- Tomes of Feeling -

Herein lies the works of various scholars of our race. We have become increasingly aware of an affective aspect of consciousness -- feeling, or emotion. These chapters shall contain the ideas, views, and interactions various beings have had with such primitive, yet, complex. . .feelings. It has been said that such emotion causes changes that prepare bodies for immediate vigorous action. It has therefore been deemed as useful tools to our cause, and shall be sought out to it's full extent.

Let these tomes serve as knowledge to our future generation and prove to further edify our race in that knowing.

________________ -[ Hatred ]- ________________

Hatred is the center of the Dark Side. There is no other emotion that is stronger or more important to control. Through our studies of hatred we have found ways to control it, harness it and spread it to others.

Hatred is a very strong emotion. It is also the most primal and basic of feelings by either man or beast. If you cannot control your hatred, then you will be controlled by it. But if you can control it, you can control others through it. And because of this awesome, power you must treat it with respect. If you do not, it will destroy you.

Hatred is a force which can consume all; meaning that, if allowed, it can cause a person to hate anything and everything; blindly, and without discernment. Anything that is done blindly implies a loss of control over one's self. This is not what we strive for under any circumstances. Many a tale has been told where blinding passions of hatred overwhelmed the aggressor, and sucked him down as surely as the object of his hate.

To know hate is to know one's most intimate self, and to find that self-knowledge is at first a matter of tossing aside the societal conventions of politeness and manner, to allow the surge of physical and mental energies that are more compelling than anything else in nature or beyond.

Be truthful to how you feel, in all contexts of being, and hate will occur to you more frequently than not. But again, it is the mastery of these explosive and enervating charges that allows you to utilize this tempestuous fist of the heart and mind, and strike at your enemies with precision and effectiveness.

Hatred is the mother of all dark emotions, and in order to become her master, it is necessary to master her subtle varieties, such as ones laid throughout this text.

Anger is the most obvious of her kin-but jealousy, revenge, even fear (which is at its core, the hatred of one's own weakness)--find hate as their genesis. Without it, emotions are gutted of their compelling force, and thus rendered ineffectual and weak--mere echoes of feeling.

Study these texts well, and when you have experienced and practiced and mastered the emotions described herein, you will have also come to know and master the all-encompassing hate. Because hate is everywhere, it is everything, and unless you learn each of its' component parts, you will never learn to control it. It will control you.


________________ -[ Fear ]- ________________

Fear. It is one of our base emotions and instincts and it is what the Dark Side thrives on. Without fear, there is no Dark Side. Sometimes fear can shape and dominate our lives. It's power is great and few can withstand it. It can cause the strongest of men break and flee, it can kill and it can destroy. It can drive men to try the impossible, and succeed. Understanding and utilizing fear is intricate to understanding the Dark Side.

Fear forms the basics of the Dark Side. It is often the emotion that begins the turn from the path of the light. It can cause the other two main emotions of the Dark Side: Hatred and Anger. People often hate what they fear. They seek to destroy that which exposes their weakness. Anger frequently consumes them in their hatred. In this way, fear gives way to hatred, anger and the Dark Side. When a man begins to fear, he lashes out in anger and hatred. With fear, the doors to the Dark Side are opened and a person needs only reach out to embrace the Dark Side.

The Dark Side is not only brought about by fear, it also causes fear. It is natural to fear the darkness. Since our ancestors lived in caves, they feared the darkness and sought to combat it. This drove them to discover fire, built shelters and seek other ways to defend from the darkness. The key to the Dark Side is to embrace the fear. Welcome it, absorb it, and convert it to anger and hate. Use them to crush the object of your fear and all else that stand in your way. An initiate in the Dark Side has no trouble controlling his fear and turning it to his advantage. The weak seek to flee from fear. The strong embrace it and the Dark Side.

Fear can also be a great weapon if turned against others. Most species have no control over their base animal instincts. The basic nervous center controls the reactions of an individual to a situation. When confronted with a situation the individual must choose whether to fight or flee. The strong choose to fight. The weak choose to flee. Each person has weaknesses that can be exploited to fulfill one's needs. Fear can crumble all mental defenses. People lose control of themselves and begin to panic. They lose control of their actions. Fear, like anger clouds the senses and causes mistakes and errors. Very few can face their greatest fear. Most will break easily. In this way, fear is one of the greatest weapons available to the Dark Side. A Dark Jedi can bring about his adversary's greatest fears to face him. Through command of the Dark Side, a person's fears can be exposed and exploited. The greatest weakness can be exploited with great effect. When confronted by their fears, most people will break and do anything: divulge information, flee from a fight, break and admit to anything. Enough fear can break everything down and leave a subject a blank page, ready to fill.

