Chapter 4 – New Beginnings
Seventy days had passed since Louise was invited to dinner by Lord Juyn and much had changed since then. The revelation that she was much further from home hit hard at her, yet she could do little about it other than work. It was a worthy distraction, yet even work seemed affected by the strange newcomers.
Other changes came soon after. At first, she never really noticed the change, but when she did, Louise did not know whether to be pleased or suspicious. The guards seem far more forgiving when the strain of working became too much for the slaves, and food quality improved are a few of the changes that affected the slaves. Meanwhile, due to the nature of her job, she found Lord Juyn and his apprentice scarce sights around the facility; only occasionally would she see one of them walking around, doing something.
Then, out of the blue, Lieutenant Meetran arrived at the Barracks three weeks later. In her metaphorical hands, she held an invitation for Louise to dine with the Sith Lords. When she received this, the Pinkette was understandably shocked, but otherwise accepted; not that she felt she had much of a choice. Unlike last time, however, she only got half the day off instead of the full day. Louise was fine with this. Aside from that, it passed much like the dinner before with a nice little meal followed by a discussion about either her homeworld, the Sith Empire or anything else in the galactic community. It was informational, to say the least, with questions being sent back and forth regularly.
Between then and the seventieth day, she dined five other dinners with the Sith. Aside from these dinners, she and the other slaves had also been given two days off to celebrate the New Year's, roughly two weeks after the first dinner. To be honest, Louise had never seen so many relieved if suspicious faces in one room, dining on actual food instead of gruel.
Now, fifty days since the New Year's, Louise stood, towel in hand, drying the beads of water from her body. While her body dried, her hair remained stubbornly damp, but as a slave, it wasn't much of an issue. She folded the towel back over the handrails and began getting dressed for the day. The usual combo of shirt and pants quickly covered her form before the boots, gloves and goggles were slipped on. With that, she was ready for the day.
After exiting the washroom, she looked around to find her orange friend. She found him soon enough, sitting down and speaking to one of the slaves on the other end of the room. Louise smiled and made her way towards him, wanting to talk to him abo-
Why am I on the floor? A loud ringing sound assaulted her ears, she felt battered and bruised, her vision swimming. Sluggishly, she set herself upright, her eyes drifting every which way, trying to regain her bearings on what was happening. Smoke and dust obscured her vision like a thin veil, wafting in the wind and given an unearthly glow from sunlight beaming through the massive gaping maw-like hole in part of the wall and ceiling. Rubble and debris lay strewn about, broken beds and bits of buildings scattered. Nearby, she could see a few slaves, some cowering, some struggling to stand and others laying still.
She tried to stand but found her legs weak, unable to support her weight until two familiar arms wrapped around her, holding her up. Looking up, she found Ren looking down at her. He was bleeding from a large gash atop his head with several other cuts and scrapes adorning his head tentacles – his lekku – and his arms.
He was saying something. What? She could not understand. The ringing still persisted in her ear, his voice but a muffled drone in her ear – A distant thumping, like the din of rain upon a roof, at the edge of her hearing making it near impossible for her to decipher her friend's speech. He began looking around the room, his eyes alight with fear. He tugged on her, pulling her further away from the gaping maw, speaking more and more frantically. But this time, his voice clearer, though still intelligible.
Confusion and fear gripped her heart.
Are we under attack!?
Her answer came soon enough.
Hanging from something unseen, four lengths of rope dropped through the hole in the ceiling. Down these ropes fell four unknown beings.
The first was female if she were to guess. Tan leathery skin wrapped around its humanoid form, making her look gaunt with dark sunken eyes. A Weequay. She wore a loose grey tunic, tucked haphazardly into brown breeches. Covering these articles was a naval coat, coloured a beaten and battered burgundy that spoke of years of wear and tear. A long ashen braid trailed behind her, though this was all the hair Louise could see as the alien's head was capped by a tricorn hat. In her hand, she held a blaster pistol, different in make to the ones she had seen sported by some Imperials. By her side hung a sword.
Two other Weequays made up the other three, one male, one female, with the remaining being a male human. They were all dressed and armed similarly, though without the tricorn or coat.
Just from their dress, Louise could guess who they were. Pirates. The Imperial tunics and Sith dress might have been an odd sight to her, but she could recognise the look of a pirate even if the only experience was from her tutors or the trashy romance novels Cattleya hid under her bed.
"Find the girl!" the Weequay in the tricorn, their leader, shouted. "Kill the rest."
