Zaledeneli stolp

Nasmešek na njenem obrazu je zbledel ko je Mrenn razkril da ne gre za tistega, za kogar je popolnoma upravičeno sklepala da je šlo. Odmaknila se je od svojega novega vajenca in pogledala najprej ujetnika, nato pa v črno zakrinkanega infiltratorja ki ga je privedel.
"Je to res?" je nepotrpežljivo vprašala jetnika. Ta je sicer prikimal, a Pride je bolj prepričalo stanje njegovih misli. Ni bilo namreč sledu laži, vsaj kar se je tega vprašanja tikalo. Obrnila se je še k enemu svojih Senc in mu zabrusila:
"To je že drugič, da si me razočaral po krivdi lastne malomarnosti. Naslednjič dvakrat preveri če je tisto kar mi poveš resnično, ali pa bom začela obžalovati da sem ti dala še eno priložnost. Zdaj pa se mi poberi izpred oči preden me potrpljenje za tvoje neuspehe mine."
Ta se je brez besed priklonil in naglo odšel. Pride je pogledala najprej ujetnika, nato pa spet Mrenna.
"Mučenje ni učinkovito," je zavrnila njegov predlog. "Deluje le, če ujetnik nima močne volje, ali pa ima nizko toleranco za bolečino. In še to le, če o tej stvari kaj dejansko ve. Prevečkrat se zgodi da se po preveč bolečine človek zlomi in govori le še tisto kar hočeš slišati, in če podatka ne ve, si ga izmisli le zato da ti da vsaj nekaj kar bi ustavilo bolečino. Lažni podatki pa so bolj škodljivi od nobenih."
Na njen obraz se je prikradel zloben nasmeh.
"Imam bolj učinkovito metodo," je dodala, ter s pasu snela žaromeč z ukrivljenim ročajem in prižgala rubinasto rezilo tik ob vratu ujetnika. "Ti, ki naj bi bil Neo! Povej mi točno kdo si, kaj si počel tukaj, kdo te je najel, koliko ti je plačal, kje se nahaja in kako je zavarovan. Če mi boš odgovoril po resnici, boš ostal živ in nepoškodovan. Če se mi zlažeš, te bom začela krajšati pri okončinah in nadaljevala počasi dokler ne zapoješ. Isto velja če boš tiho. Dam ti deset sekund časa, potem gre prvo stopalo. Začni odgovarjati!"
Bila je strašna in čudovita, utelešenje moči in gole ambicije, ki se ne pusti brzdati ničemur na tem svetu. Bila je kruta in bila je milostna, a potrpljenja nikoli ni imela veliko. In kaj kmalu je ujetnik spregovoril...

Mraz, je bila prva stvar, ki je šinila skozi njegove misli, ko so zdrknili iz hiperprostora in se obstali nad planetom, ki je bil na prvi pogled povsem prekrit z ledeno belino. S polovičnim smehljajem na obrazu je ugotovil, kako nenavadno primerno se je izgled planeta skladal z njegovo vladarico. Hladna in belooka, zmajal je z glavo in poslušno sledil ukazom, ki jih je dotična vladarica izustila le slabo sekundo kasneje. Pozornemu pogledu iz kotička oči ni ušlo dejstvo, da je njega in Lyo ločila ter ju v orbito poslala v različnih shuttlih. Nemo je sedel med preostale vkrcane, ki so bili odeti v vzdržljive oklepe in prepeti z več kot le enim orožjem, Kareem pa jih je imel na sumu, da se med raznimi razpokami v oklepih skriva še marsikateri nož ali granata. V mislih jih je primerjal s tistimi, ki jih je skupaj s starim jedijem, Siyo in Raphom pobil na Dxunu, a je kmalu prišel do ugotovitve, da navsezadnje vendarle ni šlo za enak oddelek vojakov. Tisto so bili verjetno asasini, je razpredal dalje, medtem ko so se v nezadržnem spustu približevali sivo-modri pegi na površju planeta, ki je kazila pusto belino.

Skoraj v istem trenutku ko je stopil iz shuttla in se je njegovo stopalo srečalo z dolgočasno sivino kovinskih tal, je že zagledal strežaja, ki ga je spremljal par bojevnikov, le-ta pa se mu je približeval z nekakšno ihto v koraku. Lovec je z neko mero nelagodja opazoval dvojico vojščakov, ki sta strmo gledala nanj izza moževega hrbta – toliko da nista renče pokazala čekanov, za katere je Kareem predvideval da se skrivajo v namrščenih ustih. Po vljudnih, a jedrnatih predstavitvah ga je moški hitro odvedel po pravem labirintu hodnikov, dvoran ter nadstropij in naj se je črnolasec še tako trudil, da bi si vsaj nekolikanj zapomnil pot, ki so jo prehodili, je kmalu obupal, kajti vsi hodniki so izgledali enako in v vsaki dvorani so vanje strmeli enaki obrazi na katerih sta se mešala blag interes in brezbrižnost.

Zato pa je bilo lovcu povsem jasno, kam ga je strežaj pripeljal, ko sta obstala pred vrati visokega črnega stolpa, ki se je dvigal nad vsemi ostalimi strukturami v kompleksu zgradb, kjer so pristali. Kareem je molče prikimal moškemu, ki je še nekaj sekund postaval na hodniku, nato pa se je zasukal in stražarja sta mu – čeravno ne brez poslednjega temačnega pogleda – sledila s težkimi koraki. Skoraj v istem trenutku ko je škorenj zadnjega izmed dvojice izginil za ovinkom, so se vrata v stolp sikajoč odprla in lovec je s sekundo obotavljanja stopil skoznja. Prve dveri so se s taistim sikanjem zatisnile za njim, druga pa so se povsem neslišno odprla in mu dovolila prehod naprej. Dobro vedoč, da bi ga neavtorizirano stikanje po stolpu najbrž stalo glave, če ne pa vsaj dela telesa, je lovec oberoč postal na dnu elegantno zavitih stopnic, ki so se v sijoči črni barvi dvigovale v višje prostore. In res, ni mu bilo treba prav dolgo čakati, ko ga je na njeno prisotnost opozoril komajda slišen par korakov.

Kareem se je zasukal okoli svoje osi in se znašel iz oči v oči z belolaso lepotico, ki je vladala Sithom.

"Lady Pride,"

Ni ji uspelo priti niti do drugega nadstropja, ko ji je glas na komunikatorju že povedal, da je lovec na glave prispel v stolp. Za trenutek se je odločala ali bi ga pričakala na vrhu ali bi šla osebno ponj. Če bi ga počakala, bi resda imela nekoliko več časa da mu pripravi kakšno zanimivost, a po drugi strani je imelo tudi dolgočasno sprehajanje po stopnicah svoje prednosti, če si jih znal poiskati. In priznajmo si iskreno, če so nekateri redki posamezniki znali do popolnosti izkoristiti situacijo, je bila Pride zagotovo ena njih.
Odločila se je torej za drugo možnost, deloma tudi zato ker je bila še vedno bližje pritličju kot vrhu. Lagodno se je sprehodila nazaj navzdol, z dlanjo rahlo drseč po ebenovinastem drogu, ki bi bil navadno na vrhu ograje, tukaj pa je bil pritrjen v steno. Kaj kmalu se je znašla za hrbtom moškega, ki je očitno čakal prav na to, da ga bo nekdo prišel iskat. Iz njegovih besed ni mogla sklepati ali je pričakoval ravno njo, ali jo je le vljudno nazival, vendar pa so njegove misli izdajale da je bil čisto zadovoljen z dejstvom, da ga je prišla iskat sama.
"Ja, jaz," je odvrnila z igrivim nasmeškom. "Jaz, jaz in spet jaz. Ampak menda ne boš kar stal in čakal v veži. Pridi za menoj."
V višjih nadstropjih je veliko zanimivih kotičkov, je pomislila in mu to misel preko telepatije posredovala, saj se ji je v tistem trenutku zdelo zanimivo videti njegovo reakcijo. Nato se je le nasmehnila, pomignila s prstom in se ponovno začela vzpenjati po stopnicah. Namenoma je le neznatno bolj premaknila boke na vsakem koraku, kajti lahko si je kar predstavljala kakšen učinek bo to imelo na moškega. Človek ki si je želel nečesa, kar si imel le ti ponuditi, je bil veliko lažje manipuliran ali prisiljen v to kar si sam hotel. In tudi če se bi izkazal za enega od tistih z močnejšo voljo... no, vsekakor bi ji prijala tudi kakšna nova avantura.

