3,673 years before the Battle of Yavin,
Twenty years into the Great Galactic War
On an icy world no one cares to remember.
"Run, Kretok!" Was all the young Sith Pureblood heard. He dare not look back, lest the monsters in white catch up to him. Little Kretok Nameisis didn't even know what was going on. One minute, he was sleeping in his warm and cozy bed in the base, then the shouting started. He couldn't hear what they were saying, but the adults sounded angry, and he felt scared.
"There are too many!" He'd heard one of the adults shout. "Fall back!" The man had yelled, then the loud noises came. Kretok had never heard an explosion before, but he'd never forget the sound now. Right after the explosion, the banging and shooting started. He heard people scream, felt pain, felt fear, and tried not to cry. His mother eventually came for him, but she looked hurt. There was red liquid dropping from her side, and she wouldn't let go of the area.
"Kretok, sweetie, mummy needs you to come with her." His mother was sweating, but she smiled at him.
"Mummy, what's going on?" Young Kretok asked.
"It's just a drill, Kre." His mother said, her smile growing. "Now, please come with mummy." She held out her hand, and he took it. They ran fast, faster than Kretok had ever run. He tripped several times as they ran towards one of the base's exits, but his mother didn't notice. Whenever he couldn't keep up, she drug him until his short legs caught up.
"Mummy, I'm tired!" Kretok cried.
"Mummy is too, baby, but we have to go a little farther. Can you do that for me? Just a little further?" His mother asked, looking down at him with a smile.
"Okay mummy!" He shouted, eager to please her. The wall in front of them exploded in, throwing debris and smoke everywhere. Kretok's mother threw herself in front of him to shield him from the blast.
"Blast them!" A man said. Red blaster bolts flew past them, nearly hitting his mother.
"This way." She said, pulling him back down the way they came. They stopped in front of a door that had always been locked, and never once opened, since Kretok and his mother arrived on the base. She quickly entered a code into the panel at the side. The door started to slide open, but stopped. There was a loud, angry, sound coming from it, and bright lights danced out from the tracks. "Damn it!" His mother swore.
She used one hand to grab hold of the door and used the other to grab hold of the wall. She grunted and groaned as she tried to push the door open. It was stubborn, at first, and that made his mother angry. Her eyes started to glow, something that only happened when she got really mad, and she screamed. The door continued to resist her until Kretok heard a crack, then the door flew open.
"Kretok, go!" She yelled. Kretok jumped back at her tone and scurried through the door. "Damn! It won't close." She yelled again.
"There she is!" Another man yelled. Kretok heard shooting, and his mother shouted in pain. There was a smoking black spot on her shoulder, but she ignored it.
"Come on, Kretok, let's go." His mother said, trying to sound calm and composed.
"Mummy, are you ok?" He asked.
"Mummy's fine, Kretok. We have to go now." She ushered him down the dark hallway. Cold winds blew through the narrow corridor, chilling Kretok to the bone.
"Where are we going?"
"Some place safe. Now hush, we don't want the other team to find us, do we?" His mother asked. Kretok shook his head. The two of them ran further and further into the darkness, even going so far that Kretok couldn't see the light anymore. "Just a little farther." His mother whispered. "Just a little farther." They turned a corner and Kretok was finally able to see light again. The corridor's metal walls ended in thick sheets of ice and a massive cave.
Several other tunnels spilled out into the cavern, but Kretok had no idea where they went.
"Kretok, mummy needs you to do something for her," his mother said, kneeling down.
"What?" He asked.
"I need you to hide. Like hide and seek." She said with a smile.
"Okay!" Kre shouted excitedly. Without waiting for any further direction, he ran down one of the other tunnels. He stopped when he almost ran into a massive figure in white armor.
"Well, well, looks like I found the runt." The man said. He jumped at Kre, trying to grab hold. The young Pureblood was quicker and more agile then the man thought, and was able to slip away.
"Mummy!" Kre cried. "The man tried to grab me!"
"Come back here you little twerp." The man growled. Kretok felt two sharp pains in his legs, like getting shots, the screamed in pain. The shots gave him the worst shock of his life, burning and zapping his small form.