In an instant, Louise's blood ran cold, and in the next, all hell broke loose. Flashes of red lit up the Barracks, accompanied by the screams of terror and pain.
Strong arms yanked on hers, pulling her back, but all Louise could do was stare in abject horror as the pirates began systematically culling the slaves – Bolts of red blinking in and out of existence at random, striking slaves leaving behind horrific burns.
Pain exploded against her cheek. Louise snapped her head to Ren, who forced her to stare at him and nowhere else. "We need to hide!" he hissed.
Louise nodded absently, too shocked to do anything else. With a firm grip on her, Ren led the Pinkette deeper into the Barracks, all the way up to the washroom door. Behind her, slaves screamed, some begging for mercy only to get gunned down, less taking the fight to the pirates. They died too, only the Wookie managing to kill one pirate before he was gutted by the pirate leader.
When they passed through the door, Ren was quick to shut it, pulling her deeper into the washroom until they reached the furthest point away from the main room. Yet, despite this, Louise continued to hear the screams as if it was happening inches from her face; she could even smell the burnt flesh, charred by plasma. She wanted to vomit. Tears fell freely from her eyes. Her body ached from her injuries. She could not handle this. Everything was falling apart around her. She was going to die, and she could do nothing about it.
Ren wrapped his arms around Louise once again, protecting, comforting. She cried into his embrace, ugly sobs tearing from her throat. Ren did his best to try and calm her down, stroking her hair and whispering words of hope in her ear. "Don't worry, it'll all be alright, mi Ayy. I'll protect you… I won't let them hurt you."
Louise desperately wanted to believe him, she wanted this all to end. She had lost everything; her family, her home, and now she was losing her friends, people she cared for, and her life was next. Silently, in fear of the pirates hearing her, she prayed, to Brimir above, to the Gods, and even to Lord Juyn's 'Force' to help her, to protect her. She begged, pleaded for anyone, anything to help her and Ren.
But it was not meant to be.
The washroom door slid open and in sauntered the pirate leader. "There you are," she smirked, eying Louise greedily, crooked teeth showing.
Ren moved in an instant, eyes wild and dangerous. "Stay away from her!" he screamed, ripping himself from Louise to ponce upon the pirate like a crazed animal.
Caught off guard, the Weequay could only struggle against Ren's strength. They tumbled to the ground, both throwing punches, spitting curses. Ren was like a man possessed. He clawed, bit and hit, using everything at his disposal to kill the threat, but the pirate gave as good as she got, landing a few good punches and even managing to fling Ren off.
"Filthy creature," the Weequay spat, just as Ren readied himself to attack once more.
He charged, ready to knock her down once again, but she met him straight on, his body colliding in hers. But instead of falling to the floor like before, Ren stiffened, a sickening gurgling sound escaping his throat before the Weequay threw him off her. He crashed to the ground, a knife buried in his neck, blood oozing from his grievous wound as the last traces of life ebbed away.
Death.
It was something of an alien concept to her. Yes, she had heard of those who died, servants who killed pests, her father who hunted game out in the forests on the Vallière lands. But the death of someone she cared about? No. She had never happened before, and certainly not in such a way.
And it was all her fault.
She should have done something. She should have helped Ren, she should have saved him. But she was so scared. So weak. So pathetic. Useless. Zero. She sat by, terrified, while Ren, her friend, her teacher, her carer, the one who was with her since the start of this nightmare, the one who tried his best to keep her happy, the one who… who acted like a father to her, as he tried to defend her. To save her.
And that thing took him away.
Rage.
Like a blazing knife stabbed into her gut, it bloomed. Searing, burning white-hot within her core, spreading like wildfire through her veins, down her legs and up her arms, clouding her mind with just one goal in mind.
Kill.
With a scream that spoke of weeks, months of repressed pain, anger and hatred, she flung her hands forwards. And as if her pain was made manifest, lances of purple-hued lightning erupted from her gloved fingertips, burning the material away as it escaped. The Weequay was ripped from her feet and slammed into the door of the washroom. The flimsy door buckled under an unseen pressure before exploding outwards in a shower of debris.
Surprised shouts and yells, drew her attention, and there standing among the fallen bodies of her fellow slaves, were the rest of the pirates.
Kill!