((Res oprosti da je trajalo, kot sem rekla me ni bilo. By the way, what happened to our little deal about english? ))

(uuh, it slipped my mind? but here's a post to make amends )

He was more than just a bit surprised to se an open, almost inviting a smile curve the lips of the Sith Lady. His eyebrows made it half the way up his forehead as a smile of his own spread across his face. It was quite perplexing to see her so...relaxed? when only mere hours ago she had been coldly and frankly preaching her less-then-nice philosophy to a room full of potential opponents. The words that had left her mouth there and now compared to these...Kareem gently shook his head in amazement, certainly having to give her credit for such an excellent role swap. It was quite believable and he was sure that more or less everyone that had experienced it had also bought it - with the exception of himself and probably a handful of other people that were as good at sensing motives and moods of sentinents around them.

At the startling image - or were they words? - that invaded his mind that second, he stopped dead in his tracks and shot a shocked gaze at the woman's back. After his initial surprise, though, he quickly recovered and let a small chuckle escape his chest. Well, she certainly knows how to entertain people, even if it is merely means to her own ends, he thought while he took tentative steps after the sauntering form of her hips that kept his eyes constantly trained on one spot. And she definitely knows the meaning of 'distract', he shook his head once more, chest gently trembling with suppressed laughter as he followed in her tracks.

They stopped just as the bounty hunter was able to tear his gaze from the seductive body before him, lifting it to see a plain, deep blue corridor that dissipated into darkness. "Homey," remarked the dark haired man with a hint of mirth in his voice and turned to lock his eyes with the pure white of hers. "I expect there is something you desired of me, my Lady?" he spoke again, choosing his words with care for propriety and innuendo both.

It felt good to be home. This was her castle, her fortress, her stronghold. This was the one place she felt the closest thing to being safe. It was the only known settlement on the face of the planet, and it was manned only by her most hardened supporters. Every man, woman and droid on Ziost had proven their superior skills and infallible loyalty to her time and time again. This was the one place in the Galaxy, where she could relax and enjoy herself with things that did not necessarily involve planing the impending doom of her enemies, or seeing such plans come to fruition.
And yet, even in the frozen heart of her operations, she never let herself completely to the feeling of safety. For a Sith Lord, safety was but an illusion, complacency of those that did not rule long; an often recurring mistake she had no intention of repeating.

As they arrived on the end of the staircase in the 6th floor, the azure corridor that lead to her chambers filled their vision. Well, her vision; she was quite certain that the man behind her was focused on just that; her behind.
"I do," she responded. "However, we are not there yet."
But her focus was on the corridor, along which her strides echoed softly. The crests and symbols of worlds she had conquered lay emblazoned in protruding relief engravings upon the sinister blue walls. The argent star of Ziost. The crimson orb ringed with sinister spiked discs of Korriban. The grey pyramid of Yavin 4. The purple lightnings of Thule, combatant upon a sable sky. And many other, less important worlds of obscure or little-known heraldry. This was a sort of trophy room, a place of her accomplishments, ones she was reminded of whenever she entered or left her personal quarters.
The pale beauty led her new acquisition through the blue, wondering if he possessed the knowledge to be impressed by the shapes on the walls. Be that as it was, they soon reached the far end of the corridor, which ended in three black gates, each on its own wall. She opened the middle one and entered the room behind it.

In the centre of the large room stood a gigantic round bed. Both the silken sheets and the bed itself were jet black, although the former was streaked with slashes of white, making it look something like an inverted polar tiger pattern. Only the backing of the bed, which encircled the hind quarter and rose about a metre above the sheets, was a deep crimson. Three walls of deep sable completed the image, although the side ones were covered by several chests of drawers a blood-red colour. The wall farthest from the door was made of the same one-way transparent material as the walls of her observation platform, acting like a window for the room, while being identical to any other part of the tower from the outside.
"Well Kareem," she purred as she turned to face him, her lips flashing an amused smile, while her hands rested on her hips. "Since you described the corridor as "homey," would you honour me with your opinion of my relaxation chamber?"

He followed her lead, but this time he made a conscious effort to keep his eyes off her form, even if he had to almost physically pry them away. Instead of watching the mesmerizing body before him, he took note of various inscriptions and images carved into the ocean blue of the walls. He could only admire the craftsmanship and talent that was required to create the depictions that were carved into the material with a firm, steady hand. He reckoned that the white blazing star was the planet they were on, although he had no idea what the small, intricate letters under the image read. Later his eyes encountered a full red circle with spikes protruding out of it, crowning it like a lethal wreath. In passing he caught a glimpse of something that resembled a pyramid, but he wasn't completely sure and before he could check again, he was forced to quicken his steps in order to catch up with the Sith Lady. The red planet stirred a strangely recent memory, but he was startled out of his recollection by a voice that eerily rang through the empty halls of her tower.

He dared a peek across her shoulder and took a look into her personal quarters. While the precious seconds trickled by, his eyes absorbed the beautiful details in the room; the silken sheets on the simply grand bed and the deep red that attracted the eye – but most of all the large wall that acted like a window and one that was without a doubt one sided. A lopsided grin curled the corners of his mouth and his gray eyes met her white ones "Sumptuous?" he offered and his eyes twinkled with amusement. "Or would luscious be better suited?" he added in a low, husky drawl and allowed the smile to spread further.

She returned the smile, albeit with a smaller version, which seemed diminutive compared to the grin on the bounty hunters' face.
"Both would be quite fitting, I think," she replied and whith her pale eyes still fixated on him, took a couple of flirtatious steps backwards until her heel touched the bed-rack and she threw herself back-first on the striped sheets. The cool silks felt soft and tender on the back of her head. It felt it's been too long since she touched them, even though it's only been a little more than a week. She couldn't help but let out a half-silenced purr of joy. She needed a second to focus, but after that was accomplished, she lifted her torso and supported it with her arms so she was something between sitting and lying. She had to get over the first part before the fun could start. After all, even though Kareem did manage to attract her attention enough for her to desire him, whether or not he would survive that encounter depended on what he told her before the fun began.
"Tell me something, Kareem," she asked seductively, the index finger of her left hand on her lips, as if she was pondering the question, though there were other possible explanations of that gesture. "What makes you tick? You offered to join me because you assume you'll be paid handsomely, that you will be given tasks worthy of your skills, and because you think I will win whatever this conflict resolves into, obviously I guessed as much." She kept her voice sweet and gentle, for she knew that one catches more bees with honey than fire. Especially bees like Kareem, whom she had figured out to be a free-willed and egotistic survivor. She respected that, but she also knew very well that coercion and seduction almost always proved more successful than intimidation, in this case perhaps even more so.
"What I'm interested in, however, is what you truly want. What you desire, aspire to be, and what you hope to achieve in your life."