Fear can also be a powerful tool of command. If a servant's fear of his master exceeds fear of death, then there remains nothing that the servant will not do in his master's name. Likewise, fear of death can have similar effects. The most loyal troops are those driven by fear. Their fanaticism can be overwhelming and unstoppable. One needs not suspect betrayal from them for fear of their master has replaced all instincts of caution, self-preservation and self-interest. If the servants fear their master, they respect him, and with enough respect, will begin to love him. The servants will speak of their master with trepidation but also with devotion. Through fear and the Dark Side, the weaker can be commanded to do the will of the stronger. The servants of great tyrants lived in constant fear of their masters. They knew that they would die if they failed. This drove them to do their utmost best and succeed. Manipulation through fear can be incredibly effective. Therefore, we must rule our enemies through fear, and then victory for the Dark Side can be achieved.

________________ -[ Mercy ]- ________________

Mercy. This new sense of compassion is quite the puzzling one. It seems that mercy is an act, originating from some sort of mortal love. To spare a living thing from the pain from which it was born from and created with is a crime. All living things must suffer to fulfill their destinies. One is brought into this world to immerse themselves in the pain and agony of life; mercy is cheating this element of living and therefore is wrong. When one behaves with influence from mercy, they are just aiding in this dishonesty of living. Mercy is something given to one's enemy…why someone would give anything to their enemy is uncertain, but it is believed mercy is used to alleviate the pain of guilt. This seems that mercy is not really an act of compassion for someone else, but also to ease one's own internal pain.

Mercy is by far something that is driven by forgiveness for another's sins. When one offers a sense of mercy to someone else, they are just taking away the persons right of living. Life is given to a person to be fulfilled in that persons own way. Because they're given this liberty of choice, they should suffer sometimes in order to justify this freedom and mercy just takes away from this recompense.

But to be the one offering mercy is just as bad as being the one to accept it. If one is to show mercy, they are taking away from their obligation to suffer, therefore not fulfilling ones own burden of living pain. Not only does mercy hurt the other person, but also it could very well be one's own undoing! For example, if a man is standing over his sworn enemy who is injured, yet he feels sorry and guilty about killing him, he may show mercy and let the man live. This man could then escape, show no mercy for his oppressor and come back with blind revenge! Because the man showed another mercy, he put his own life on the line.

Above all, mercy contradicts every teaching of the Dark Side. The dark side is fueled by hate, fear, jealously…not weak mind filled with mercy! Mercy takes away from the hatred for one another, the burning fear of one's own destruction! One should not be concerned with the well being of anyone else, let alone his enemies.

In any event, mercy is something offered by the weak minded who could not live with themselves otherwise. Really, they're only lying to themselves and delaying their ultimate destiny by escaping immediate pain in life.

________________ -[ Revenge ]- ________________

Emotions of dark will are complex, yet exhilarating, states of mind. One need only feel a passing resentment or envy towards another, to appreciate the many overlapping thoughts and images of destruction and conquest that seem to repeat and flourish in one’s mind, even long after the event that spawned them.

Take, for instance, a poorly regarded neighbor, who has one day seen it fit to increase his holdings of land, by the annexing of a weaker neighbors acreage further down the road.

For you, this is of little consequence, for the land he has taken was not your own, and is at such a distance away, it would take a half day’s journey just to reach it. Therefore, it is out of site, and generally, out of mind.

But when the day arrives when you are required to fetch a roast, or gather a supply of timber, or any such thing that would inevitably lead you through your neighbors recently expanded domain, you might be more inclined to ponder this land, to imagine its development as you would see fit, for the betterment of yourself, your family, and your power of influence.

