Chapter 3 - The Interrogation
"So what happened?" Zora sighed. Krayn just had to know everything. She decided to answer short and simply.
"The boy went crazy, threw a bunch of stuff around the room, knocked an overseer out, exhausted himself, and was subdued by the other overseers."
"You care a lot about this, don't you?"
"I don't see why one boy trying to escape is so amazingly out of proportion. At least one slave a day tries."
Krayn observed her, seeming to see right into her soul. Zora shuddered. She had forgotten she was bonded to him. He possessed a small token, containing a drop of her blood. With it, he could see if she was telling the truth. He insisted on having one token for every one of the people who worked for him. He claimed it gave him security. Zora satisfied herself with the fact that her token didn't give him nearly as much power over her as it did with the others. And her token, which formed itself to her personality, was a dragon. Very satisfying.
But still, she had to be careful what she said. She hadn't lied, but she hadn't told the whole truth. She still couldn't figure out if he could detect that or not.
Krayn finally stopped staring at her, seemingly satisfying with what he found. "I heard rumors that he didn't just 'throw a bunch stuff around the room.' That he flew things around the room. Literally."
Zora thought fast. She had to be careful what she said. "Flew things around the room? As in, made things fly? Impossible. Yeah, you can make something that's meant to fly fly, like a ship. But make an ordinary bed fly? Impossible." There. Although none of it was actually true, the lies could be blamed on her "ignorance". Zora barely contained a sigh. It was tiring having to plan everything she said around Krayn, but after two years it was getting easier to fool and manipulate him.
Krayn walked slowly around the room, assessing what she had said. "I'd like to believe you, Zora, but it's not impossible. Strange that you, with your brilliant mind, should overlook this possibility." He stared at her again, and Zora belatedly realized that she had never been "ignorant" on a matter before, and Krayn relied on her a reliable source of information. If he suspected something.
But Krayn merely continued. "The boy is a Jedi. You know what a Jedi is, I hope?" he asked, mockingly. For Zora to claim she didn't would open a huge hole in the defensive shield she carefully maintained around herself. No one as knowledgeable as she was could not know about the Jedi. Krayn had purposefully put her in this awkward position. Again, as she had so many times before, Zora wondered how much he really knew.
"A Jedi," she murmured softly. "That explains it." Panicking, she thought wildly. How could she explain her "ignorance"? Jedi were the most known beings in the galaxy, along with the Force. "But the boy is so young. How could he have such great powers? I thought that only the older ones did." Damn! She cursed herself. I know too much. She knew she had better get out of here before she made any more mistakes.
"Look, Krayn, you woke me up before dawn. I got practically no sleep last night, and it's already midnight. If you want me in any condition to work tomorrow, just let me go to bed."
Krayn laughed and let her go, and Zora left the room. His laugh had such a feeling of I'm letting you get away with this that she wondered if Krayn didn't know everything. If he did, why did he allow her to stay? She was about to enter her room, next to his, when his harsh voice stopped her, and turned her blood to ice.
"Zora, how did you capture a Jedi? Why was he all alone, without his Master? And why did he let you capture him?" Zora turned, feigning weariness.
"I found him aboard my ship. He didn't know I had found him, and I had a blaster at his back before he could draw that damn weapon of his." True.
"How did he get on the ship? You never touched down."
"I don't know. I figured that he flew a small ship through the ventilation shaft." True, except that she knew he had.
"Mmm hmm. And then where is this ship? Shouldn't it still be in the shaft?"
"We searched the whole ship and didn't find a ship." True enough. "We.maybe it was on autopilot?" she finished lamely.
"And managed to fly its way through all the twists and turns in the shaft and avoid the gas ejections. Dream on, Zora." Krayn growled, prowling closer, making her feel like a mouse the cat was toying with. "How did the boy get on the ship?"
"I..I told you. I don't know for sure." Oh damn. That's a lie. "Except for the ship, there is no other way, as we didn't touch down." She covered up, barely. Krayn would never trust her again.
"So we come to the conclusion that he entered on a ship. How did you come up with such a far out idea that is the only solution?"
"I." Oh, I'm in for it now. "I think I saw the ship. I'm not sure, it was only a speck on the radar, but I think that's what it was."
"You still haven't answered how the ship got out on it's own." Zora could only keep silent.
"Could it be that he was with his Master, after all. That you failed to capture him?" Krayn's emphasis on the word failed chilled Zora to bone. Still she couldn't speak.
"All right, Zora, I'll ask you a direct question. Was the boy alone or not?" Zora could tell a downright lie, or she could tell the truth, that he was with his Master. Either way, Krayn would find out the truth, and she would be punished for failing to capture him. Lying would only add to her punishment.
By then, Krayn had noticed her hesitation. "He wasn't alone, was he, Zora. He was with his Master."
"I." Zora knew it was hopeless. Krayn had won. "Yes. He was with his Master." She couldn't help feeling that those words had sealed her fate.
Krayn leapt forward in the space of a heartbeat, a whip suddenly in his hand. He kicked Zora's feet out from under her, and she slammed heavily to the ground. She felt the bone in her arm snap. Krayn then whipped her, again and again, until she felt that there could be no skin left on her back. She took it all in silence, refusing to scream, to give him that one last satisfaction, although the pain was unbearable. She felt his hand probing along her belt, and feared the worst. But he only pulled out Anakin's lightsaber.
"I'm sure you were going to give this to me. Perhaps you just.forgot?" He laughed, a harsh sound that grated on her ears. Then his face was right beside hers.
"Don't fail me again, Zora. Or you will beg for death." Then he leapt away with a cat's grace. Zora managed to crawl into her room and shut the door before she fell into welcome darkness.