((da duuum.^^ hope you likes it. I do. ))

And this just proves my theory of the "Playing Pazaak with a Sith Lord" difficulty level, he muttered in his thoughts while trying, oh so desperately trying not to ogle. But all was in vain as the woman before him flopped onto the bed, her white mane of hair flowing behind in a loose waterfall and spreading out on the dark sheets. He bit the inside of his cheek and forced himself to focus on the importance of this situation. However sexy, attractive and tempting the idea of joining the Arkanian in bed seemed at the moment, he knew it would be the end of his opportunity as well as his life. The effort to concentrate coupled with a deep breath finally calmed him down and he was able to look at the Sith Lady without feeling those warm, electrical jolts travel into his nether regions.

Not that the finger sliding along those full red lips helped his situation in any way, but the words that left them countered the effect to the point of painful sobriety. The half-smile on his face faded a bit and he caught her eye with a thoughtful gaze. Slowly, he spoke "What you guessed is quite correct, Lady Pride," he smiled, "except in one assuption - I did not expect you to reward or pay me anything...at the beginning. In my experience one has to prove one's worth before they are to be invested in - with trust and credits both. I will assume, hopefully to a right result, that, frankly, in your...business? Line of work? you can't and don't trust anyone. Taking into consideration that both bounty hunters and Sith are famous for their backstabbing, it is the instinct of self-preservation that drives you and me both," he spoke at some length, but his eyes never once wavered from hers.

"Now onto your question," he chuckled softly and crossed his legs, leaning onto the wall behind him. "I suppose you want to know what drives me because you will then strive to help me achieve that goal, right?" he joked half heartedly, the smile never reaching his eyes. "To be succinct," he cut himself off, features of his scarred face contorting in determination, "I wish to possess great power, but not the famed responsibility that comes with it." His gray eyes darkened a bit at that, but he still didn't look away. "I am a man that's willing to go to great lengths to suceed in my goals, and in my humble observation, your are that kind of a woman also. While under no circumstance would I dare deem us equals, I would say we do not differ in this," a soft, mirthless smile tugged at his lips and he let it spread, if only for a bit.

"As to what I hope to become in my life," he let the words levitate in the air for a moment before he finished, " undisputed and unrivalled," was his tranquil response, his eyes more than ever trained on hers.

((Very much so ^^))

Although she considered the option, she didn't interrupt him until he finished. Instead, she studied the tone and vibrations of his voice, his body language, and the meaning of his words. He didn't exactly surprise her, but his passions did run deeper than his façade showed. What fascinated her was not that he was motivated by greed and a lust for power, but what lay beneath that. What he truly wanted, even if he did not yet realize it himself, was freedom to do whatever he wished and the power to sustain it, no matter who would try to pry it from his fingers. This made him both dangerous and a bad subordinate. The fact that he was obviously adept in sweet-talking, which he demonstrated by phrasing his words in a manner that even if she looked for it, Pride couldn't find it aggressive to her position, while at the same time commenting on things that Sion used to kill his subordinates for mentioning, made him even more formidable. But Pride didn't consider herself indestructible, and that, along with the fact that she didn't wish to destroy but rule, made her wiser, more mindful, and her temper much less combustible. And Kareem proved to be quite reasonable as well, while possessing some insight and consideration, which could be used to forge an alliance with him even when orders and intimidation wouldn't do.

"Well said," she applauded his final statement while her smile widened slightly. "And you were not entirely wrong when you said I'd help you achieve those goals. I do in fact feel that furthering mutually useful ambitions of both parties can greatly improve both loyalty and satisfaction, which in turn improves overall performance. And as you may have observed, I am nothing if not efficient." She graced him with a brief, but coquettish smile before continuing;
"As far as backstabbing goes, I consider doing it to your enemy completely acceptable. When done on allies however, it almost inevitably proves to be a loss of resources and capable people. Had you ever gone to a Sith Academy, you would be correct to suspect everyone to place a blade between your shoulders the moment you turned your back on them. But all such academies lie in ruins, save for those I have personally rebuilt, no small thanks to that exact kind of behaviour. Civil strife and wastefulness with lives has always been the main reason why the Sith never managed to conquer the Galaxy in the end, no matter how powerful they became. I intend to change that, and as you can see, all my followers are loyal to their core. Hired help is different, but I make sure to recruit only those who are not only good at what they do, but also capable of fore-thinking and have a strong sense of self preservation. To be completely blunt: while I admit that I don't trust you one bit, I consider you smart enough to know that crossing me wouldn't end well for you."

She shifted her weight casually, so she now lay on her side, supporting her head with her left hand, her heeled boots in the air above the edge of the bed, her eyes still facing the man standing before her.
"That being said, there's only one thing I need to know about you before I can decide where to put you." Her eyes bore into his. "For how long have you known you are Force-Sensitive?"

((aaah, imma sorry for being late. Again. >_< ))

The smile stretching the scars of his face widened even further upon hearing the words that left the supple, enticing lips of Darth Pride. He did not consider himself overly vain and self-absorbed, but every individual would shine a little brighter at the praise of someone as accomplished as Lady Pride. He couldn't help but chuckle at the unusual blatancy of the statement with which she concluded her flowing commentary. Of course, for a woman of her position, influence and stature, it was nothing less than expected to distrust anyone that hadn't proved their loyalty before placing any faith in them. Even if she's playing me here, which I doubt, we could indeed both reap something from this before and if it falls apart, he pondered in the bowels of his mind, his eyes enjoying the languid stretch Pride entertained before him. And most certainly not only in regard to power and goals, he added, appraising the body with an appreciative look at the show the Sith was giving him.

He was startled out of his reverie, however, when a final question left her mouth. For an instant the thought of I'm glad I'm not drinking, crossed his mind before he quite frankly gaped at her. "I- I'm sorry?" he stuttered out and pinched the bridge of his nose, composing himself. Okay, so it's obvious she knows now I had no idea, so the option of pulling a bluff on her is out, even though it can't have worked anyway, his grey eyes found hers and he let out a barely audible exhale of a breath he didn't know he was holding. "For the last few seconds since you've mentioned it, Lady Pride," he finally answered, rolling the long-forgotten taste of sincerity on his tongue. For a brief moment he considered denying her observation – or rather, statement – but he thought better of it, her being an immeasurably more powerful Force-wielder and thus probably incapable of making mistakes when it came to sensing the Force.

"As strange as that might sound, I am in no way acquainted with the fact that I was – not until recently, anyway – a Force-Sensitive," he added in conclusion to his own thoughts, his eyes clouded with deep thought and pondering. "I suppose that complicates the things some and more, does it not?" he spoke after a few seconds of heavy silence, a grim smile curling the edges of his mouth in a somewhat half-scowl, half-smirk.

((Ni krize, 3 dni mi še uspe zdržat brez posta ))

Unlike the male part of the couple, she kept her composure perfectly controlled. Only her now slightly wider smile revealed that she was enjoying the recent turn of events. She sensed the Force in him as soon as he was apart enough from others, though she was yet uncertain at the time; it was a quiet thing, wild and untamed, but hidden and subdued, it made him quite obviously a neophyte. It was not something you would find in a adept, though not beyond the capabilities of a master of illusions. Therefore, she assumed he had either only recently discovered this, or he was ignorant of it, which now proved true. The third choice, that he was in fact a master in disguise, seemed unlikely, though not impossible.
It was very difficult to sense it when there were other life forms nearby, or rather, it was difficult to distinguish his latent energy from the strings of the Force that flowed through each and every living being, even for one whose mental sensory was as developed as hers. At first, she assumed he was only a bit more touched by the Force than most, enough for it to have some minor effect on his actions, but not enough to be Force-Sensitive. And yet, now that she was alone with him and her attention focused on his person, she could sense he had much more potential than what was initially visible, buried somewhere deep inside of him.