This land, then, becomes an Object of Desire, but one possessed by another. Thus, it is he who benefits, while you languish in his shadow. Had you have taken the initiative and seized the land yourself, expanding your borders and doubling your crop output, the riches and reward you imagine he will receive would instead be handed to you. And considering your unshakable belief that he is far less equipped to handle the responsibility and vision required of such a large expanse, you wonder why Fortune has so blessed him with this stroke of inspiration, and not you. Why didn’t you think to conquer the weakest of your neighbors, as he did, for surely you are more adept at managing the rewards of that conquest? Could it be that, despite your talents and gifts, the generous touch of Fate had simply passed you by, and instead, decided to grant its’ favors upon an inferior? Such machinations of the mind could be considered a state of regret, which has then folded into envy.
As you try to reconcile this irony and find no satisfying answer, the mind’s only outlet is to retreat down into the heart and stew, where events such as these have no reason or logic, but are simply experienced for the cosmic injustices they are.

* * *

As a new day dawns, and you are met in the town’s square by several of your fellow lords, the discussion quickly turns to your newly endowed neighbor, who has, in addition to receiving the lauds of praise and respect that come with ownership, just recently been spotted in the company of your wife and daughter, both separately and together. And now your mind begins to reel, forced to negotiate the rapids of shock and confusion that have entwined your senses. Could this be? Has the value gained by your tawdry and second-rate neighbor been enough to woo the attentions of those you hold dear? Is your daughter-precious kin who’d proclaimed you the one and true love through her distance in eternity-suddenly found patronage in the favor of this wretched beast? And your wife, keeper of all that is sacred to you, furbisher of your life’s sustenance--both bread and carnal fruition-has she too been tempted into the giving of her fleshy delights, to this charlatan, this monster?

And the envy which had occupied you from the time you first met the day, now expands and contorts into something more vehement and sinister and grave. It is a feeling that tramples past the marker of vindictiveness, and approaches the ‘something’ that compels the scorned to act.

* * *

So let us now reflect: you have experienced a sense of regret at the hands of misfortune, in having not first conceived the idea of material expansion. And as it was the neighbor of whom you consider your inferior, who has managed to sidestep this inequity by receiving the inspiration of Fates, and thus increasing his worldly share and influence, you then began to undergo feelings of envy and resentment. But something else had then occurred, which enflamed these meager passions into the fury of a firestorm. He has seduced your wife to his chambers and violated her, while similarly robbing you of your most protected self--in the form of your treasured offspring--your adolescent daughter. Oh, what agony you must face! What torment! The feelings of rage and frustration that now grip you are more than just that; they are instructions of some kind; commandments, sent from the shadowy God of Hate. From within this hollowing pain, a sensation arises to protect you from further embarrassment and salvage the ruins of your esteem. Hate’s marching orders are emblazoned across your baneful mind, and now you know what you must do, as you burn in the passions of revenge.

* * *

Possessed of a bitter desire to inflict injury for payment of the ones received, you plot your means of retribution. How to enact a measure that would not only reclaim what you have lost, but then take still more, so that the deep and sticky wound of your neighbor’s public slight will have been fully compensated for. It is not enough to “get even,” for, in addition to the shredding of your ego, the humiliation you have received tarnishes your public reputation; and this should be unacceptable to anyone of dignity and proper standing. So the question remains…what to do about it? Using hatred as your guide, you must first ascertain the thing of most value to your despicable neighbor-who from this point on we shall refer to as “the wretch.” And here it is important to note, that this “soft spot on the dragon’s belly,” where you look to make your strike should be something the wretch feels emotionally connected to-this is key. Otherwise, the destroying of said thing, whether object or familiar, would not produce the lingering pain that revenge requires. Why not just stab the wretch ten times in the belly, bleeding him out as he expires at your feet? Well, we’ll get to that, but first, it is of paramount importance that he suffer, and suffer deeply, both privately and publicly.

So back to the wretch himself. After exhaustive and meticulous research (time and waiting are of little concern to the one bent on revenge), you have managed to secure certain documents pertaining to a child of feeble wit and physique, now cloistered with the priestesses of a distant abbey, who for many years has been retained by the holies as a menial servant.

This child, abandoned and forgotten long ago, is in fact the offspring of the wretch and his very own sister. And though history is replete with such children of ill conception, it is none the less regarded by society at large as a transgression of natural law to have fostered such blood, and public knowledge of the act would devastate the reputation of any offender.