A deep and animalistic growl tore through her throat and suddenly, she found herself tacking one of the men to the ground, her fist slamming into his face, relishing in the sounds of breaking bone. Her left hand, reached grasping for his sword. The second her hand wrapped around the hilt, a new sensation filled her veins, mixing with the white-hot rage. But before she could do a thing, a fist slammed into her face, again and again, and again. Yet Louise felt nothing but her rage festering further. She tore the vibroblade from the man's grasp and without a second thought, she plunged deep within the man's gut, relishing in the pain and horror in his eyes as the ultrasonic blade ravaged him.
She saw a flash, the burning light of a blaster shot biting deep into her arm, but she felt no pain, the blazing fire that was her anger swallowing any other feeling.
Snapping her head to the source of the discomfort, she saw another pirate wielding a pistol in one hand and a blade in the other. Moving on instinct alone she threw herself at the man just in time to see the bolt flashed past, missing her head by a hair's breadth.
The second her feet hit solid ground, Louise shot her hands out once more, feeling the white-hot rage swell within her fingertips once more. Lightning erupted from her hands, slamming into the man's chest before flinging him off his feet and out the massive hole in the wall and ceiling. Without thinking, just acting, Louise leapt after him, her legs launching her from the floor, high into the air and out of the Barracks. Landing, she curled herself into a ball, dissipating her momentum into a roll, stopping before her foe.
The pirate was broken before her, fear evident in his eyes.
Louise rushed at him, crushing his arm before plunging her sword it into his chest, through his ribs and into his heart, silencing his cries of pain.
But the bloodshed was far from over. The sounds of battle surrounded her, blaster fire slipping back and forth from one side to the other with two clearly divided sides struggling for dominance.
A whisper, far at the edge of her hearing, yet sounding so close, spoke in her ear. Move. It said, and Louise obeyed. Leaping out the way just in time as a blue ring of energy flew past where she once stood.
The rage that had stilled within her exploded back to life like a furious fire demanding bloody retribution. Answering its call, Louise rushed at those who'd dared to attack her, her legs carrying her faster than she had ever run before. They tried to take her down with more rings of blue energy, but it was as if Louise could see their attacks before they fired. Her body moved on its own, dodging, weaving, and ducking under the bolts of fire.
Fear racked through her attackers' bodies as she neared, the blue rings replaced by crimson spears. Slamming into the closest pirate, she quickly gutted them with her vibrosword, spilling entrails onto the floor, before moving onto her next foe who was beheaded by a swing of her sword.
Another slash, but this time her blade didn't meet flesh, clashing with an enemy sword. As the hum of the blades escalated into a pitch, Louise realized that she knew what she had to do, how she had to move, how she had to fight. She managed to deflect his blade, parrying his attack before bringing her blade up to end him with a slice to the neck, but before she could deal the final blow, the whisper once again called to her, telling her to move.
Just in time, she managed to move out of the way from three consecutive bolts of plasma, however, this proved to only be a distraction as in the corner of her eye, she saw the swordsman renewing his attack. The blade slid past her defences, nicking her thigh. Yet the vibrating blade did not just leave a cut, but opened a gaping wound that bled profusely. She didn't care, her enemy was before her and he'd die, there was no other way this would end.
Using strength she didn't know she had, she batted the sword out of the way and stab into his exposed throat. In a fluid movement, she pulled the sword free and readied to attack the marksman.
Her body recoiled as a crimson bolt struck her shoulder. Brief surprise quickly morphed into boiling rage as she called upon her rage-lightning once again. Shooting her hand out, lightning arched, slamming into the marksman and pinning him against a wall. She pulled her arm back, and as if she were holding him with an invisible force, he was pulled from the wall, levitating, before slamming back into the wall again, and again, until the wall bent and split open.
Nothing was left but a broken form smeared red before her.
She crossed through the new opening, finding a new group of pirates and a floor covered by bodies wearing slave-collars.
Louise's growled, her teeth clenched as she readied herself to rip the pirates apart, but before she could move, two figures fell through the gaping hole in the ceiling.
Landing on their feet, Juyn and Rayne brandished their strange sword hilts, blood-red blades protruding from the ends, and almost immediately, all the pirate's attention was focused on the Sith. Their blasters unleashed a storm of fire directed at the Sith, only for it to be deflected by the Siths' ruby blades. While briefly shocked by their sudden appearance, Louise quickly began using this distraction to her advantage, bringing her vibroblade to bare as she danced between panicked pirates, her blade making quick work. Some had given up on fighting and tried cowering or hiding, not that it stopped Louise from enacting bloody justice.
A shockwave of invisible energy blasted throughout the room, throwing Louise from her feet, but unlike the pirates, she managed to recover quickly, just in time to see the Sith begin cutting the pirates down. She joined them.