"Complicates things? How so?" she asked melodramatically, though the question in itself was more or less rhetoric.
"Let me ask you something," she began as she shifted her weight and sat while turned towards him. "You're a bounty hunter, and you've been one for some time, am I correct? Have you ever felt like you instinctively knew where your target would go, what their next course of action might be? Have you ever had a feeling like you knew exactly what someone will say and they said it seconds later? Have you ever felt like your life was spared by one incredibly important turn of luck?"
She smiled, moved her legs to the front and stood up in front of the bed, between said piece of furniture and the bounty hunter.
"Think of it;" she said seductively, her lips curving on the word as her left index finger began to slowly slide down from his neck and towards his chest. "Think of someone wronging you, the impulse of anger that turns your vision crimson and nearly blinds you, your entire mind completely focused on your adversary. Think of taking a sniper shot from your hiding place on an unsuspecting victim. Doesn't it feel like the world itself fades to nothing until there is only you, your target, and your weapon? And doesn't it sometimes seem like your intuition is impressively compulsive, almost as if you want to follow it without question, led only by an invisible hand of fate and your trust in it?" She smiled at him with a sly wink, while her fingers crept over his chest, passing lower and lower.
"If anything, it makes things less complicated. It means you already have the prerequisite talents, and I have the knowledge, thereby turning your quest for power from "very difficult" to merely..." Her voice trailed off as her hand turned by a half-circle and all five of her fingers crept closer and to his belt. "...Hard."
As she said it, she gripped the top of his breeches and tugged him closer to herself, while her right hand sprung over his shoulder and grabbed the back of his neck, showing him a fraction of the fact that her physical power was in fact much greater than her non-muscular stature indicated. Her lips purred in his ear, just millimetres away;
"Now, unless you think there is anything else we need discuss, how about you show me whether or not the difficulty of your training is the only thing about you that might be described with the aforementioned word."

Well, talk about shocks, his mind muttered in bewilderment and awe. The Force? Really? he stifled a bout of laughter that was threatening to rise from his lungs and instead pulled his attentions back to the matter at hand – Force sensitivity he was demonstrating according to the very powerful Sith Lady that stood before him. His mind was still dazzled from the sudden onslaught of information that could very well change the way he functioned – his whole life was built and sustained solely on his own abilities and skills to survive. But now? The edges of his world slowly crumbled away to reveal something new that had been lying in wait, hidden even from himself, only to be exposed by an unprecedented turn of events. Curious, he concluded in his mind, the initial astonishment at the news slowly giving way to unavoidable interest and fascination. The all new proportions and dimensions of what I can do now… he snickered to himself. Granted, of course, that someone would teach him how to use the Force in the first place. As if to quench his hunger for knowledge, Pride soon provided him with an answer.

As her words seeped through his skin and into his heart and mind, he pondered what she spoke of again. "Well, I-," he began, his brow furrowed in thought, "I most certainly have, but, with no offense of course, I believe that that is rather…a hunter's instinct if you will," he finished, slightly nodding his head. "The natural selection sooner rather than later makes sure that those who don't possess that primal intuition end up dead with a slit throat or a blaster hole between the eyes," he shook his head again, this time more firmly, and returned his glazed gaze to her white eyes. A small smile flickered at the edges of his mouth as she drew nearer, almost as if levitating, gliding across the floor without a single sound or rustle – well, not that skin-tight latex had a tendency to rustle. His breath hitched for a moment when long, elegant fingers brushed along the lines of his chest, her lips curling in a seductive smirk. While half his mind was rapidly losing its focus to the deft fingers that were drawing light patterns across his abdomen, the other half that somehow still managed to pay rapt attention to her words worked furiously through his memories; sifting through years of experience in various forms of conflict and confrontation he'd encountered. He was, however, forced to stop dead cold when her nails scraped at the small patch of skin that remained uncovered by clothing between his belt and shirt.

Oh, goody, he was smiling on inside as well as on outside, his mouth widening in almost smug a smirk. And then she was suddenly pressed hard against him, her supple, firm breasts pushing into his chest and her long legs tangling around his. For the first time in his life, he felt like prey, especially after that guttural, raw drawl left her lips right next to his ear. Oh, to hell with it, he stifled a low groan that still vibrated through both of their tightly pressed forms. He turned his head a bit to allow him access to her long, creamy neck that was suddenly and beautifully exposed to his view. His tongue peeked out to wet his lips and then he descended upon the soft flesh revealed before him, inhaling the sweet scent of her body as he went; she smelled of cinnamon and raw, freshly burned cinder, but also of something that rang a bell in the back of his head – a drifting, metallic aroma that he would recognize even in his sleep – the smell of blood. The intoxicating scent burned at him, intensifying the desire he was forced to hold at bay before; and thus he dove for her neck, nipping at the skin he found there with surprisingly gentle, yet still firm bites.

At the same time, he made quick work of his gloves, discarding them to the floor where they lay forgotten as his hands went to roam the sides of her body; thanks to his long-time expertise, he was still composed enough to carefully avoid the areas of her body that would, if touched wrongly or at an inappropriate time, provoke a less than satisfying response for both the woman and himself. And while the usual girl would yell at best or deliver a knee in the groin at worst, Lady Pride would probably – well, to be truthful, he shut his mind off before it could venture into the possibilities of that peculiar situation. The caress of his fingers and palms was like the softest of the gusts, ghosting across her body, yet firm enough to be felt, even teasingly so. He leaned closer to her and carefully, probingly even breathed a cold breath on the spot he'd just nipped on, moving farther up her neck and to her ear. "While I'll be more than happy to show you just that, I cannot help but notice that the tightness of your bodice arises the same curiosity within myself," he exhaled with a harsh, low voice and gently sucked her earlobe into his hot mouth, painfully aware of just how arisen he really was.

Her only reaction to his explanation was a know-it-all smile on her lips. Ah, my new apprentice, how much you still have to learn, she thought to herself. What was hunter's instinct, any instinct in fact, if not the presence of the Force in every living being? An energy river flowing through each and every one of them, giving a flicker of self-awareness to even the least intelligent life forms. A master knew that the Force was in all life, that there was no luck, no intuition, only subtle compulsions from the universal energy to the individual. Compulsions that a master learned to predict and, if desired, exploit. But this was a matter best reserved for his forthcoming lessons, not something to interrupt the current turn of events.

She would have been surprised if he hadn't responded to her advances, though she had to give him credit for coming up with a rather unique way. The biting kisses, oh how sweetly they felt upon her skin, passionate and yet reserved, holding the promise of more of both intensity and quantity. Her left thigh instinctively brushed along his and her leg entangled his in the next moment. The skin on her neck almost crawled with pleasure, and she couldn't help but arch her head back for a few inches, closing her pale eyes, and a quiet "mmmm" parting her full lips.
She could smell the scent of his hair; the dust and debris of a collapsing building, enclosed with the musk of dried sweat, that reminded her of men and... ...nightshade? She was bewildered by the fact that she sensed a scent akin to a flower that was both sweet and deadly on him, not to mention the fact that her own family name was the plant's namesake. But of course there was no way Kareem could have known that... was there? Or perhaps the source of her bewilderment came from his fingers, sliding down her latex and armour clad body, ever so softly, and yet making her ever more desperate to shed the protective layer and feel that same touch on her bare skin.
Her own body felt hot and alive on every part that touched his, from her chest down her abdomen, and to the spot where the protuberant bulge on his pants pressed against her. She wanted him to grab her, to act like he was in control, like he could do with her whatever he wanted; she wanted him to show her more of that passion he evidently held back. And yet his teasing was so sweet, so tender, and so *promising* that she wanted to prolong it more and more, for she knew the general effect of delaying pleasure with promises of it. But there was no way she would just let him ravish her; oh no, she wanted him to much not to return at least part of the favour...