"Mummy!" Kre shouted, crying. "The man hurt me!" Kretok fell to the ground as the feeling in his legs died. Another shock hit him, this one even more painful than the last.
"I always liked my Sith well done." The man said.
"Get away from my son!" His mother roared. Her red and black form was nothing more than a blur as she leapt over Kretok, crashing into the monster in white armor. Her silver lightsabers cut glittering arcs through the air as the hacked and slashed. In the blink of an eye, the monster in white had been cut to pieces.
"I heard something! Over here!" More people said. Their accents were like the monster in white. Footsteps echoed through the tunnel.
"Run Kretok!" His mother yelled. Kretok was already up on his feet, running out of the tunnel. He didn't slow down, he didn't stop, not even to see if his mother was with him. He didn't want the monsters in white to catch up and hurt him again. He heard a scream that sounded like it came from his mother. He could see the end of the tunnel now, so very close. Another monster in white stepped in front of the entrance. Frightened, Kretok lashed out through the Force.
Though he was young and inexperienced, people had always said the Force was strong with him. Sticking his arms out, Kretok blasted the monster in white, knocking him back a few steps. He was able to run past the monster, but there were more behind him. Kretok stopped and stared, unsure what to do. A strong hand grabbed him, and spun him around. The monster in white stared down at him, angry and mean looking.
With the helmet off, Kretok could see the monster's blue skin and long head tails. A twi'lek, he had heard the species called. In the Empire, they were largely slaves, with only a few of them ever breaking out of bondage. The twi'lek's arm was a blur of motion, followed by the worst pain Kretok had ever felt. The shots and shock he'd gotten earlier didn't even compare to sharp pain in his stomach he felt now.
Kretok looked down, staring as his black blood ran out over the monster's glove and the hilt of a weapon of some kind. The monster pulled his knife out, which hurt almost as much as getting stabbed. The blade was long, at least as long as Kretok's forearm. The monster threw Kretok onto the icy ground, leaving him to bleed out. He disappeared into the tunnel, emerging a few moments later with another monster dragging his mother.
A human monster walked up to them, lifting his mother's face.
"I'll say this for the Empire; they know how to breed fine women." The human monster said. "I'd say our mission was successful, boys, don't you?" The other monsters shouted. The human monster punched his mother in the stomach, hard. "We're going to make you pay for all the Republic heroes you've killed, Sanguine'ar."
"I haven't killed that many." His mother said with a weak smile. "Most of the 'Pubs I've killed died screaming and begging for their mothers. At least my son has an excuse." The human monster growled, and slapped her. "Oh, did that hit a nerve?" His mother laughed, coughing up blood.
"Captain," another man said. "Our mission was to capture or kill Sanguine'ar. We've done that. It's time for us to leave." This man wore simple brown robes, and carried a lightsaber. There were horns on his otherwise bald head, marking him as a zabrak; and the first Jedi Kre had ever seen.
"With all due respect, Jedi, I'm in command here." The human monster said. "And our mission was to capture or kill Sanguine'ar. It didn't say anything about the specifics. What do you say boys, should we show the Sith a good time?" The other monsters cheered.
"I can't let you do that, captain." The Jedi said, raising his lightsaber.
"Ah, come on Jedi; how many of your own order has this slut killed? Don't you want a little pay back?"
"That isn't the Jedi way." The zabrak said.
"Then I think it's time for you to leave." The human monster said. "Now." The Jedi hesitated, but finally holstered his lightsaber and walked away.
"I know I'm going to regret this." The zabrak whispered under his breath. Before leaving the cave, he cast one look back, catching Kretok's stare. The Jedi shook his head, and exited the cave.
"Now then, I think the Sith is wearing too much clothing." The human monster said. He stepped between Kretok and his mother, blocking Kretok's view. There was a ripping sound followed by a short scream. Kretok heard something being forced down into the icy ground, but he couldn't see what. "You bite me, bitch, and I'll flay your son alive."
"Do whatever you want, just don't hurt my son." His mother begged. Kre wanted to cry, to tell her he was already her, to say that the monsters in white had made him bleed. As it was, he could barely breathe and whimper.
"Make it good." The captain monster in white growled. He threw his head back and moaned, though little Kretok didn't know why. "These Sith girls know how to work their mouths. Lieutenant, I think it's only fair you get the next go. Push the whore onto her hands and knees."
"I like these Sith better this way." The twi'lek monster in white said. He got down on his knees, and shoved his hips forward. "You were right, captain, these Sith girls are good."
"You should try her from this side." The human said, laughing. Suddenly, there was a flash of light that blinded Kretok and screams from the monsters in white.
"Kretok," his mother gasped, walking over to him. She held her clothes up with one hand, and was walking funny to the youngling. "Oh no..." His mother whimpered. She fell to her knees next to him and touched his face. "Kretok, can you hear mummy? Look at me." Kretok weakly lifted his head, looking his mother in the face. "Don't worry, we're going to get you-"
"That was the wrong move, bitch." One of the monsters in white, with big black eyes, green skin, and a lot of head tails, said. He grabbed Kretok's mother by the hair, pulling her head back. Before she could react, the monster in white produced a blade, and drew it across her throat. Black blood shout of his mother's throat, spilling all over Kretok's face. The monster in white roughly threw her to the ground, with a disgusted grunt.
"Let's move out. Leave the bodies for the animals." The human captain monster in white ordered. The others all fell in behind him.
"Oh, hold on, almost forgot a souvenir." The twi'lek monster in white said. He ran back to Kretok, grabbing the youngling by his small face tendrils. It hurt as the monster in white pulled Kretok off his feet by the sensitive appendages, but Kretok could barely whimper. "Hey, captain, I think the whelp is still alive. Want me to finish him off?"
"No, leave him to bleed out, or for the animals. Just get your souvenir." The human monster in white called back. The twi'lek pulled out the same blade he'd used to stab Kretok, pressing the sharp edge to his taught tendrils. It already hurt as it bit into the soft flesh, but Kretok couldn't fight him off. With one swift motion, the twi'lek severed the tendrils, dropping Kretok to the ground. Kretok's eyes bulged, feeling like they were about to burst from their sockets.
He cried, silently, as he lay there. The monsters in white were now just shrinking forms at the mouth of the cave, disappearing in the bright light. Wing howled through the large chamber, an awful and lonely sound for the young one. Kretok pulled himself towards his mother. He didn't understand why she didn't help him. He didn't understand why she was just laying there, or why she stared out blankly, never blinking. Most of all, he didn't understand why she didn't move when he pressed himself against her, seeking her warmth. He didn't understand that his mother's body was cooling quickly in the ice, nothing more than a shell.
Little Kretok didn't know how long he lay there, shivering on the icy floor, black blood mixing with powder snow into a slurry, crying silent tears. He didn't know such biting cold existed, or that he could feel so much pain. All he knew was fear at the touch of a stranger.
"Oh no," a man said, his accent like Kretok's own. "We're too late. Sanguine'ar's dead."
"What about her son?" An Imperial-accented woman asked. The strange man rolled Kre over, staring into blood shot and dry eyes.
"No, no he's still alive. Hurry, get a medical team!" The man said, waving the woman away.
"Right away, my lord." The Imperial woman ran off. The strange man looked down at Kre, concern instead of anger on his face.
"Kretok, can you hear me?" The man asked. Kretok whimpered. "My name is Lord Doltan, I'm here to help. You're going to be okay, just stay with me." Kretok tried to mumble something, but couldn't get it out. Everything started to get blurry around him, fading into black and white. "Stay awake." Was the last thing Kretok heard.
I still can't remember her face, my mother, or what her name was before she was Sanguine'ar. I can't even remember her face. All I can remember is the sound of her scream; the feel of her blood on my face. I remember the feel of the blade plunging into me, and the agony of having my tendrils sliced off. The only mercy I can be thankful for was that it was a sharp blade.
Ana once asked me what it felt like to have them cut off, since so many Sith take care to protect their tendrils. I told her the only analogy I could think of; "Imagine," I said, "what it would feel like to have your lekku sliced off." She never responded to that, and she never asked the question again.
-Sanguine'ar.