Chapter 9: Ca'tra

Johta looks up at me, then looks between the two guards, "Ca'tra...don't."

I pull out my gun waiting for Rowan. I hid my face with my hair. A part of me could no longer face the man that I once called my enemy. He no longer seemed like the man that Rowan had once described to me, but perhaps that was his trickery again. I didn't know any longer, but I needed to end his life and these feelings.

Johta looks around desperately, pulling at the guards grips. Rowan steps in the room, stopping next to me, "Didn't expect it to be so soon...but so be it.. Take the life of the man who caused you so much pain my night sky." He folds his arms behind his back.

I nod and turns back to Johta. I put the gun to his head, "Got any last smart-ass comments before I put this bullet in your head?" My arms barely shook as I waited for the answer.

"Just one. Watch your head princess!" with the ink gone he uses his shadows to throw both guards off and kicks my own feet out from under me. He turns and grabs Rowan by the throat grabbing his knife also, pressing it against his throat. "Now...thats better."

I recover quickly and return the gun to Johta's head, "Kill him and I promise you, I will not hesitate to kill you!"

Johta moves a little, putting Rowan between himself and me, "Are you sure about that? Hmmm...I think your leader has something to say."

Rowan struggles in his grip, "Ca'tra kill him, now."

"Wrong," Johta knees him in the back.

I shoot the edge of Johta's right ear, "Last chance drop him now!"

"Tsk...how many times have I told you to listen, girl--Ca'tra?" He presses the knife harder into Rowan's throat, "Tell her, bastard."

Rowan growls with annoyance, "I don't know what the fuck your talking about, aruetii."

My arms continue to shake, barely, as I aim for his head with conflicting thoughts. "Are you just going to prove that you're a murder again?! I thought you said those actions weren't yours...now they are, so drop the knife!"

Johta looks at me with a little anger in his eyes, "These actions ARE mine now...I know what I'm doing, girl. Your the one standing there shaking, if you really want to kill me, you would be standing firm!" I watch as Johta takes his other hand and presses it to Rowan's head, making him scream, "TALK!"

I fire off shots towards Johta's leg. "I was going to kill you and I'll do it now! But I will not put Rowan's life in risk! He is all I have left now drop him!" My eyes become daggers, and I stop shaking completely as I become filled with rage.

Johta stops my bullets by putting up a shadow barrier up at the last minute, "You're gonna regret this later on...girl. But now I see the rage filling those eyes. Keep it up."

He continues placing doubts and fears into Rowan's mind, and I am helpless but to watch.

"Stop! He got what he deserved! It wasn't me! It was you!" Rowan screamed.

I suddenly lowered the blast after hearing Rowan's words, "wait you...what did you just say Rowan?" My eyes suddenly turned wide and a few tears run down my checks at the slow realization at what he meant.

"You heard the girl...," he jerks Rowan up, pressing the knife harder into his neck, "Say it...only a bit clearer this time..."

"No! Aruetii, you place lies in my mouth with your trickery!" Rowan yelled again with a growl. I sensed the lie for once. I could sense Rowan lying.

"There is no way; you saw each other as brothers...there is no way you could have done this, unless...it was all an act...," I end up allowing the pistol to slip out of my hand as the tears continue to fall. "Ca'tra don't cry...stay strong...what do you wish to do with him?," he holds Rowan still. "Ca'tra do you really believe this man...why would I kill your father my own brother in arms...you know I would never do that..," he pleads with me, "Don't listen to this man, he is only an aruetii."

I sensed all the desperation, deception, and lies.

"Yes why would you...," I think for a moment, "besides the fact you loved my mother and wanted her to your self...I remember...my...my father yelled at you to give her back that night... The night you both almost killed each other if the Mandalore hadn't found those bodies…"

Johta couldn't help but to smile, "I think our little Ca'tra is right...isn't she, Rowan?"

Rowan goes silent, staring at me with upmost rage and hurt, "Your father was a bastard...he stole your mother away from me when we were kids. I loved her first...and he just took her. And then she gave birth to you and your brother... her blood spoiled by his!" he punches Johta in the face, causing him to stumble back.

I suddenly grabs Rowan by his shirt, "where are they! What the hell did you do with them?!" I slams him into the wall as my eyes fill with rage.

Rowan glares at me with no care, "Why don't you try and find them with those force powers... Yialeti'r (Bitch)"

Johta calmly walks over to me, and punches Rowan in the mouth, "Don't call her a Yialeti'r, her name is Ca'tra." I slammed him into the wall again, "Tell me now Rowan! I am my father's daughter...I will not stop till I have my answer, now tell me the game is up!"

"You'll never find them. Sold off to slavers...probably dead already," he knees me in the stomach, then kicks me a few feet away, "Yialeti'r!" This caught me off guard as I try to catch my breath again.

Johta seizes him by the throat, pressing him to the wall, cutting off his air, "Bad move..."

