Name: Ryassek ("the White")
Race: Rodian
Affiliation: Sith
"A man pleads for your aid in solving some difficulty. The Jedi teach that you must give it to him, without question, for the path of the Jedi is selflessness. The Sith teach you must spurn him, without question, for he must make his own strength. Both are fools, as is any man who tells you to follow dictum without question.
The TRUE Sith accepts the gift he is being given, and understands why. The man requesting aid is offering you the strength and experience that will come from solving his dilemma. The false Sith would have you cast that gift aside! Fools! The TRUE Sith accepts the gift, gains the strength, learns the lesson, and rather than increase the power of another, he undertakes to increase his own."
Description:
A small, wiry, Rodian, Ryassek is an Albino. His reptilian skin is pale white, and his eyes naturally a pinkish red. His movements are precise and carefully controlled, his head perpetually inclining this way and that slightly, his eyes darting around a room even when at rest, taking in as much as he can about his surroundings. He normally dresses in layers, typically a light set of dark grey clothing over which he wears vests, belts, parkas, jumpsuits, or combat armor as the situation requires it, often accompanied by a long (for him) open coat.
Background:
Despite rumors to the contrary, not every Sith began life as a Jedi acolyte. Defections and betrayals may generate the most attention, the cycles of vengeance and agonizing pursuit, but many, if not most Sith, come into their Force inheritance by methods different than those of the Jedi only in tone and ferocity. So it was with Ryassek. A child of dirt-poor slum-dwellers on an overdeveloped city world with a marked hostility towards non-human life, Ryassek's force sensitivity, perceptable at a young age only to other Force-wielders, was all that distinguished him from the other pickpockets and urchins that scraped desperately by in the undercity of his world. Had his planet been controlled by the forces of the Jedi order, Ryassek might well have found himself immured within the Jedi temple to emerge one day as a newly-minted apprentice. But shortly after his birth, Ryassek's planet was conquered by the Sith Empire. And so rather than become a Jedi, Ryassek was spirited away at a tender young age to join the ranks of their arch-enemies.
Given everything, the Jedi might have been the lucky ones.
Training for Sith acolytes is no less stringent than that afforded to Jedi Padawans, but considerably more brutal, yet Ryassek took to it like a duck to water. It wasn't that he was the fastest or the strongest or the smartest or even the most filled with rage and hatred, but more that he, almost alone among his fellow kidnappees, discovered in the Sith something he had not ever known before. The Sith teachings, brutal though they might have been, were the first bits of formal schooling he'd ever encountered, indeed the first system of organized thought that he had ever conceived of. When the Sith beat him, and told him that it was to make him strong, he believed them, and found, to his surprise, that it was so. When they tortured and commanded him to weaponize his formerly-impotent rage and contempt, he found that he could. So it was that within months of being kidnapped, Ryassek latched onto the Sith teachings in a way he had never before had an opportunity to latch onto anything, readily hurling himself into his lessons and training like a Rodian possessed, breathing the Sith code with his very air until it was his armor, his weapon, and his very life. By the third year of his training he was at the top of his age-group, a rising star recognized as such by every instructor at his training facility. This recognition did not make his life easier, but by then he did not wish it to. Conflict and challenge was the root of power, and through power he would gain victory, and break his own chains. It was not long before his every thought and action was in inexorable pursuit of that goal.
Such, at least, was likely the intention of his masters, but the end result was almost certainly not, as Ryassek's pursuit of the true essence of the Dark Side of the Force began to lead him into areas that most Sith wanted nothing whatsoever to do with. The more he learned about the philosophical underpinnings of the Sith, the more he began to notice... discrepancies... between the theory and the practice. The Sith Masters stressed the virtues of strength, power, and freedom, all while binding themselves into a monolithic hierarchy that rigidly commanded their allegiance. They spoke of the virtues of conflict, of building strength and via strength, achieving freedom, yet assembled armies of slaves, minions or apprentices to engage in conflicts for them, passing up the opportunity to gain power and handing it to another. Discrepancies led to doubts, and doubts led to questions, questions which his masters had no answer for. If cruelty, which bred anger and hate, was a means to gain strength, why did the Sith dole it out in such liberal quantities for the most perverse reasons rather than reserving it for themselves? If peace was a lie, and passion the only truth, then why were emotions beyond the range of anger, hatred, or fear regarded as anethmatic, when even the smallest child knew that they were just as potent as any? And once on the path to pondering and asking heretical questions, Ryassek found it impossible to stop, regardless of what compulsions were placed upon him, until ultimately he faced the most dangerous question of all. If the Sith way, as the masters understood it, was the only truth, then why was it that the mightiest Sith Lords of all history, Revan, Ulic Quel-Droma, even Exar Kun himself, were not pure, unleavened Sith like himself, but former Jedi, armed with the evident power that their passionless, ascetic existence had somehow paradoxically granted to them.