It was then that he pointed out the uncomfortable state of her tight clothes creating a tangible, if thin, barrier between them. Not to mention the black cortosis-weaved armour plates camouflaged to her outfit on her forearms and her shins, which where rapidly declining from unnecessary to hindering. She grabbed his own shirt with the hand that was just moments ago tracing soft lines across the horizontal line beneath his belt. Her nails, while rather short for a woman due to practicality, dug into the isolator fabric and tugged it towards herself.
"Well then," she said as she moved a few inches back so her eyes could meet his, "if it's so distracting, why not just take it off? It is getting abnormally warm in this room, and this particular material tends to contain heat quite well."
As she said this, she ripped the shirt off of his chest, which probably would have torn into two if it were not made of elastic fibres.
"Now then," she said as she tossed the aforementioned piece of clothing somewhere to her left wall and placed her hands on the flirtatious curves of her hips. "Wasn't there something you were about to do?"

Purring like a cat spoilt rotten, the woman in his arms shifted ever so slightly so he could nip at her soft, if a bit salty skin even more. When it became apparent that his lavishing attention on her neck was being very well received, he upped the game and allowed his tongue to snake out between his lips while he breathed cold air unto the wet mark again. With a purposeful glint in his eye, he allowed the flat of his tongue to caress her pulse point, enjoying the rhythm of the strong heart that pumped blood through her veins. He relished the flushed skin littered with deep crimson marks that he left in his wake, giving equal attention to every centimeter of the supple skin, grazing it with his teeth or sucking at it until he could almost feel the capillaries break underneath it.

By all Hutt strippers, have I missed this, he moaned even in his mind, feeling her own hands slither along his body. Those long fingers teasing, brushing the skin through the suddenly way too thick material of his isolator shirt, but then grasping the fabric in a firm, aggressive grip and pulling it – and himself with the shirt – towards the latex-clad lady. The unexpected movement pushed them even closer together (like that it was possible) and he found himself eye to eye with a certain someone his hunter's nature could best describe as a bitch in heat. Not that he had any complaints to file regarding that exact state of the Sith Lady that purred mere inches away from his face. He was still in the process of forming coherent words, when his shirt was ripped off him freeing him at least partially of much too confining clothes. Not that the important part of the garments was gone, but halfway was better than nothing. He felt himself almost painfully throb when Pride let her hands sensually caress the sides of her own body, fixing him with the most sexual gaze he'd ever seen in a woman's eyes. The fact that her eyes were so different from normal might have had something to do with it, since making pure whiteness look like sex personified must've taken some serious passion-

His thoughts were cut abruptly, however, and by no other than himself, when he followed in Pride's provocation, promptly tackling her with a small, but important shift in their merged balance, so that both of their tangled bodies crossed the small gap between them and the bed, colliding with the silken sheets with a soft 'thud'. Kareem wouldn't allow for such a change in position to perturb him at the smallest, as he slid his hands along the outer side of her thighs, shifting her and himself by extension. He was amazed both by the fact that he hadn't yet torn the latex outfit off her and by how enticing her sweat-covered skin looked, beckoning him to get a better look, to free more of that shining, toned body to his hungry gaze. So he concurred.

He leaned in on her, breathing shallow breaths and still allowing one hand to trail from her mid-thigh and across the curve of her hip, while he transferred his weight on the elbow that came to rest next to Pride's body. His fingers traced the edge of her well toned abdominal muscles and the curve of her ribcage, carefully sliding through the valley between her attractive, if still clothed breasts. While his fingers were drawing small circles upon the manubrium of her breastbone, his lips ghosted soft kisses along the line of her jaw. He started with a short lick at her ear lobe, nipping at the firmness of the flesh again, until he finally found those full, luscious lips, crushing them beneath his, unconsciously leaning even more forward, almost towering over the Sith Lady. With the patience of a bounty hunter and an iron will of one too, he didn't allow the kiss to deepen, keeping it within the boundaries of propriety, while his other hand reached behind her conveniently arched back, taking a moment to slither over the engaging curves it encountered there, but ultimately finding its goal – the zipper.

He couldn't have imagined that such a simple sound as of a zipper sliding open could arouse him, for the rush of blood and hotness south can't have meant anything but that. Nonetheless, he resumed the ministrations of his lips, this time sucking her lush lower lip into his mouth, running his tongue along its length and savoring the unique taste that spoke of sweetness and venom mingled together to create an enchanting, but if handled poorly quite lethal an essence. His hand snaked back to the front of her body and started peeling the dark latex off her body with agonizing slowness, revealing the creamy skin underneath inch by inch. That was, until the sight of black and violet lace against the pale tan served only to further ignite his already burning passions. There and then he shed all the restraint he had harbored so valiantly and pulled the black material as far as it would go, until he had to stop at her hips.

It was a positively mouth-watering sight and he drank it in with all his being before his lips slowly descended lower, to shower the flesh there with the same nipping and vein-deep suction.

Pride might have been stronger than she looked, but her body mass was still appropriate to her stature, thus making it rather effortless for the more muscular part of the duo to sweep her off her feet and down on to the soft silken sheets, that have been inviting them ever since they stepped into the room.
"Ooooh, aggressive, are we?" she teased with a lifted eyebrow, but let him go on with it, while digging her nails into his back. Except there was one problem; his back was as hard as a plate of Bonadan-steel alloy. She realized now that the harness on his chest wasn't there only for the sake of his clothing style; it must have been holding some kind of protection over the backs of his shoulders, probably extending lower as well. She controlled her passion while his ghostly fingers traced her thighs and moved on above her waist, at least to the extend that allowed her to unbuckle the straps that held the harness in place. She was about to throw it somewhere out of reach, when he once again nuzzled on her earlobe and the sweetly-painful sensation paralysed her in place. The kiss came unexpected, though it felt long overdue. And Kareem, in his false decency, drew back before she could have had more than but a taste of him. Blackberries and ash. That was perhaps the closest description that came to her mind in that moment.
The zipper on her back gave in to the tug of his ever so persistent fingers and the tight fabric began to retreat from her lower neck, slowly baring the top of her breasts. The arousal the sight had on the man was plain on his face and not a moment passed before he pulled the latex lower, revealing almost all of her upper body, save for what was still concealed behind a black negligée crowned with purple lace. What he seemingly failed to realize, was the fact that her hands were now rather restricted in movement due to the fact that her wrists were simultaneously in the dress' wrist and shoulder areas. Well, too restricted to do anything about his lips smothering her torso with kisses. Instead, she moved her hands down and began to slide from his knees up the front of his thighs. When she came close to the bulge that was throbbing against her before, however, she quickly skipped upwards and began to unbuckle the belt that kept his own passions concealed (with rather miserable success on the "concealing" part).

He would've deemed her teasing drawl with a response, had not been his mouth otherwise occupied between her breasts. He grunted in pleasure as he felt her fingers rake along the already sweaty skin of his chest and a second later the buckles of the harness gave way to her deft fingers, the unconscious weight of the plated alloy across his back falling on the floor. He shrugged off the momentary delay it caused and closed the rift with a circle of kisses that encompassed both of her heaving mounds. When it was becoming increasingly obvious that the present position was hindering both their movement, he put away his hands for a moment to place them on her hips and shifted them at the same time.

