"Why do you care?"

"Whoever said I cared?"

"You asked."

Ira gives something that's approximately a laugh. "Touche. I'd hate to see such talent...wasted."

"Who are you?"

"I already gave you my name." It's not obviously evasive, but it's certainly not a clear answer.

Her hands twitch towards her lightsaber.

Ira sighs. "Pyktis."

And waits to see if that garners any recognition - sometimes it does, sometimes it doesn't, but if this situation arises, normally she's doing this with her mask firmly in place, pretending Ira Keler had been some hired lackey.

Good, she prefers this route.

"Darth Pyktis if we're being formal," she admits.

"What are you doing?"

"Investigating. I suspect the same rumours you and Zash are investigating. You arrived before I got very far."

"Who do you work for?"

"In the immediate, myself."

"And in the long term?"

"Still mostly myself, but occasionally I do need to pretend to be a good little Sith and assure the Dark Council of my allegiance."

Either not aligned with anyone or simply unwilling to disclose such allegiances. Unlikely to be Thanaton's, given tactics. For the rest... She doesn't know. But she doubts they'd meddle with Zash at this stage. Could be telling the truth about why she's here.

"My master would tell me to kill you, at this point."

"You're welcome to try," she invites. "But I don't see that ending well for you. And it really would be a waste of your talents to end up dead."

"I didn't say I was going to."

"No you did not. So what are you going to do?"

Elleira points at the far door and beckons.

Turning back to Ira, she asks "Do you know anything of Tulak Hord or Sith alchemy?"

"I know he was our ruler at one point," she says carefully, "but there's far too much history there to go through verbally unless you point me in approximately the direction you want." Pauses. "Permanently altering items or beings was...not high on my list of priorities." Doesn't mean she doesn't know anything about it.

"Aside from his military ambitions, one of Tulak Hord's obsessions was life extension." A hulking figure backs through the door, warding off a few final blaster shots with an immense vibrosword. "This is my Dashade, Khem Val. Formerly Hord's, now mine."

Ira nods sharply, she had been aware of Tulak Hord's obsessions.

She makes an impressed sound as the Dashade enters, and inclines her head. "I'm curious as to whether or not Zash is aware of his presence?"

"She is. Usually she prefers to not attract as much attention as his presence does."