Suspicions inevitably grew around Ryassek as he became more and more open with his questions, his criticism, and his ever-evolving theories. Some denounced him as a Jedi sympathizer, but the opinions of the weak-minded he cared nothing for, and increasingly he was defining everyone engaged in "the old hypocrisy" as such. Be it borne of simple ignorance, an unclear definition of 'power', or something as mundane as habit, the other Sith would not see the obstacles they were putting in their own way as they sought, at least in theory, for power, relying on the old standbys of armies, slaves, and empires, all things he saw only as fresh chains to lay in the place of the old. Mastery over others was subjective. The essence of power was not.
Unable to find the answers he sought from his masters, Ryassek turned to the secrets of the past, seeking out and finding caches of forgotten lore and theory. The writings of several long-dead Sith Lords, including Darth Treyus, and hidden writings Exar Kun himself known only to a few, were finally what crystallized his realization. The Sith of his day, the very ones who had taken him into the study of the Dark Side of the Force, had failed. They had failed to look beyond their own horizons and preconceptions, failed to master their fears and emotions, as any Sith must, and let themselves instead be mastered by fears of loss or death or being seen as weak by their fellows. Rather that pursue power by any means necessary, they had fallen to dissipation and latched onto the show of power rather than its reality. Ryassek, committed Sith as he had now become, would not,
could not permit himself to do likewise. The philosophy of the Sith, the study and use of the Dark Side of the Force, these things were literally all he had in the universe, the bedrock on which he had anchored his very identity, the shining beacon drawing him onwards and upwards towards the pinnacle of perfection. Without the Dark Side of the Force, he was nothing but another scarred, beaten Rodian slave. With it, he was free.
And so, as was probably fated from the beginning, Ryassek left the Sith. He left without announcing his intentions to anyone, having made enough discoveries on his own to recognize what he needed to do. The sheer power of the fallen Jedi like Exar Kun, relative to that of pure Sith like himself, led him to decide that the only way he would unlock the secrets of the "pure" power he sought was through understanding the contradiction of the Light Side of the Force. Weaker than the Dark Side though it might be, there was evident power within it, and power of any sort was worth pursuing. And so like so many of his fellows, he began hunting for Jedi, albeit not for the same reason that most Sith did. Having grown up a Sith, he had never once met a Jedi not fated for instantaneous execution once the "demonstration" of his masters's torture techniques was complete. To understand how it was that these self-same Jedi, who rejected everything the Sith held true in the world, could possibly become the mightiest powers in the galaxy upon embracing the Sith doctrine, he knew he would need to find one in the field, and learn from it, by hook or crook. In the middle of a bitter war, and without hope of passing to a Jedi as anything but what he was, he nonetheless set out to try, dodging Sith assassination squads and bounty hunters along the way, driven fully by his certainty that in following strange, chimerical path, he might at last unlock the truth that had eluded all of the Sith for so long.
For be it through the Jedi, the Sith, or any other means he can find, Ryassek
will one day be the one, TRUE, Lord of the Sith. And on that day, at last, he will be complete.
Personality:
Were it not for the fact that Ryassek publicly and proudly claims to be a Sith, and the arsenal of powers he wields, people who met him would have great difficulty determining just what actually he is. Certainly his behavior is not that of most Sith, for he follows what he believes to be a higher, "truer" path. Determined, intellectual, and affecting a refined sensibility, Ryassek is nevertheless a Sith to his very
bones. He wields his emotions like razor-sharp weapons, fueling his terrible and devastating powers. The major difference is the goals he sets his powers to, and the philosophy he espouses in wielding them. Unlike most Sith, Ryassek is neither overflowing with cruelty nor consumed with a need to inflict pain and suffering upon other beings. It is not altruism that stays his hand, but his philosophical viewpoint on the subject, for having suffered both cruelty and hardship in his own life, he respects the value of such things as teachers of lessons, ones which he feels the Sith are all-too-eager to dole out to others, weakening themselves at the hands of their victims. Absolutely dedicated to personal power, and with no interest in spreading war and destruction wantonly about, 'like a child throwing a tantrum', Ryassek has nothing but contempt for Sith unwilling to question the orthodoxies that keep them imprisoned. Strength comes from action, experience, and trial, and consequently, rather than cause misery and pain to those around him, he even goes so far as to offer
aid to people in need (sometimes even for free!), not because he wishes to help others, but because he wishes to gain for himself the strength that comes in facing whatever challenge they are unwilling to face themselves.