She cut and stabbed, and in just a moment only Juyn, Rayne and Louise remained standing amongst the corpses.
But it was not over, not yet, it wasn't enough. She could feel the slaves, those she had called friends, dying around her, their cries of pain ringing in her ears as if she was there.
"Louise, it would be best for you to go to the Imperial's and get medical assistance. We'll take care of the rest." Louise's head snapped towards the source of the voice. It was Juyn.
"No," she replied.
"I must implore you to stop and focus on yourself for now." Louise ignored Juyn and began walking to her makeshift entrance out into the settlement to find more pirates to kill. Before she could walk past the threshold, her body froze up.
An invisible force had gripped her, leaving her unable to move an inch as she was slowly turned to face Juyn who held one hand out to her, palm facing forwards. "Louise stop, you've done enough," he commanded, steel in his tone.
Her blood boiled at the seeming betrayal. "Let me go!" She shouted, her anger briefly loosening the invisible grip he held on her.
"No! If you continue you'll die!" Juyn cried, forcing Louise down to the ground.
"They killed him," she growled, glaring up at the Sith Lord unafraid. "They killed Ren! Je tuerai jusqu'au dernier de ces bâtards!" she cried.
"I will not let you die today, Louise," he hissed, making a grasping motion towards the vibroblade in her hand.
The vibrosword was ripped from her hands and thrown away from her, and immediately, Louise's body felt as if it had been set alight. Pain racked through every inch of her, her nose screaming in pain, hands burned and the various other wounds crying out.
It only lasted for about a second, but that second seemed to stretch on for hours. Unable to withstand the ungodly amount of pain, she quickly fell into blissful unconsciousness.
When Louise stirred from her sleep, the first thing she first noticed that the bed was feeling much more comfortable than it had ever felt, so much so she felt a bit tempted to sleep in for a bit. However, her sense of self-preservation forced her up. The second thing she noticed, was that the room was far too quiet, which unnerved her as she pulled herself up. And finally, the last thing she noticed froze her where she sat.
She was not in her bed, that was for sure. She was not even in the Barracks, though she could not have blamed herself for thinking it was if she squinted. The room was long and rectangular with eight single beds sat against the walls, four on each side, covered in pleasant white sheets. On one end, was shelving and a desk with one of the strange mechanical contraptions they called 'computers' sitting on the desktop. A door sat further along. On the other side of the room were three large tanks made of a mixture of transparisteel – a form of durable glass – and technology, each filled with a turquoise liquid. Kolto Tanks, she knew them to be called. Apparently, it was what the galaxy at large substituted for the healing magic of water mages.
Overall, the room felt… sterile, to Louise. The artificial lights bright and intense illuminating the room with a white glow. It also smelled off, like an alchemist lab or the medical wing of the Academy of Magic she could scarcely remember.
Though, it appeared she was not alone in this room as two other beds were occupied. Whether they be slave or Imperial, Louise did not know for she did not recognise them, but from the gauze that was stuck over one of the occupant's eyes, she knew they must have been injured. With this, she concluded that she was, in fact, in some form of medical wing. However, this conclusion brought with it many questions, one of which was-
Louise recoiled, tears suddenly welling up in her eyes as the memories of a day since past flooded her mind: The smell of smoke, so strong, so suffocating. The destruction, rubble littering the floors, walls destroyed and beds nothing but debris. Then the pirates, their blasters raining pain and death. Ren's comforting arms, wrapping around her, protecting… Mi Ayy… Blood. Bleeding. Ren dying before her eyes. He died trying to protect her. He died and she did nothing.
Her skin was pale, white as the sheets that covered her. Sobs racked her body as these memories burned into her mind. The screams of dying slaves, the stench of blood and burnt flesh, and the distant thump of explosions.
Then the rage, pure all-consuming rage, like a purifying flame burning away all it touched. It was power.
Power.
The room felt as if it had dropped twenty degrees. She remembered the power. The strange force that manifested as lightning from her fingertips to leaping far distances and fighting with inhuman strength. She also remembered the horror etched on the pirate's faces as she gutted them, spilling entrails and staining the duracrete with blood.
She killed. She had murdered them, brutally. She tore them apart, let them choke on their own blood or bled them dry. Louise looked at her hands which shook from her horror. She could feel still feel the vibroblade in hand, the groves of its hilt pressed tightly into the flesh of her palm. Blood stains, a deep red, splattered over small charred holes that bore into her fingers.
