EPILOGUE

Outbound from Nar Shaddaa

Myrtenaster

"Breathe."

Yang's brow twitched irritably at the soft-spoken word. What d'you think I've been doing?

"Focus on your breathing, on your heartbeat. And stop thinking this is a waste of time."

A scowl flickered briefly across the blonde's face, but she quickly wiped it away with a sigh. She knew this was necessary, but vape it all, she was a girl of action, not one to sit in a dark, stifling room with two other people who just reeked of serenity in a way she'd never be able to!

"You can so do this."

"Blake, I swear, I'm gonna-" The Corellian had barely started into her rant before she was cut off by a gentle clearing of a throat. She ducked her head at the reminder from her now fellow padawan. "Sorry, Master. I did it again."

The Jedi Master sighed wryly. "Yang, I know this is difficult. By this age you would have been doing this naturally for over half of your lifetime were you brought into the order at the normal age. But I know you can do this." From where she knelt in front of the two figures, one bright and blonde, the other dark and green-skinned, Blake leaned forward to touch the knee of her newest pupil. "I have to believe this is possible, believe it with every fibre of my being, otherwise that would validate the methods of the Council. And I refuse to consider that to be a possibility. So you will master this."

"Yes, Master."

At her right elbow, the Mirialan man spoke up softly. "Managing your temper is never an easy task, but we are here to help you."

Yang let out an amused snort at that. "Pfft, yeah, like you've ever lost your temper before."

Sending an amused glance her way, Ren refused to answer, merely settling back into the familiar meditative pose once again. His hands were clasped in his lap, the left one a dull obsidian color. He'd refused to wear gloves to cover up the prosthetic, insisting he was beyond such vanity.

The blonde wasn't about to voice her opinion that perhaps he was secretly a bit proud of his battle-won impairment.

"Alright, let's try this again," Yang grumbled, getting herself into the same position as Ren. Eyes closed, back erect. Posture firm but relaxed. Breathe in, breathe out.

The Corellian padawan and pilot could sense it, just outside of her consciousness, that power that she'd felt when dueling Mercury. The problem was, she needed control over it, to be able to touch it willingly and embrace it.

It was just so kriffing frustrating to feel it so close and yet be unable to reach her goal. However, she was nothing if not persistent.

But then, intruding upon their meditations, a pair of raised voices from the nearby common area could be heard, easily carrying through the thin-hulled door.

"What did you do this time?"

"It's just the computer voice system, Weiss, nothing major!"

"You changed its voice!"

"Well, yeah, and besides, Myrtenaster is a 'she'."

"It's a ship! My ship!"

"And she wants to be treated with respect, Penny told me so!"

Weiss' tone, if it were possible, became more shrill. "I am not taking the word of your droid regarding my ship! I want the voice modulator disabled again, I do not like it being able to talk to me!"

"Weiss, she can hear you, you're gonna hurt her feelings!"

"Ruby, so help me, you will put things back the way they were or I'll…"

Blake let out a heavy sigh as she gracefully unfolded herself from her seated position and rose to her feet. "Carry on," she instructed shortly before departing the room and closing the door behind her.

Only a handful of seconds passed before another door could be heard to open with a pneumatic hiss, and then dual squawks of outrage along with a clatter of armor.

Nora spoke up, obviously having been observing the free show. Her mouth sounded slightly full as if she were chewing on some popcorn, though it did nothing to conceal the incredulous amusement in her voice. "Again?!"

And then Blake could be heard before joining her two lovers in the storage closet. "We'll just be awhile in conference."

Yang snorted humorously, keeping her hands closed and posture erect. "Maybe she needs to teach the both of them how to meditate."

Ren allowed a quiet chuckle to escape. "Oh, I imagine she has far better uses of their free time together."

Laughing outright now, Yang extended her right fist. It was met with a clank by Ren's left before they returned to silence once again.

It'd likely be while before they saw their master again, but that was no reason to slack off, after all.

Dromund Kaas

Sith Empire Capital

These were familiar halls to the dark-robed figure, gliding along with nary a sound. She'd prowled them for decades as she fought her way up the hierarchy of Sith Lords, conspiring and plotting and betraying as was their wont.