Pride was now promptly seated in his lap, thus giving him free access to remove the annoying latex and armbands still clinging to her forearms. Whilst still making sure her skin was not devoid of attention, he made quick work of the skin-tight fabric and stripped it even farther down her body, revealing the provocative, lewdly beckoning edge of her panties. He smiled into his kiss, tracing the strong, albeit tensed abdominal muscles and stopped to lavish special attention unto her navel and finally arriving to the freshly exposed skin. He rained kisses along the rim of her undergarments, teasingly popping his tongue under the violet laces and sucking the flesh he found there in his mouth. His ministrations were stopped short, however, when he felt her fingers scrape up his still clothed thighs and start fiddling with the buckle of his belt. Even with the powerful arch to her body as she leaned backwards in the strong grip of his arms, she was still somehow able to pull him free of the uncomfortable confines of his pants, eliciting a long moan from his chest.

In order to properly loose his pants, he swung her long, latex-clad legs over his shoulders and rose up to kneel on his knees, the sight before him stopping him from any other action for a few deep, long needed breaths. Then he pushed at the cortosis-reinforced fabric, kicking it off with a few final shoves of his powerful legs. Mercifully (well, at least half) liberated of the annoying clothing, he set his mind unto doing the same for the beautiful lady before him. With almost fervent a haste to his actions, he pulled at the latex, throwing it away the second it came off. Without a care in the world (or the galaxy for that matter) he brushed his fingers across the sensitive skin of her inner thighs while he leaned his head to suck one of her toes into his mouth.

His expression at the sight of the deep violet lace that trimmed her jet-black panties spoke volumes. His actions, like the immensely teasing tongue gliding and moist kisses on the skin just inches away from her most sensitive area, inflamed her passions both physically and mentally. While the skin of those parts was in and of itself sensitive, the sheer thought of what could follow aroused her even more, thereby further fuelling the already intense inferno inside her. She had almost forgotten what her hands have been doing in the mean time, and probably would have, if she hadn't unknowingly succeeded in her attempt while she was giving in to the ecstasy at hand; the belt of Kareem's breeches now lay loose. And apparently he could sense the withdrawal of pressure to his crotch, judging by the pleased sound he made and since he almost instantly reclaimed initiative. When he shifted his position and the backs of her knees ended on his shoulders, the expression on his face almost made her think he was going to try and eat her out right then and there, even with the latex still covering her lower half. But the man had other ideas. She could just barely see him scrape off his pants and hear the soft clanging and rustling sound as they fell to the ground. Normally, she would have considered what kind of reinforcements he kept in the fabric for it to make such a noise, but in the current situation she was more surprised at how easily he tripped off the rest of her dress, reinforced shin-guard boots and all. While her clothes were designed so that they could be stripped (or in more extreme situations torn) without much effort, she decided to remind the droid that made her clothes that "make sure that I can remove it quickly if necessary" did in fact not equal "make it expeditiously easy for other people to take off whenever they wish."

But that could wait until such a time when she would actually need to be clothed again. Right now, she could hardly think of anything other than the dark hands that slid on the pale flesh of her legs, higher and higher. How she wanted him to go even higher, closer... and yet savouring every touch, the constantly building anticipation only furthering her arousal...
She wanted to pull him closer, but the only part of him within the reach were his hands, and she very much wanted too keep those to what they were doing. She registered his nibbling at her toes, but that didn't have much effect on her, at least compared to his fingers, the touch thereof promising ever so much. Instead of trying to lean closer, she swung the weight of her upper body upwards, bringing her into a sitting position. Her hands slipped under his shoulders, gripping his muscular back and pulling him an inch closer to her. She started going lower and lower, her slim fingers slowly sliding down the shapes of his muscles. His body had at least as much scars as his face did; but while his face showed evidence of two or three lucky strikes with a vibroblade, the shapes her fingers sensed were not only cuts, but mostly shot-wounds. They were more numerous than she was entirely comfortable with, but not exactly excessive; and besides, they seemed to have healed long since. Probably shrapnel or Blastech that not even his armour could deflect, or he simply got them while he wasn't wearing it. In fact, the latter didn't seem unlikely at all, considering the fact that he was now in a position where she could have killed him with a simple thought if she so desired and wasn't too busy enjoying it, and that he seemed well-versed in what he was doing so far.

His fingers were now incredibly close to her last line of defence, as we could call her undergarments at this stage, and her own fingers neared the end of his back. She gave him a wicked smile and grasped his firm buttocks with both her hands, simultaneously pulling him even closer to her. She felt him throb with exhilaration as they finally touched, and waves of anticipation spread over her as well. She loosened her grip on the man's hindquarters and instead grasped the fabric of his last piece of clothing. Without any thought or consideration, she ripped it apart and threw the pieces in different directions, never actually realizing what they looked like before. Her hands slid up the backs of his thighs, the ends of her fingers teasing him in the same way he teased her moments ago. Up and up, and ever closer to the tower of passion that bulged with anticipation...

His toned body tensed only for a moment when he felt her slim fingers trace the long-healed scars along his back, but he shrugged it off and returned to the matter literally at hand. With her body now lifted off the striped sheets in almost a perfect arc, he couldn't have reached behind her with more ease and undid the clasp of her violet lace bra. Throwing it offhandedly away, he leaned closer into her now lifted upper body, following the silent beckoning of Lady Pride. Without any doubts and second thoughts, his lips sew featherlike kisses on the heaving mounds that rose in time with the woman's slightly ragged breathing – and that, Kareem found, was quite an achievement, considering that Pride must've taken many lovers in her time and that she was a woman of quite the formidable fitness. His fingers still worked their magic on the sensitive skin of her thighs, but kept inching closer and closer to where the white-haired Stih really needed him. Near, but not quite there yet, he chuckled in his mind as he heard another deep moan emanate from the Arkanian before him. With gentle firmness his lips finally found a peaked, waiting nipple that he eagerly took into his mouth, generously lavishing it with the attention of his tongue. Soon turning to her other breast to do the same, he felt her deft hands finally find the edge of his pants and rip them away with utmost carelessness. He finally sprang to freedom with a long, accentuated groan that escaped his quickly rising chest, the hot air caressing her nipple at the same time.

Your wish is my command, he smirked in his head and sneaked his fingers under the thin, flimsy fabric of her undergarments, tearing them apart in a much same way she did with his. The sight before him left him gazing in admiration and appreciation for a few long, precious seconds before he grabbed her hips, firmly positioning her in place and tracing the taut muscles of her abdomen with his lips, his path leading him ever southward. He gave himself a mental pat on the shoulder for deciding to shave his beard clean that morning, bellowing inwardly when he remembered the words Lady Pride had uttered half an hour ago; Have you ever felt like you instinctively knew where your target would go, what their next course of action might be? Maybe it was the Force that gave him that little push it took to grab the razor – maybe the Force knew he was going to ravish the body of Lady Pride later that very same day. Before the laughter could bubble to the surface, he hid his face in the most convenient of places, but not before noticing the white form of a lightning bold gracing her pubis.

Leaving gentle bite marks on the insides of her thighs, he danced around her lips for a long time, prolonging the teasing, savoring the intoxicating scent of her arousal. It was not to be waved off that he himself was nearly as eager as she was, but with the strength of will acquired over the years of practice, he put the surge of need at bay and finally descended at her lips to taste the sweet nectar they promised.

She didn't even notice him stripping off her negligée until his lips touched two of her most sensitive areas above the waist. Actually, she couldn't exactly decide if she liked his kisses more on her chest or her neck, but right now she didn't really care, as long as he didn't stop the one or the other. She could feel the pink tips of her bosom harden, petrified with pleasure exuding from the touch of his lips and followed by his tongue. Such sweet satisfaction seeped through her, that she could hardly control her own voice. A deep moan escaped her, a promise of unbridled passion yet to come. He fumed her anticipation even further, bringing it to a hardly bearable height of wants and needs, longing for the fulfilment of the silent promise his deeds had been making.