Vomit swelled in her throat, threatening to cover the pristine white sheets.
The hiss of the automatic doors caused Louise to jolt in surprise. Quickly wiping her tears away, she snapped her head towards the interloper. Lord Juyn stood, dressed as impeccably as ever in his robes. Upon seeing her, he walked in, smiling broadly. "Ah, I am glad to see you awake," he said, gesticulating as he spoke. "You gave us quite the fright, it's been four days since the attack and some thought you wouldn't make it in light of your grievous injuries."
She sat silently, mouth agape as she stared at him. Her head snapped back to her shaking hands, only to find them clean of blood, the only blemish being the immaculately carved runes that adorned the back of her left hand. Louise shook her head, holding back a shiver as she regarded Juyn's last comment. She remembered getting shot, getting cut, bleeding profusely. She remembered the pain, the agonising pain that racked through her body before blackness overtook her. "Wha…" she paused her throat aching, and took a second to composing herself. "what happened, my lord?"
While she was asking for elaboration as to what happened after the battle, it seemed Juyn had mistaken her words and so instead he explained from the beginning.
"We were attacked by a contingent of the outlaw population of the galaxy," Juyn said slowly, looking at Louise oddly. "Murderers, rapists, scoundrels. From what we could gather from some of the pirates we managed to take prisoner, they were searching for someone who apparently had quite the price on their head."
Louise dreaded to ask who they were looking for, the voice of the Weequay shouting for her underlings to search for someone ringing like a death knell in her ear, but she asked regardless. "Who were they looking for."
"You."
The word was like a punch to the gut. The pirates were after her. They killed to get her. Ren died because of her. It was all her fault. Everything was her fault. "Me? I… what? Why?" she asked horrified.
"It seems that someone was paying quite a bit of money for you," he replied, seemingly unfazed by her horror. "I have no idea who, however, I do know that they would not have had your best interest at heart if they decided to take this course of action."
Silence prevailed over the medical wing, Louise not knowing what to say, how to continue, and Juyn allowing her to recover before continuing. When she did compose herself, her mind was focused on one thing. "What about the other slaves?"
At this, Juyn smiled a bit and Louise felt bittersweet relief upon learning why. "I think you might be pleased to know that little under half of the slaves made up the casualties," he said. "Half were still at the mines when the attack happened and so, they were safe from the pirates, and we've found quite a few survivors in the Barracks. It would have been a lot worse without your assistance."
And like dust in the wind, her relief vanished. "I… I killed them."
"Yes, and?" Juyn replied completely unfazed by Louise's admission.
Louise gaped. The casual way he took death, murder was inhuman. "I butchered them!" She slid her legs off the side of her bed to better face Juyn as her grief mixed with anger as she spoke. "Murdered them! And, and, I enjoyed it!"
The Sith continued to act unperturbed by her distress. "Yes, you did, but tell me, did they not do the same to Ren, to the other slaves?" he retorted, calmly defending her actions. "They came here with orders to kidnap you and cull the slaves and they carried out these orders without a second thought. Had another been the target, they would have gunned you down the second they saw you. You defend yourself and you defended the other slaves."
Louise wanted to argue, that killing was wrong, that the visceral brutality she committed was a sin against the Founder Above, but the words could not voice it. Once again, she knew him to be right. More would have died, more would have suffered had she done nothing. Not only that, but the fate that would have befallen her was not something she wanted to think on.
"However," Juyn continued, "I am not here to discuss whether killing the pirates was good or not, though it undoubtedly was." The look in his eye told Louise in no uncertain terms that the argument was over and that it would be unwise to press the point. "I am actually here to discuss the power you used during the battle."
"Magic?"
Juyn quirked his lips as if he had found her comment mildly amusing. "To the primitive, it might have seemed like magic, but the Force is anything but."
Louise continued looking at Juyn, searching his face for any sign that he was jesting.
The Force was a subject that had occasionally showcased during their dinners. At first, she thought it was just a strange way to refer to magic, but as she learned it was apparently so much more than simple magic. Unlike the magic of her homeland which originated within the mage, the Force was more akin to how the heathen Elves performed their frightening feats of power by making contracts with spirits to do their bidding. However, instead of Force users making contracts with multiple spirits it was only one and instead of making contracts, they simply used it. She was not even sure the 'Force' could be considered a spirit with how he described it; an entity created by all living things within the galaxy that encompassed and penetrated all, binding everything together like some complicated spiders web.