A philosopher and a scholar to the core, Ryassek enjoys debate, discussion, and other intellectual pursuits, be it games of strategy (which he tends to be rather perversely bad at, out-thinking himself more often than not), or more high-minded, even dangerous exercises. Indeed, for a Sith, Ryassek is strangely personable. He clearly believes himself superior to all other force users, but he equally strongly believes that the Jedi and Sith ways, flawed though they are, hold truths that are important for him to learn and meditate on. He is introspective to a degree almost unheard of among Sith, and meditates on his passions and weaknesses with the fervor of a Jedi, albeit towards an entirely antithetical purpose. Unlike a Jedi, he gives himself full reign of his emotions, but unlike most Sith, he tries not to restrict himself to painful or "dark" emotions, seeking to find ways to draw upon his entire being to fuel his neverending quest for personal power and enlightenment. His successes have thus far been mixed, but they do exist, and each one is, to him, proof that he is pursuing the most worthy goal of all.
Ryassek's personal philosophy concerning the Sith is perhaps best expressed in his own words:
The Sith teach that power is everything, that personal advancement is king, that strength is born through conflict. Yet in their lust for domination, they wall off entire schools of thought and deem them heretical or anathema, as though we are not strong enough to face them. If conflict breeds strength, and pacifism weakness, then there can be no excuse for such parochial fears as these. Either we are strong enough to face the truth, or we are unworthy of it. There can be no other option.
Too often, the philosophy of the Sith is subsumed in mere sociopathy and brutish bloodlust. Too often, we set ourselves up as overlords and generals and imagine this grants us power! A muscle that is not used will atrophy, and those who rely on legions of fanatics and slaves will only turn themselves into a fanatical slave of their own delusions.
The so-called Sith are masters only of hypocrisy! If emotion makes us strong, why then are we taught to employ only the narrowest range of sentient thought to guide us? Are we Jedi? Do we willingly cast aside an entire side of our beings because it is inconvenient for us to face it? We hold that cruelty is king, and mercy a fool's folly. Yet the Jedi build EMPIRES from mercy, empires which stand against the worst we are capable of inflicting upon them. If the Jedi way produces none but weaklings, then why is it they endlessly return to burn us from the galaxy? Why is it that those among us who reach the highest, stand the tallest, and burn the brightest, were almost invariably once Jedi themselves?
I am a Sith! I desire power for myself. Not for the Sith Empire, not for my self-declared Masters, for me! Power is not the means to an end. Power is the end. And I will not needlessly blind myself through fear and tradition as I seek for it. The Jedi are weak, but there is great strength hidden in their teachings, as there may be in a thousand places that my so-called peers fear to search. I will gather power and strength within myself without fear of the consequences from the short-sided psychotics who lay claim to my allegiance, and in so-doing, I will become the one, TRUE Lord of the Sith.
The Sith proved themselves superior to the Jedi because they had transcended the fetters of compassion. I will prove myself superior to the Sith in turn, by transcending the fetters of cruelty.
Notable Possessions:
One Lightsaber, Red
Light clothing, Sith Robes
Filmbook and Electrostylus
Small collection of Sith Holocrons
Small toolkit
Pazzak set
Well read and extremely literate, Ryassek lacks practical skills, and has next-to-no capacities with robotics or other technical elements beyond the basic capacity to maintain his own lightsabre and equipment. He is, however an extremely skilled orator and rhetorician, having trained himself diligently to speak Basic, Sith, and other languages without the slur to his words that most Rodians evidence. He has a passion for philosophy, particularly Sith philosophy, and loves debate, discussion, and other such pursuits as they relate to his 'unique' outlook on the universe.
Lightsabre forms: Rodians are fairly small to begin with, and Ryassek is slight even by the standards of a Rodian. Consequently, he naturally gravitated towards the Sith variations on the Makashi form of Lightsabre combat, a style which emphasizes precision and elegance over strength and power, resulting in an organic, flowing style of fighting, well suited to Ryassek's strengths. When employing this form, his fighting seems less like battle and more like a ritualized dance, as his sabre winds and spins around himself and his opponent, one move bleeding seamlessly into the next.
Early on however, Ryassek realized that the inherent limitations of Makashi Style would have to be balanced out through other means, and elected to train himself in the Soresu Form, a more deflection-oriented Lightsabre form. He is not as skilled in this form, relying on it as a secondary protection against blasters and other ranged weapons, and even when employing Soresu, his style is more fluid and open than the minimalist approach that Soresu-Masters can employ, a weakness he recognizes and is trying (so far without much success) to rectify. Still, he is quite capable of holding his own in Soresu form against most opponents.
It is worth noting that while Ryassek only possesses a single lightsabre, he has trained extensively in the two-sabre variant of Makashi-style combat. Should he manage to get his hands on a second weapon, whatever its origin, he fully intends to further his studies therein.