And even though he did stop even as her body begged him to continue, him tearing off her panties effectively silenced her unspoken complaints. The lightning bolt shape of a colour matching her hair and eyes was the only remnant of her pubic hair. Of course Kareem couldn't know that she had a very fickle taste regarding intimate hairdo and changed it often. However, her musings of his supposed reaction on a later occasion were cut short when his tongue descended below her navel. She instinctively knew what was coming, the intention clear on the man's expression. Her thighs twitched with anticipation and she could feel both of her lips wetten as he was nearing her labia.
A low vibrato of "MMmmmmmmMMMmmmmmmmm..." escaped her lips and her eyes closed almost completely, blinded by the pleasure of him finally descending on her. This was one of those rare moments when even her constant vigilance had to give way to let her completely enjoy the moment. It was incredibly difficult to focus before, but now it was practically impossible; if she could see herself now, she would have known she had completely devoted herself to the happening at hand, her focus only on the man next to her and the ameliorating feeling he was giving her.
For several moments, she let him kiss, lick, and eat her out as much as he wanted, her right hand grasping his hair and holding him to her, while her left fondled one of her breasts. Waves of pleasure poured over her, made her shiver, the ever-increasing lust building like the tides, higher and higher...

But that was it! She pulled his head away almost forcefully and bent closer to crush his lips under hers. Her lips enclosed his almost as if she tried to suck out his soul through his mouth, her tongue flew out to meet his and caress it all over. Perhaps it was knowing where his tongue has been, or just realizing that her lust was now unbridled and uncontrolled, that drove her wild. Her eyes were still closed, but her hands were far from inactive; she pushed him until they tumbled over and it was now him on his back and his manhood throbbed most eagerly at her stomach.
"How about you let me return the favour, will you?" she said with a seductive smile while slowly licking her lips in the same manner. There were times when Pride only wanted to be pleased and didn't care much about what happened to the one doing the pleasing; but this was neither such an occasion, nor such a partner. Her left hand held his chest firmly downwards, but her right started to slither from his chin down his neck, then over his chest and lower still. Her head followed slowly, teasing him with her tongue sliding down his muscles and the sheer time she took to get lower... or it would have, if her bosom had not grazed that part of him. She responded to his expression at this with a wicked smile and changed her original idea. Instead, she grasped her breasts with her hands and enclosed him between them. Wantonly, she began to move back and forth, pressing against him from both sides. Then, as she was at the lowest point and his manhood grazed by her jaw, she turned her head down and licked the tip of the throbbing tower of flesh, that was so desperate for her attention...

The persistent crescendo of her mewling was like exquisite music to his ears, while the sleek form of the woman before him was like the finest instrument that would play only when certain sensitive spots were touched with firmness and utmost precision. In order to reap the most satisfactory results, one had to sacrifice many hours of torturous practice and face many seemingly impassable obstacles; yet with dedication and plenty of risks, some would eventually come to master the art of eliciting moans from a woman, however fatuous the journey there might have been. The hunter that was employing the techniques in question didn't consider himself overly humble, but also not overly boasting either, believing himself to be balancing in between the both, in that little patch called self-esteem. Being so, he would pride himself in the knowledge of a woman's body he'd acquired over the laborious years of trial and error; if someone dared tell him now that it couldn't be put to good use, he'd laugh in their face until tears streaked down his cheeks.

The now his mind was referring to was of course the moment in time and space when Kareem Tyriani tasted the Dark Lord of the Sith. The aroma itself was slightly tangy, but not uncomfortably so, while it was definitely overpowered by the musky sweetness of it all. He inhaled her lovely scent and relished it for a long moment, then set unto the task of pleasing her. Again. With firm and constant pressure on the peaked bundle of nerves he was bound to have her quaking in barely a few minutes, considering all the expert teasing she'd undergone before. He was cut short, however, before he could see the task before him to completion, for he was pounced by the very woman he'd been pleasing mere seconds ago, finding himself on his back and with a pair of uncannily hungry white eyes staring at him.

Any thoughts that might've began to form in his head were spiralled right into the pit of oblivion where they always landed when a strong instinct, be it to mate or to kill, overrode his brain. In this case, it was obviously the former, seeing as Pride seductively returned the favor of aforementioned provocations and nibbled her way downwards. His whole body, painfully attentive to her every move, flinched, and flinched hard, when the heavy weight of her wondrous breast brushed against his throbbing length. It seemed that her statement about being adept at reading people had been acutely accurate, for in the blink of an eye he was already enclosed in the warmth her bosom exuded. The smirk on her face was saying all too well that she knew exactly what she was doing and the fire that started spreading rapidly in his loins only served to firmly establish that.

Had it been a few years earlier or had he been another man, he would've drowned in the ecstasy her tongue and mouth provided; yet he wasn't, and with sheer force of will, he forced his eyes open and balled the sheets in his fists. With a couple of calming breaths, his pending climax subsided enough for him to focus on something else than coming. He had no intention of letting go before he'd had a chance to fully explore her body; seeing that he hadn't yet, he wouldn't let it happen. Promptly placing his hands on her taut thighs, he broke her rhythm enough for her to look him in the eye. He needn't have possessed the Force to communicate that thought with her though, and with help of both their strong muscles, she was kneeling over his eager member in no time.

And it seems I'm entering the Sith…order after all, was the last coherent, chuckling thought that flickered in his mind before those velvety walls embraced him, hot and tight and so damnably welcoming.

She had hardly begun to please him in return, when he grappled at the sheets, his hands balling into fists. Her tongue slid up and down him, licking him all around and teasing him, while her breasts held him firmly in place and caressed him as they rubbed to and fro. However, he wouldn't let her continue for long. She had abundant experience to know that the deep breaths he made weren't there just because of what she was doing; he was evidently holding himself back, not wanting to climax until he had exactly what he wanted. And since her own wishes coincided with his, she had nothing at all against that.
Slowly, she slid back, licking him from tip to thigh, then moved forward on all fours until her face was next to his and his manhood throbbed anxiously against the full curves of her hindquarters.
"I figured you for a man that doesn't do things half way," she whispered in his ear before arching her torso backwards, which simultaneously lowered her hips, right onto him. At first, she went slowly, taking him in inch by inch and stopping half-way. When she moved her hips forward, he started slipping out and would have had she not stopped just a little sooner. She pressed her hands onto his chest, pinning him down, and began to slide back downwards, ever so slowly, ever so teasingly, and ever *so* delightfully pleasurably she couldn't help but breathe deeply and moan softly every now and then.
Each time, she took him deeper, each time she let him wait a second longer while he was almost outside of her, maximizing his anticipation even as she was fulfilling it. Until she took him in whole, when a soft cry of pleasure parted her lips and she held in place for a second. Then, she once again began to slide up and down, back and forth; slowly at first, then increasing her tempo gradually. She felt so hot, and needy, and full, that it took all she could do to keep going and breathe between the moans and cries of joy. It was not long before she was moving with as much speed as she was comfortable with, rather fast, but still slow enough to make her feel every inch of him inside of her. And judging by the expression on his face, he was either enjoying it at least as much as she was, or he must have been the best actor she had ever seen. And like his, her face was evident with the constantly increasing pleasure, which was nearing indescribable heights more and more with every passing moment and every thrust of the man beneath her...

((shorry for its shortness >_<))


All words that would worthily describe the feelings flowing through him flew right out the window. It wasn't as if he hadn't ever felt that good, but it was a welcome and refreshing sensation after being forced to endure the thorough teasing Siyo put him through, not to mention those days they'd spent stranded on Dxun, making their way through dusty, musty and dusky tombs of long-forgotten Sith Lords. Had he known he'd be fucking one of them just a few weeks later, he'd laughed himself to death. Now? He was more than pleasantly buried in that very Sith Lady who rode him like there was no tomorrow. Final care for gentleness long gone from his mind, he dug his fingers almost painfully into the flesh of her long, smooth legs and met each of her buckle with a thrust of his own, thus even amplifying the pleasure for them both.