But for her to use such a power? That should have been impossible without training, not even to make a mention of how she was able to use such a power. Yet, as she looked into the eyes of Lord Juyn, she knew that he was serious, that she had somehow used their strange not-magic. "You're telling me that I used the Force?"
"Yes, even now, can you feel it?" Juyn asked reverently. "Even in this very room, on this very planet, the Force flows. Close your eyes and stretch out your senses, feel the Force ebb and flow in the cosmos," he continued, closing his own eyes, smiling as if basking in the sun on a pleasant day.
Louise did not understand what he was asking of her, but obeyed anyway despite how stupid she felt. Closing her eyes, she tried to stretch out with her senses, whatever that meant. The room was quiet, the sounds of breathing the only thing that she could hear. In and out, in and out, methodically. She tried to tune the breathing out, to try and focus on whatever it was that Lord Juyn wanted. It took a moment, but soon, she noticed it. It was like something tingling at the edge of her mind. She drew near, curious, and then… it was as if she had been blind and now could see it all.
It… it… it was indescribable. As if she could feel the entire planet, the universe. Then came the voices, anguished and suffering, crying out, screaming in her ears.
Pain.
Stabbing into his brain with a searing blade. All the misery and grief of the planet cascaded down on her like a waterfall. Louise grasped her head, trying to block out the noise assaulting her. She tried to run, to get away from what once was just a tingle in her mind, but it was all so disorientating. "The planet!" Louise cried. "I feel pain. The screaming. Please, make it stop!"
She felt strong arms grasp her shoulders. "No, Louise, listen to it all. Don't shut it out. Embrace all the pain and suffering and become stronger for it. Let it fuel you, let it burn under your skin."
Without any other options, she obeyed the Sith Lord.
She pushed through the pained screams, the suffering she felt, and endured. Time passed and soon, the waterfall became little more than a dribble. The pain left. No longer overwhelmed, everything seemed far clearer. She could feel it properly now. She set herself upright, her mouth slightly agape. This was the Force. It was power. Pure and mighty, unbridled. She felt as if she were in the presence of a god. It was magnificent, beautiful, and utterly terrifying. Burning bright and hot, like a fire waiting to explode.
And it was hers.
Louise's eyes snapped open, gasping for air, her hands shaking from shock. It took a moment to compose herself, but once she did, she looked back up to Lord Juyn who stood smiling brightly at her.
"That is the Force," Juyn said to Louise and she believed him.
Yet questions still came to mind, questions she felt compelled to ask. "But how? How could I have used the Force?"
"That is a question me and my apprentice have been pondering for some time," Juyn said. "When you first arrived here, Commander Bosket took a sample of your blood taken and what he found was… odd. You, my dear girl, had the lowest count of Midi-Chlorians that I have ever seen. I doubt that means much to you, so I will quickly explain the concept of Midi-Chlorians to you.'
"The short explanation is that they're a form of bacterial parasite, thriving in the blood cells of those strong in the Force. The lower your count, it is assumed you will be weak in the Force; the higher your count, the stronger you are assumed to be in the Force. It is not a system set in stone and mostly useful to those Blind to the Force as many things can affect your count from certain drugs to your own body being hazardous to the parasites.'
"At first, we thought it was the latter, but upon retesting your blood, we've found that you now have quite the number of bacterium swimming in your blood. Roughly nineteen-thousand per blood cell."
Louise did not know what those numbers mean. In fact, she was unnerved by the fact that roughly nineteen-thousand parasites lived in her blood, apparently more, but from the look on Juyn's face, this was apparently a good thing. Then again, he thought slavery was a good idea, so she was not at all placated by him.
"What does that mean for me, my lord?" she asked confused.
He smiled, clasping his hands together excitedly. "It means, Louise, that you now stand at a crossroads," Juyn continued. "The Force is the road to power, that much you have seen, but you've only scratched the surface of this gift. You need to cultivate it. I am offering you a place at the Sith Academy of Korriban where you can learn to unleash your potential. You would be freed from slavery, given a place within our Empire as a citizen. Your life here and any life you had before will end and you will be trained in the ways of the Dark Side."
Louise looked up wide-eyed to Juyn who stood impassively, waiting for her reply. Her heart pounded, from both touching the Force before and Juyn's offer. She could hardly believe it. Not only would she be freed from the hellhole she lived in for months, but also offered a place to learn to use her new-found powers. It was amazing. She would have thought this was a dream, but she doubted her mind could have conjured such a fantasy.
