18 Quintents Later….
Hearing the footsteps rapidly approaching her cell, Klara forced herself up from where she lay curled up in a fetal position on the floor and into a sitting position, her back pressed flat against the cold metal wall as the world spun in circles before her.
"Just breathe, Klara. You're fine. You've dealt with a lot worse. Just keep breathing." She coached herself, taking long, deep breaths through her nose and out her mouth in an attempt to chase away the dizziness she felt.
The door to her cell swiftly slid open to reveal a sentry standing outside, a tray cradled in its arms. Placing the tray on the floor, it kicked it towards Klara before shutting the door once more, leaving her by herself once again. