all his forms, is almost too forgiving for his own good. It will depend on what was done, but he generally believes in second chances if he believes someone is making a genuine effort to do better than whatever happened in the past. Someone trying to weaponize him, especially against someone he cares about, would be a definitive trust-breaker and it's one of his larger fears as a Warrior of Light. He'd never want that position to be used against others.

Shay, on something of an opposite hand, is way less trusting to begin with. It wouldn't necessarily surprise him if someone turned out to have ulterior motives. That being said, for as much as he tries to pour himself into violent molds, he rebels at the idea of being someone else's pawn and, despite what he might say, he'd throw himself on the sword to protect the few people he cares greatly for. It's kind of a case of... only he is allowed to insult himself and imply he's a nefarious villain. Cutting out his past with Isghard was over a long history of feeling alone, unwanted, and something like a tool within his own family, and was only solidified by the deepest betrayal of his supposed "friend" being involved in the death of his fiance. He doesn't tend to let people back in. If you burned your bridge with him, Shay likely feels you set the fire and it's your own consequences to live with. It'll be a long road back if you decide to trudge along it.

Tyr's hard to pin down given his own history as an Intelligence operative. At this point, he's been a spy for about half of his life - something like going on twenty years, and its a mindset that hasn't ever left him. I'm not sure if there's a particular individual he's cut out of his life yet for personal reasons, but his entire disillusionment with the Empire is tied to the betrayal of the Dark Council after his pursuit of Darth Jadus. My most recent desire, actually, is tied to his fierce commitment to burning the Empire down from the foundations, if necessary, but also his... I'm not quite sure what to call it, recognition? Maybe? That it's... not the solution to ending the war between the Republic and the Empire, and it's not everyone else's chosen solution either. He actually... wouldn't recommend it. What he really means is that the only plan he has left is to go out swinging, when it comes to it. He's spent years waiting for the moment his acts as a double agent, reporting to the Republic would finally catch up with him - because it's the only way he's ever really known Ciphers to end. Never good, in short. Doesn't mean he necessarily hopes for it to end that way, but... he'd like to call himself a pragmatist.

Anyway, mildly off subject there, I think, but, TLDR, Tyr is nobody's weapon without his express consent. He's weary of being a pawn in the war yet again, even as he sees little other choice than to commit because he cannot deny his own skill set - nor his desire to fight back against the Empire that he gave his life to, and that has always, he's realized, been ready to chew him up and spit him back out on some backwater planet alley the moment he outgrew his use as an attack dog. He hasn't balked from trying to bridge gaps though before - he knows he can be a hard person to trust. It's the nature of his profession. So, he expresses some sort of bend there; a lot of cutting people out or letting them back in will depend on his read of intent.

Vaylress is hardly unfamiliar with the taste of betrayal. It is something of a cornerstone of Sith society and she certainly had a Master in Baras that was abundantly fluent in it and manipulation. She is and... isn't quite a Sith lord. She recognizes herself as a Lord of the Sith and expects the respect granted that position in the Empire, but isn't always as quick to ignite as many may expect her position. Between her apprenticeship to Baras, her experience as the Emperor's Wrath, and her relationship with Malavai Quinn, Vaylress has displayed conflicting responses to betrayal. In her love for Quinn, she almost never paused over their... incident - instead looking higher to sink her teeth into his perceived puppet master, Baras, whom she pledged to end for his betrayals and manipulations in ways that were anything but merciful and swift.

What it's taught her, I think, is... something like Tyr realized: she was a pawn in a system built upon the backs of pawns, broken and discarded as necessary to keep the machine running, though her realization of this is more slow and gradual as she realizes her crew is as a found family to her and she begins her own family raising a daughter with Quinn. She has a harder time disconnecting herself from loyalty to the Empire because she still recognizes it as home and herself as Sith, despite the flaws she begins to realize with both of these identities. She begins to realize her personal desires, so I think her reactions would be to threats and infringements upon these things. Her loyalty is to her family - found and grown - first, then to the Empire.

Whether or not she forgives someone for transgressions is going to largely depend on what said transgression was. Baras did not survive her wrath because she believed Quinn was wronged - and fiercely, at that. Such acts required equal retribution as payment. In short, her beliefs are her own and she will not take kindly to those trying to force a change upon her. Second chances are going to be earned with her.

[tiredassmage]

Matilyna stop blinking while I try to take your picture challenge!!!!

Anyway, “third” agent oc. I say “third” because she doesn’t actually have anything to do with the agent storyline, but I love the IA story and I need a lady to run through it, and it fits the best what I’m thinking of her being sooo!!!

Matilyna! AKA, what happens when I let these two disappear for the early expansion content!

Will she make any story appearances? I don’t know because I haven’t figured out if I’m doing a version of events where Vaylress is around and involved long-term, or if I’m just going to cause problems about it and have her mid-teens self show up with a blaster, an attitude, and just enough Force sensitivity that would’ve gotten her in trouble and let her pull off some magic tricks and not tell Malavai about any of it because it’s hard to communicate when you and your mom’s Jedi bestie go off the grid in the middle of a galactic war.

Which is all to say, Vayl entrusted her to Jaesa while Vayl went off to do important Wrath business aka try to kick Zakuul’s invading ass (with the knowledge that it might not go well).

So, she comes by the shooting skills honestly. She’d say her dad was pretty great at it, after all. And we’ll blame her blunt, “shUSH, you will get us CAUGHT and you can ask me my life story later” attitude about showing up on her mother. And her mother’s choice of friends.

How much of a train wreck this family is may or may not be related to the war happening right in the middle of her growing up, unfortunately, but, hey they started with good intentions.

As for Matilyna, she is... making this up as she goes. She’ll figure it out. Eventually. Probably. Just trust her. Nothing bad can come of that, right????