She honestly felt a bubble of excitement well within her. She had power. All her life she had been told her useless she was, a failure, and now, here she was, being told she had power that none from Halkeginia ever had wielded. Not even her mother, the legendary Karin the Heavy Wind, had the power she did.
Her mother… she would be giving her up for this. She would be giving up her family, her country for this opportunity. Louise had no idea what to think of this. They were far away, somewhere in the impossibly large galaxy.
What are they doing? Are they worried for me? Do they think me dea- Louise stopped that line of thought. I can't think on this now.
No matter what, she still loved her family; her mother, her father, and her sisters. And deep down, she knew they loved her dearly as well. But, she might never see them again, and to pass up freedom and such an opportunity…
Taking a deep breath, Louise bowed her head towards Lord Juyn and said, "I accept your offer, my lord."
Juyn smirked once again, but it was quickly replaced with complete seriousness. "I must warn you, the way of the Sith is not for the weak," he began ominously. "Four days ago, you proved you had strength when you cut down those pirates. You must be ready to do such again; those that falter will be… left behind."
Uncertainty filled Louise's mind at the Sith's proclamation, but she steeled herself. She would not be left behind again. She would not be 'the Zero' any longer. She would not be a slave any longer. She had potential and power, and she would not let it go. "I will not falter."
Juyn hummed, whether impressed by her conviction or not, Louise did not know. "Those not born into the Empire sometimes choose to take up new names for themselves, to rid themselves of their past and be reborn anew," he said eventually, surprising the Pinkette. "What of you?"
Louise lowered her head in thought. To go by another name, to replace her identity with another… it made her uncomfortable. She did not want to be a new person, to walk with an alien name, but… she had already given up her name, her place as a Vallière, by accepting his offer.
This new life would give her strength, power, everything she dreamed of, and if she was going to accept his offer and join the Sith, she wanted to go all the way.
"I am Louise… Louise of the Sith."
It had been twelve days since the pirate attack, twelve since Ren died, twelve since her life was flipped upside-down once again, and since then, much had changed. Quite promptly, she had been moved from the Barracks – which were being scrapped for parts to rebuild – and moved into the residential building where Lord Juyn and Rayne stayed. She had been given her own room, her own bed. It was by no means fit for nobility, but it was far superior to the bed she slept on as a slave. The only issue she had was the loneliness she felt when she slept for the first night, but it soon became apparent this was a boon as nobody would be there to hear her scream in her sleep. Crying out for Ren.
Once settled in, her training began almost immediately. In the beginning, it was simple things such as Sith Philosophy. The subject of philosophy was intriguing. Passion was the quintessence of the Sith belief with a focus on freedom of emotions and strength as keys to the ultimate goal of the Sith, freedom. It was interesting to say the least, an Empire so similar yet different to her own.
Mother would certainly rule over Tristain if Halkeginia held the same views as the Sith Empire. Louise had mused during the early days of her training.
Lord Juyn did, however, emphasised control, that the lack of self-control led to the downfall of many a Sith Lords. Those shown to be so weak to allow their emotions to control them were usually dealt with as they were considered a threat to the Empire's wellbeing. The Sith were ruthless.
He had also instructed her in the basics of meditation, instructing her in the correct posture and seating position. He told her focus was key, to focus on her emotions, to stoke the flames of passion. It was awkward; she fidgeted, unable to focus and her legs would hurt under her weight. Nevertheless, Juyn was confident that she was merely unused to doing such and would soon be able to meditate for hours, sharpening her mind and invigorating herself. Wanting to do her best, Louise made sure that whenever she had free time, she would try and meditate for as long as she could.
However, things soon took a turn for the difficult as soon as her training took on a more physical twist. At first, Juyn wanted to see what she could do just from memory.
"Focus, Louise," he had said, standing before her as she sat on the ground, legs tucked underneath her. "You've already tasted the power of the Dark Side. It's a powerful ally. You must use it. Its power comes from passion and through passion, you will gain strength. Remember when the pirates attacked, remember what you felt when you fought and try to recreate it."
Louise bowed her head, obeying her commands. Remembering what the Sith had said about the ominous-sounding side of the Force, she took a deep breath and thought back to that day. The explosion, the pirates, the fire and death. She remembered the feeling in her gut, that burning fire that burned with iridescent rage.
It was like a switch had been flicked in her mind and suddenly, she knew exactly what to do. Her emotions gave her strength, her anger, her hate and rage, and she still had much aimed at the pirates. Focusing on these emotions she let it fester and boil within her gut. The Force reacted, its ebbs; its flows moving around and through her, becoming darker and hotter within.