My mind is only racing with thousands of questions as I slowly start to walk back towards him, "why...why did you not just kill me? Because once the Mandalore hears about these crime, game over! I looked up to you! After my father died I saw you as my father figure...why in hell did you take me in?!" I suddenly grabs my cord off the ground and wraps it around Rowan's neck.

"Because...you looked like...her, your mother...," he gasps, trying to breathe, "how could I kill the carbon copy of her…"

Even though rage had taken over, I could sense Johta carefully watch us.

I still had tears streaming down my eyes, "you just used my feelings like I was just some toy...my brother was only 3...how could you do that too a child and then the woman you loved...just so many questions that I want answers too..."

Rowan tried to shove me off of him again, "She was dead to me...spoiled by marrying your father and you brother too, almost the exact replica of him...it made me sick." Rowan tried to throw another punch to only be seized by the force again, but Johta lifts him off the ground, "Ca'tra? What do you want to do with him?"

I look down, "I...I can't just kill him or I'll be in your boat...and have to appear before of the Mandalore..."

Johta glares up at Rowan, squeezing a bit more, "...either way. If we take him to the Mandalore or you kill him now, he's gonna end up dead. Decide. Now."

Yet again, I have an impossible decision to make. My mind was still screaming and in shock of the whole situation that I made a rash decision.

"Put him down...," I regain my firm grip on my metal cord.

"As you wish," he let's go, Rowan drops to the floor. Before he could regain his footing, I tighten the cord around his neck, again, so he could barely talk.

"Ret'urcye mhi... Atuetii. (Goodbye traitor.)," I tighten the cord and slowly start to choke him to death, as it cuts into his skin.

Rowan struggles for breath, clawing at the cord. The anger and hatred slowly start go fade at the realization I was actually going to do it. My eye showed it well. They had gone so cold and filled with a blinding rage.

I could barely hear Johta softly say my name as he steps towards me, "Ca'tra..."

I just continue to choke Rowan. Rage and anger had fully taken its grip as I start to complete zone everything else. This dark sensation started to climb up my whole body.

"Ca'tra!," he allows a shadow to wrap itself calmly on one of my wrists, "Easy now…". I finally turned my sense slightly towards Johta to feel a slight fear had washed over him. I stop for a moment, "what...you told me it was my choice...I have made my choice..."

"Yes but.., "he sighs, "...you're too good for this...killing someone."

"He deserves to die...I don't care he will be my first...he destroyed my family...first my mother and brother then my father and then he took me in to raise me as his own. It's sickening... ," I couldn't help but start crying even more. The pain was so overwhelming that it started to whip away the anger.

He calmly walks over to me, placing a comforting hand on my shoulder, "Just put a bullet in his head...it's quicker."

"I rather him see the life choked out of him...," I look down to see Rowan's blood now streaming down to my hands. I started to loose faith in my decision.

"Then...don't let me stop you…," he rubs my shoulders and takes a step back.

I shake for a moment as my gaze returns to Rowan. He noticed the slight doubt in my eyes and tries harder to claw away the cord in desperation. Johta just stood back watching, waiting for me to end it.

Rowan's effort is in vain, he gasps again, the color slowly fading out of his eyes as he loses air.

I try to go tighter but my hand wouldn't move, "this...this is for my family you Atuetii scum and all the pain you put Johta through."

I could no longer watch as I shut my eyes and finally tighten to hear his neck snap. I felt Rowan's body goes limp to the ground pulling my arms closer to the ground.

Johta approaches me cautiously, and places a hand onto my shoulder, "Ca'tra?..you can let go...it's over. He's dead."

I loosen my grip slowly still crying as I open my eyes to look down at him, "now, I'll have to face the Mandalore...

Johta pulls me into a hug, rubbing my back, "First...you need to calm down.

"I don't think that's going to happen any time soon...as much as I wanted to kill him...yo…you were right...," I rest my head on his chest, as my body trembled.

"It's alright...you didn't know."

He places a hand on my head, still rubbing my back, "This is gonna be a lot to explain to the Mandalore...but I have your back. Little one," he chuckles slightly.

I shook my head into his chest and held back a sob, "Please don't call me that…my...my father called me that while Rowan continued to call me that for him…"

I suddenly sense panic among some of the guards, and one quickly contacted the Mandalore.

Johta freezes then continues to rub my back more, "I'm sorry...I didn't know...please don't cry..."

"I know you didn't…," I bury my face further into his chest. "I wouldn't expect you too..."

Johta does his best to sooth me with the force, "Shh...it's alright now. Come on, let's get out of here and contact the Mandalore. But...make sure we close this door tightly."

It's too late some of the guards have already done it…the guards are most likely going to be here any second..."

"Shit...thats not good…," he sighs, "...they're gonna tell him the wrong thing."

"They weren't here the whole time of course they won't."

"Shit...," he pulls me away for a moment, "...I'm going with, even if they tell me no."

We both suddenly turn our heads toward the running footsteps that now surrounded us in the small black cell. "I don't think u have a choice in the matter, Johta Shadowstalker...," said a man in black and yellow mandalorian armor.