So now, as the powers of revenge begin to emerge, your blood boils with wicked anticipation, for you know you have a tool to castrate the wretch in a way that will deprive him of his land, his life’s worth of fortune, and his ability to earn another.

But what of his carnal affronts? He may be financially destitute by the distributing of these suppressed documents, but the stench of his lust upon you own wife and daughter still lingers. So this is where revenge reverts from a plotting of the mind to a force of the heart-as it is necessary to become so; otherwise, the excising of your demons will be incomplete.

A physical challenge is required, between yourself and the wretch, in as public a venue as legality would permit, so his final and ultimate humiliation will be complete. Revenge has no rules, no code of conduct or civil constraints; so when a battle of fists is agreed upon by both the wretch and yourself, make sure to conceal a dagger, so that the sweetness of his demise will not only be assured, but the expression of surprise and anguish you will witness engulfing his countenance, as you lunge the blade through him, will fulfill revenge’s ultimate reward: inflicting humiliation.

As he then lays crumpled at your feet, with tears rolling down his cheeks and pleas of mercy uttering from his lips, make sure to lean close to him, and whisper a stinging epitaph, of whatever best suits the occasion. Then drive him through once more, and feel the ebbing away of his life.
You will then depart the scene, calmly and willfully, as onlookers bow in deference, and the emotions you feel will be of unparalleled strength and fortitude, which can encompassed in one beautiful, well-conceived notion: Revenge.

* * *

The moral of this story is that envy and resentment are in themselves not enough; only revenge can motivate one to conquer thoroughly, so that the threat of one’s neighbor is vanquished to the point of nonexistence, and one’s status of superiority is felt not only by the victor, but the entire community.

________________ -[ Despair ]- ________________

In discovering these new emotions, one must decide how they view that particular feeling with their own self. Some feelings may immediately have an ill effect, while one may find another particular appealing to their nature. And then of course there are those which seem to lie on the neutral plain. On one hand, it may be depressing in nature, but might also have certain benefits to one's liking.

Let us take despair into consideration. An emotion devoid of hope, to feel despair is to have lost all confidence in something or some being. This can be a powerful feeling indeed, as it is most often triggered when facing defeat in some form. And when someone is faced with utter defeat on any level, any action could mean the difference between life and death.

Step if you will onto the battlefield, where the battle is all but over, only two souls still stand strong. And only one will leave with his life. Each opponent proud to have lasted this long, yet slowly one was wearing down. A slice here, and a jab there, the victor had decided who would conquer, the remaining battle just a game; a predator teasing, playing with it's food before he devours it in one swift strike. Cold eyes peering into the broken soul of his opponent, the game obviously served to prolong the victims agony, destroying his pride, and forcing him into a state of despair. Boastful strikes slowed as trembling hands fumbled, weak knees buckled. At this point the outcome is clear, and despair overcomes the beaten opponent. Like any emotion, despair can be blinding. One might feel such an utter loss of hope that all merely blacks out as they wait for that final strike to end it all, or the despair touches an inner cord which pulls out all the 'emergency' punches, especially those that don't make sense.

Like fear, despair is an emotion which should be considered a dangerous weakness if uncontrolled, yet a powerful aid in offensive situations. If one can make their opponent feel that they have no chance, no hope in the all the eons, of winning a battle, they just might believe it to it's full extent. That full extent being that your opponent has such a lack of confidence, they literally make themselves lose because of it. One who can control and inflict despair into another being in this way can truly conquer many souls.

Despair can easily lead people into a blind rage, in which their enemy can easily destroy the unfocused mind, or it can draw you back into such a state of fear that you allow a mere state of mind, an emotion, to destroy you. Will and control must be one's most powerful asset in order to conquer any feeling. If you refuse to let despair overcome you, your mind shall be strengthened with the will and control to turn the tables of any struggle.

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[- Table of Contents -]

[ Hatred KAP Kartena Makaio(Krath)/QUA/Gladius of Tarentum ]
[ Fear JH Deathlord(Krath)/Gladius of Tarentum ]
[ Mercy PRT Ryan Halycon(Krath)/Gladius of Tarentum ]
[ Revenge GRD Corde Aghasett(Krath)/Gladius of Tarentum ]
[ Despair KP Ciara Tearnan(Krath)/M:KHP/AED/Gladius of Tarentum ]

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