She willed it up her arms, through to her hands and fingertips. Pressure built, the Force seemingly resisting her. Louise would not allow such a thing to impede her. Juyn had said that she would find resistance, and so she pressed on, imposing her will upon the Force, commanding it to obey.
The sound of sharp crackling filled the room, surprising the Pinkette. Her eyes flickered open to see the formerly dim room lit with a purple hue as lightning arched between her fingers, sparkling beautifully.
For the first time, Louise could not help but smile brightly. It seemed things were looking up for her.
However, Louise knew it was but a shadow of what she had performed on that fateful day. Juyn had pointed it out as well and had even given a reason for this. It was common for those who unlocked the Force through such emotional duress. They were untrained, however, when pushed to their limits, they could perform wonderful feats of power. Her problem would be dealt with training and time.
After this, the rest of her time was spent alternating between Rayne and Juyn, each teaching her the basics of the Force, waiting for the ship to arrive to ferry her to the Academy. And when that day came, Louise could not help but feel nervous.
Standing under the orange sun, Louise stared up at the Imperial shuttle as it flew through the air, coming into land. Around her stood Lord Juyn and Rayne, along with a few Imperials including Lieutenant Meetran, Commander Bosket – whom she was currently trying her best to ignore – and a few Imperial Soldiers.
It was midday, so the mines were being worked by the morning shift, or rather the pirates who survived the attack.
Late in the eight days, she discovered what happened to the pirates who had been taken prisoner. They had been enslaved by the Empire, punished for their crimes. Louise honestly had no idea what to think; they had committed a crime, murdered innocence for money, so they should be punished, but the idea of slavery was still wrong in her heart. Lord Juyn had said that a number of slaves in the Empire were criminals who were punished with forced labour, so their crimes would help the Empire as a whole, but even if the logic was sound, it did not sit right with her. The Sith had even offered to take her to one of the barracks housing the prisoners. She declined.
Soon, the shuttle landed, its stern facing the gathered crowd.
With a mechanical hiss, the landing ramp extended, hitting the ground before the doors opened revealing a stony-faced petite Imperial officer with short auburn hair. In her hands, she held a small personal computer. The Imperial stood just outside the door, off to the side, waiting for Louise to enter.
Louise made a move to head towards the ship, not really sure of what to do, but in her peripheral, she could see Lord Juyn walk up to her, drawing her attention. "May the Force serve you well, Neophyte," he said to Louise, inclining his head. "You'll need it."
Louise had no idea what to say. He had been there for her since he arrived. She wanted to thank him, to hug him even, but she knew it would be inappropriate. So instead, she bowed to both Juyn and Rayne, and said, "I will, my lord."
Juyn smiled whilst Rayne merely inclined her head in acknowledgement.
Taking a deep breath, she walked up the landing ramp of the shuttle. Briefly, she turned around, anxiety twisting in her gut. Lord Juyn was watching her still smiling, while Rayne continued wearing her trademarked scowl, though Louise had been around the girl long enough to know that it was not directed at herself.
Turning back, she saw the Imperial girl gesture for Louise to enter. Inside, she found a set of seats lining the starboard and port sides with another door at the end of the small room. The room was quite pragmatic in design, only having what it needed to function and little more, continuing with the Imperials love of military grey.
Quickly taking a seat, Louise was soon joined by the Imperial. Spearing a nod and an awkward mumble of greeting, she waited for the ship to take off, her nervousness doubling, tripling to uncomfortable levels. This was the first time she would be flying in such a contraption, not only that, but she would also be going leave a planet and fly through the inky void above. It was scary, if she were to be honest.
Unfortunately, she could not simply meditate throughout the flight as the auburn-haired girl opened up her personal computer before turning to address the Pinkette. "Ma'am, as per protocol, I have been ordered to register you into the Empire's archives. If you would answer some questions?"
"Okay…" Louise replied uncertainly.
The Imperial nodded, not once diverting from her expressionless face. Opening her mouth, she was presumably about to ask a question but was interrupted by the ship lurching upwards, to which she turned a glare towards where the pilot would be seated. Louise, however, reacted by gripping her chair with an iron grip, her eyes shutting tightly as the ship shook as it flew through the atmosphere.
Louise could already tell she was not going to like space flight.
AN: FFnet's formatting thing fucked up. Can't do the proper day break things, I'm not pleased.
