Revan glared at the slate grey sky as her robes got soaked from the torrential downpour. Under her breath she muttered a string of curses in whatever language came to mind, most of which focused on the damnable Force and its sick, twisted sense of humor. The rust hued droid on her left was finally, and somewhat uncharacteristically, quiet. At least that brought her some satisfaction, although it had only come as a result of her response to his complaining about the weather for the fourth time. Her temper had snapped and she had threatened her metallic companion with being dismantled on the spot by her lightsaber and then being dropped off on Tatooine for the Jawas to pick at. From that moment on, the only sound came from his joints and the low hum of his inner workings as the two walked.

"HK-47?"

"Query: Yes, Master?"

"Tell me again why I'm sloshing through the mud on a planet whose name I don't even remember in the pouring rain."

"Statement: Because your meatbag apprentice insisted that your presence was required to inspect the new facilities, Master."

Revan sighed, increasingly agitated by the rain working its way through her clothing to annoy her by trickling down her body. She hated having to resist the urge to fidget and do something about it when there were so many people around watching.

"Of course, it would be Malak's fault."

"Hopeful query: Shall I terminate the meatbag?"

The simple question amused her far more than it probably should have. She laughed as she pictured her assassin droid stalking her apprentice.

"That is a very tempting thought, HK. Very, very tempting, especially right this moment. But no, you can't kill him."

The hissing wheeze of a mechanical sigh of disappointment caused her to smile even more; fortunately that smile was hidden from view by her mask.

"HK?"

"Disappointed query: Yes, Master?"

"Next time I'm expected to muck around in the mud on some forsaken planet in the rain, do me a favor. Put your blaster rifle to my head and pull the trigger."

"Objection: Master! I could no more shoot you than I could shoot myself!"

Revan sighed, "Then remind me to redo some of your programming when we get home."

Finally out of the rain and slowly beginning to dry off, the Dark Lord's mood was only barely improved. She was attempting to feign interest while Malak rattled off his report on the current situation and the list of prisoners awaiting her attention. HK-47 absently drummed his fingers on the blaster rifle he carried and she very much wanted to yell at him, but didn't feel like interrupting Malak's report for fear that he'd start over from the beginning. A dull throbbing ache was forming just beneath her temples, and she was reminded once more about reprogramming the assassin droid so he could shoot her. She was also reconsidering her statement about him not being able to kill Malak.

Revan blinked behind her mask, realizing that Malak had stopped his infernal pacing and stood in front of her. He was waiting expectantly for her response but his brows furrowed.

"Master? Is something wrong?"

Revan shook her head, "No, of course not. Shall we see about some of those prisoners of yours?"

Malak nodded and turned to lead her down another corridor. They stepped into a large room with several force cages along one wall and all of Revan's favorite implements of torture readily available. The Dark Lord's mood brightened slightly at the opportunity to take her frustration and anger out on someone, and it didn't matter who.

She turned to Malak, and waved her hand dismissively. "Leave me."

"But…" He began to protest.

She brought one hand up to rest on the hilt of her saber, and Malak remembered the lesson learned in the loss of his lower jaw. It would be safer to poke an angry Rancor with a stick than to push an angry Revan too far. Bowing, he turned and retreated from the room.

When the doors closed firmly behind her Apprentice, Revan heaved a deep sigh of relief. He had been increasingly annoying of late, or perhaps her temper was just getting shorter. Shrugging it off, she glanced around the room at the assortment of prisoners.

"HK-47?"

"Query: Yes, Master?"

"I have the beginnings of a pounding headache, I've already had a very bad day, and that's making my really, really bad mood even worse. Got any ideas?"

"Optimistic suggestion: We could always kill something to cheer ourselves up."

Revan nodded, smiling beneath her mask. There were times she really did enjoy her bloodthirsty droid.

"I'll let you do the shooting. So, go pick one out and shoot them. But try not to kill them, yet. I'd like to see if they know anything useful first."

"Commentary: Blasting one of the meatbags now might make the rest a bit more cooperative."

She waved a hand casually, "Oh, fine, go pick one out and blast them. Then we'll start questioning the rest."

If a droid could smile, HK would have been grinning from ear to ear at that moment. He flipped one force cage off and primed his blaster rifle.

"HK, do try to make it slow. It's more entertaining that way."

"Affirmation: Oh yes, Master. This should be fun."

HK-47 truly did enjoy his work. His stance shifted as he switched into his hunting mode. The prisoner that had been in the cage, a republic soldier, tried to run, but in the sealed room there really was no place to hide. HK's first shot destroyed the soldier's left knee. Revan couldn't help but agree with the droid. The soldier's howl of pain and the sight of him rolling around on the ground, writhing in pain did seem to cheer her up a bit. Another blaster shot, another shriek, and the assassin droid's photoreceptors seemed to glow with pure joy.

Revan had built him, but even she was amazed at how good he was at what he did. Watching him work was like watching art in motion; albeit very bloody art, but art nonetheless. Eventually the soldier's body gave out and he lay dead in the corner where he'd cowered. Revan nearly laughed when she noticed that she could almost see HK's extreme disappointment.

"Complaint: Pathetic, frail meatbags. They have no stamina." The droid muttered.

HK-47 crossed the room to return to his position slightly behind and to her left. His stance was one of quiet expectation and readiness. Revan regarded the prisoners slowly, noticing the mixed looks of shock, horror, fear, hatred, or disgust on their faces as they watched her. Absently waving one hand, the field around another cage vanished, leaving its occupant exposed.

Casting a defiant glare at the Dark Lord, the young man in the cage refused to move. He saw the assassin droid watching him, waiting for its Master to give the order to kill him. Having been stripped of his lightsaber, he felt almost naked and vulnerable. Revan took a step closer to him and he instinctively tried to move back but was against the wall.

Revan grinned slightly beneath her mask as she focused her attention on him. Revan raised her hand and was rewarded by the shocked gasp as he felt the invisible force grasping his throat, slowly choking him. She held him in place as she moved closer, enjoying the frantic fear in his eyes. Stopping just in front of him, she released the force gripping him, and instead grabbed the front of his robes in her fist. He coughed and gasped as he tried to get air back in his lungs.

"You have a choice, Jedi. My way, or his way." She nodded over her shoulder at the eager assassin droid who, as though on cue, adjusted his grip on the blaster rifle.

"What's the difference?" Hatred and distrust burned in his eyes.

"My way, you answer my questions and you join me. His way, you die slowly and painfully like that soldier did. Maybe worse, he really doesn't like Jedi."

He shook his head, "Then it would seem it doesn't matter what I choose, it will only end in death for me. I could never join you."

Revan sighed, "Oh, really?" A ball of lightning sprang from her fingertips, slamming into the Jedi's chest. He stumbled back against the wall, shaking. Revan growled and turned to the assassin droid.

"HK-47, get him on that table and make sure he's secured. He's spoiling my good mood and that is unacceptable."

HK-47 grabbed the Jedi and hauled him to his unsteady feet and dragged him over to the indicated table. The Jedi tried to resist, but his struggles were cut short by the droid's stun ray. Once satisfied that the prisoner was secured as per his Master's orders, he returned to her side.

Revan nodded and walked over to the work bench along the opposite wall. After a brief search, she walked over to the table and injected the Jedi with a poison she had grown particularly fond of. His body flinched at the sting of the injection and he turned his head to face her.

"Poison?" He attempted to steady his voice, trying to sound unconcerned.

Revan laughed which sent chills down the Jedi's spine. "I know you're only a Padawan, so your ability to rid yourself of poisons is rather weak. However, even if you were a Master, you would still fail against this particular concoction. I developed this poison specifically for Jedi. It will not kill you, but it will make you wish it would. In a matter of minutes it will start shutting down some parts of your body and at the same time will over stimulate others. Within a few hours, you will either be begging me to let you join me, or you will be begging HK-47 to shoot you."

Turning away, Revan moved over to the far side of the room where she settled down into a chair and propped her feet up on a nearby crate. A slight grin spread over her masked features as the poison began working and the Jedi started to struggle against its effects. HK-47 walked over to stand beside his Master, somewhat confused by her actions.

"Query: Master? Did you not express a desire to interrogate the Jedi?"

Revan looked up at him and growled under her breath. She pointed at the chair next to her. "Sit. I have no desire to get a kink in my neck looking up to talk to you."

Sighing, the assassin did as he was told and sat down beside her.

"Now, to answer you, I am interrogating him."

"Confused statement: I do not understand, Master."

"The poison I injected him with over stimulates nerve endings, it does other things too, but that's the most important aspect. As it progresses, his entire body will become one solid mass of jumbled over sensitized nerves. Even the slightest air currents in this room will be painful, the touch of his clothing will become excruciating. Now, consider this, if I were to stand there and ask him specific questions he would be trying to focus on resisting my questions, trying to shield his mind from me. That would lessen the overall effect the poison could have on him. If I sit here, relaxing, his mind has nothing to focus on but his pain and that leaves it open to me and I can sift through his mind for whatever he might know of interest. Being that he's only a Padawan I don't expect him to have that much useful information, however, watching him suffer will cheer me up."

HK considered for a moment. "Declaration: You are a very harsh master, Master. I like you."

She chuckled, "You better, you rusty bucket of bolts. I'm the one who built you."

"Statement: Of course, and I am very grateful for my existence."

"Oh just hush, let me concentrate."

After several hours, the Jedi's mind had been picked over like a fresh carcass in a rancor pit. Revan was satisfied he knew nothing else of any interest to her, and she was growing bored. She stood up and looked over to HK-47.

"HK, shoot him. He's of no further use to me. His mind is far too weak to bother turning him."

"Delighted query: Master? I have I ever told you how much I truly enjoy killing for you?"

She laughed, "Several times, just kill him. I have other things to attend to, so I'll just leave the rest to Malak."

She had just reached the door as the blaster shot echoed behind her, followed by HK's footsteps as he came up behind her. Heading out of the facility, Revan's newly improved mood turned utterly acidic as she realized it was still raining and she would be soaked again by the time she got back to her shuttle. Muttering a string of curses under her breath, Revan seethed and fumed until they were out of sight of most of the Sith troops.

"HK?"

"Query: Yes, Master?"

"Are you absolutely sure your programming won't let you shoot me?"

"Apologetic affirmation: I cannot willfully terminate my Master."

Revan sighed heavily. "I really do need to change that programming."