Today, however, things were different.

Those who once would have fearfully looked away or shied back from her dark presence now stared openly. Where before she commanded respect, now she was met by looks of derision.

Lady Salem had fallen into disgrace. For now, at least.

A woman of her cunning and intellect rarely stayed down for long. So long as she passed her next trial, she would recover once more. It would be another long, laborious climb, but she was powerful still.

The Rattataki woman entered the elevators without acknowledging her lessers, the doors sliding shut on their own as it immediately began its ascent. Soon enough, they slid open again to reveal the audience chamber where her master waited.

She pushed back her trepidation as she saw the black-robed figure standing with his back to her at the top of the dais, staring out at the Dromund Kaas cityscape instead of waiting for her at his throne as he always did. Fear was not the emotion she needed right now, her arrogance and anger would serve as always.

Waiting until she reached the bottom step, the pale woman finally spoke up as she pulled the hood of her robes back. "My Lord-"

Before she could continue, however, she was forced to her hands and knees by an overwhelming force, an oppressive dark power that left her gasping for air. It was if the very life was being crushed out of her, the Dark Side being siphoned away against her will, leaving her defenseless.

The figure at the top turned, then, and slowly made his way down the tall steps. The shadows in the dimly-lit room seemed to gather around him in a foreboding miasma, swirling with the power that he radiated from his very fingertips.

Salem was utterly helpless before such power. The power of the Emperor.

The power of a god.

And though his withered lips did not move, his voice boomed maliciously inside her head nonetheless.

"I ALREADY KNOW OF YOUR FAILURE AND THE LOSS OF YOUR FOLLOWERS."

Salem whimpered, her eyes bulging out of her head as she stared at the steadily growing pool of brackish blood dribbling down from her nostrils and ears.

"DID YOU NOT THINK I WOULD LEARN OF YOUR BETRAYAL? OF HOW YOU LEFT MY FAITHFUL SERVANTS BEHIND TO DIE?"

With an anguished grunt, the Rattataki woman fell onto her side, writhing in pain now as she felt her very bones creaking under the strain.

"I WANTED THE DAUGHTER OF THE SILVER-EYED WARRIOR DEAD, AND YOU KNEW THIS. BUT EVENTS ARE NOW SET INTO MOTION. AND YOU MUST PAY THE PRICE."

Spikes of agony were shooting along every nerve ending. Her mouth opened into a rictus of a scream but no sound could issue forth. And then, with one final sharp snap, her huddled figure stilled forever.

Finally, the Emperor spoke out loud, his voice that of rusty pipes but no less commanding.

"Your betrayal has created a power vacuum that I must now fill before the infighting begins anew." His slow steps finally carried him past her corpse. "I am very disappointed in you, Salem."

He stopped, then, just outside the growing pool of dark blood, to gesture towards one of the shadowy corners. Red, glowing eyes were visible before a blue-skinned male stepped out. The Chiss had a trimmed mop of black hair set above his malevolent gaze, and his bushy moustache twitched as he regarded the fallen Sith Lord on the floor behind the Emperor.

The man's clothes were incongruous for a Sith Lord, a fashionable black suit instead of the typical robes, but the hilt of a lightsaber was nonetheless evident from beneath the hem of his short jacket. It made his status obvious to all who did not know of him.

As he gave a low, respectful bow, the Emperor nodded to him.

"Dr. Watts, I am very interested in your experiments with the Dark Side and genetic manipulation, the biowarfare subjects you've created are fascinating. Tell me more about these… Creatures of Grimm."

The crew of the Myrtenaster will return in RWBY Star Wars: Momentum!

A/N: Chiss Dr. Watts courtesy of AntonSlavik020, thanks for the brilliant idea! And so that closes out our tale for now. As can be seen on my FFN author's page, I do have extensive plans for this universe. I think I might tackle at least one of the prequels before I start in on the next major story, though for now, I'll be giving Blood of the Rose a little more attention for a while. Thanks for reading and reviewing!

Stay shiny!