"So what happened?" Zora sighed. Krayn just had to know everything. She decided to answer short and simply.
"The boy went crazy, threw a bunch of stuff around the room, knocked an overseer out, exhausted himself, and was subdued by the other overseers."
"You care a lot about this, don't you?"
"I don't see why one boy trying to escape is so amazingly out of proportion. At least one slave a day tries."
Krayn observed her, seeming to see right into her soul. Zora shuddered. She had forgotten she was bonded to him. He possessed a small token, containing a drop of her blood. With it, he could see if she was telling the truth. He insisted on having one token for every one of the people who worked for him. He claimed it gave him security. Zora satisfied herself with the fact that her token didn't give him nearly as much power over her as it did with the others. And her token, which formed itself to her personality, was a dragon. Very satisfying.
But still, she had to be careful what she said. She hadn't lied, but she hadn't told the whole truth. She still couldn't figure out if he could detect that or not.
Krayn finally stopped staring at her, seemingly satisfying with what he found. "I heard rumors that he didn't just 'throw a bunch stuff around the room.' That he flew things around the room. Literally."
Zora thought fast. She had to be careful what she said. "Flew things around the room? As in, made things fly? Impossible. Yeah, you can make something that's meant to fly fly, like a ship. But make an ordinary bed fly? Impossible." There. Although none of it was actually true, the lies could be blamed on her "ignorance". Zora barely contained a sigh. It was tiring having to plan everything she said around Krayn, but after two years it was getting easier to fool and manipulate him.
Krayn walked slowly around the room, assessing what she had said. "I'd like to believe you, Zora, but it's not impossible. Strange that you, with your brilliant mind, should overlook this possibility." He stared at her again, and Zora belatedly realized that she had never been "ignorant" on a matter before, and Krayn relied on her a reliable source of information. If he suspected something.
But Krayn merely continued. "The boy is a Jedi. You know what a Jedi is, I hope?" he asked, mockingly. For Zora to claim she didn't would open a huge hole in the defensive shield she carefully maintained around herself. No one as knowledgeable as she was could not know about the Jedi. Krayn had purposefully put her in this awkward position. Again, as she had so many times before, Zora wondered how much he really knew.
"A Jedi," she murmured softly. "That explains it." Panicking, she thought wildly. How could she explain her "ignorance"? Jedi were the most known beings in the galaxy, along with the Force. "But the boy is so young. How could he have such great powers? I thought that only the older ones did." Damn! She cursed herself. I know too much. She knew she had better get out of here before she made any more mistakes.
"Look, Krayn, you woke me up before dawn. I got practically no sleep last night, and it's already midnight. If you want me in any condition to work tomorrow, just let me go to bed."
Krayn laughed and let her go, and Zora left the room. His laugh had such a feeling of I'm letting you get away with this that she wondered if Krayn didn't know everything. If he did, why did he allow her to stay? She was about to enter her room, next to his, when his harsh voice stopped her, and turned her blood to ice.
"Zora, how did you capture a Jedi? Why was he all alone, without his Master? And why did he let you capture him?" Zora turned, feigning weariness.
"I found him aboard my ship. He didn't know I had found him, and I had a blaster at his back before he could draw that damn weapon of his." True.
"How did he get on the ship? You never touched down."
"I don't know. I figured that he flew a small ship through the ventilation shaft." True, except that she knew he had.
"Mmm hmm. And then where is this ship? Shouldn't it still be in the shaft?"
"We searched the whole ship and didn't find a ship." True enough. "We.maybe it was on autopilot?" she finished lamely.
"And managed to fly its way through all the twists and turns in the shaft and avoid the gas ejections. Dream on, Zora." Krayn growled, prowling closer, making her feel like a mouse the cat was toying with. "How did the boy get on the ship?"
"I..I told you. I don't know for sure." Oh damn. That's a lie. "Except for the ship, there is no other way, as we didn't touch down." She covered up, barely. Krayn would never trust her again.
"So we come to the conclusion that he entered on a ship. How did you come up with such a far out idea that is the only solution?"
"I." Oh, I'm in for it now. "I think I saw the ship. I'm not sure, it was only a speck on the radar, but I think that's what it was."
"You still haven't answered how the ship got out on it's own." Zora could only keep silent.
"Could it be that he was with his Master, after all. That you failed to capture him?" Krayn's emphasis on the word failed chilled Zora to bone. Still she couldn't speak.
"All right, Zora, I'll ask you a direct question. Was the boy alone or not?" Zora could tell a downright lie, or she could tell the truth, that he was with his Master. Either way, Krayn would find out the truth, and she would be punished for failing to capture him. Lying would only add to her punishment.
By then, Krayn had noticed her hesitation. "He wasn't alone, was he, Zora. He was with his Master."
"I." Zora knew it was hopeless. Krayn had won. "Yes. He was with his Master." She couldn't help feeling that those words had sealed her fate.
Krayn leapt forward in the space of a heartbeat, a whip suddenly in his hand. He kicked Zora's feet out from under her, and she slammed heavily to the ground. She felt the bone in her arm snap. Krayn then whipped her, again and again, until she felt that there could be no skin left on her back. She took it all in silence, refusing to scream, to give him that one last satisfaction, although the pain was unbearable. She felt his hand probing along her belt, and feared the worst. But he only pulled out Anakin's lightsaber.
"I'm sure you were going to give this to me. Perhaps you just.forgot?" He laughed, a harsh sound that grated on her ears. Then his face was right beside hers.
"Don't fail me again, Zora. Or you will beg for death." Then he leapt away with a cat's grace. Zora managed to crawl into her room and shut the door before she fell into welcome darkness.