The rhythm of their hips which they performed in perfect unison quickly and inevitably drove him closer and closer to the edge. Their ragged breathing was coming in shallow gasps, each taken with greater haste. The warmth pooled throughout all of his body and he shut his eyes closed, arching back at the same time as Pride upon him. They ground together for the last time and then he felt spots swim into his vision when a pleasant feeling rushed in his veins, tingling across the muscles and prickling along the skin. He let out a long groan, mouth suddenly dry from the quick breathing, and finally drowned in his orgasm.

Warm. And soft, were the first coherent words that formed in his mind after a while, the pleasant exhaustion of a good sex washing over him still, the afterglow settling in slowly. He smiled and let his head to figure out what exactly was warm and soft. It was only a short while later that he realized with a hitch in his breath that it was Pride, stretched along him like a spoiled cat; and if the expression on her face was of any indication, she'd indeed been spoiled and spoiled good. "Well, I'd never had guessed you were the cuddling type," Kareem couldn't help but chuckle at the sight of the Sith Lady sprawled on the crumpled bed sheets. One could hardly associate that picture with the one of the display he'd seen in the Temple on Coruscant. Guess everyone has to relax sometimes, he shrugged internally, casually draping an arm over her slowly rising and falling back, settling in for the night.

((No need, 'twas an interesting read and completely long enough )

She could feel him tensing up as she neared her own climax. Moving even faster, she quickly drove Kareem over the edge, just seconds before the Sith Lady herself let out a long exclamation as tides of pleasure washed over her and her entire body trembled with the intensity of the sensation. For a moment, she lingered there, paralysed by elation, until she finally let her body slowly slide down onto him. She closed her eyes and embraced the man, savouring the still lasting feeling of complete satisfaction.
"Well, I'd never had guessed you were the cuddling type," he chuckled in her ear. She stayed right where she was, unmoving, save for her lips, which formed her response:
"I could always bind you to the wall or put you in chains, if that's more to your liking."
She moved a little, sliding her right leg over him and her left leg between both of his, her thigh brushing against his manhood as if to remind him that he didn't exactly complain a few moments ago.
"Besides," she said with a kind, pleased voice that was in sharp contrast with the words she spoke. "We don't exactly have time to do this until tomorrow, so you might as well enjoy it while it lasts. I have an empire to run, a war to plan, and a Galaxy to conquer, after all. And if you want to tap into your full potential before half of the upcoming conflict is over, we best begin with your training without further ado as well."
She fell silent then, simply embracing him and enjoying the feeling of his body under hers, while the warm trickles of sweat on their bodies cooled and dried.

A few long moments later, she lifted herself so she was now on all fours above him.
"Come on, time to get dressed. You've won one battle, but there's still plenty to be had, not all of them as pleasurable or physical as this one," she said, then rose to her knees and sat on the end of the bed while her clothes flew towards her from different ends of the room. She dressed slower than usually, giving Kareem another teasing by making him watch her conceal herself once more. But that was all of it. The next thing she did was take out her communicator, pressed one of the buttons, and spoke with a commanding voice:
"Taral, inform the war council I will be present in the strategy chamber in 10 minutes. Tell the guards to escort Kareem to the training area and to bring me the woman that we picked up on Coruscant."
Then she turned to her latest lover and addressed him:
"Your first test will be swordplay. Since you carried a blade on your person when I met you, I assume you already possess some skill with wielding it. Unfortunately, I will be too occupied to oversee every step of your upcoming training personally, so most of your martial training will take place under the tutelage of my senior students. They should be able to evaluate your knowledge and help you adapt what you have learned to the weightless blade of a lightsaber."
She zipped up her bodysuit and strapped on the belt with her weapons, then asked:
"Any questions?"

Another bout of laughter shook his lying form at the comment that came from the pale-skinned woman, though he had next to no doubt that she was more than capable of actually executing the threat. That being the case, he chose the wise option of closing his mouth until further notice and went about enjoying the feel of her naked form sprawled across his chest. He was strangely amused by her continued talk and went to great lengths to keep his smile from spreading wide. It was almost scary how Lady Pride was still able to maintain a high level of intimidation even considering the fact she'd just had sex. He shook his head in disbelief, a small smirk curling the edges of his lips upwards. He let his eyelids slide together, the pleasantness of the afterglow still bathing his whole body in blanket-like warmth. With a soft sigh escaping his chest, he relaxed deeper into the comfortable bed, almost sinking amidst the crumpled sheets.

He was startled back to the realm of the awake when her voice drifted beside his ear, making him acutely aware of his surroundings. He was in no hurry to shimmy back into the confines of his clothes, even less so to leave the long-forgotten comfort of a real bed. He was left with little choice, however, when Pride slid off him and stood up to dress herself. With a final groan of resignation, he followed her lead and went to pick his clothes that lay scattered across the floor. Whilst pulling on his cortosis-reinforced trousers he grumbled something about spoiled force-users and glared at the half-obscured form of Darth Pride that seemed to have decided to put on yet another show just for him. Paying special attention to concealing the hilt of the strange lightsaber he'd looted in the shuttle he'd shared with Raph and Siyo, he put on the thermo-suit and topped everything with his light armor and weaved metal upon his back. With a satisfied smile, he finally added the vibroblades and his favorite blasters, turning his gaze back upon Lady Pride.

His smile stretching into the trademark grin of his, he simply added "Merely two, Lady Pride," he said with a chuckle in his voice. "I am correct to assume that there is some sort of library or an archive in this complex, is there not? If there is, what level of access to that knowledge will I be given, if any?" he questioned, his tone serious despite the smirk on his face. "And second," the smile now reached his eyes, "the martial training you mentioned will be left to your senior students. The Force, however…?" he left the words hanging in the air, his inquiry evident without the need to finish the sentence.

(miserably short, I know, but this isn't exactly the time )

She allowed herself a sly smile at his questions. He was most certainly observant, and his skills of precognition also did him justice.
"You are correct in both," she replied as she slowly trod towards him. She wasn't certain whether or not he had noticed that, due to his impressive stripping skills and her own favour for teasing him instead of logic, she was now wearing her black latex tight-suit without any underwear, and she was certainly beginning to feel it. The hard fabric rubbing against her even as she was still sensitive from the event not so long ago... well, it had a most peculiar effect on her mood. She crept to him and addressed him, hardly a few inches away;
"There are plenty of archives, but those are under the supervision of the Kissai, a sect of Sith who hold supreme authority on Ziost, second only to mine. Initially, you will only be allowed to study texts either I or one of my apprentices assigns to you. Later however, you will gain more access, suitable to your level of skill with the Force. And yes, you guessed right. I will be the one teaching you about the Force." She encircled him and her hands entangled his torso from behind, while staying watchful of the twin blades that obstructed her touch.
"That's not going to be a problem now, is it?" she asked with a purring, feline voice. Then, she walked about and flicked her wrist at the bed, where the sheets rearranged themselves as if guided by an invisible force, twisting and extending it back to perfection. Finally, she added:
"Now you should really make your way to the training chambers while I attend to the plans about the upcoming attacks. I will send word for one of my students to test and evaluate you, after which we will begin your training in the ways of the Force. The guard at the foot of the tower will show you the way." Stating that, she waved her hand towards the door.
"I will await your arrival an hour or so before nightfall. Until then, do try to leave a good impression, but know that any bluff you make will be called sooner or later, and you'll have to be able to actually do it, not just talk about it then."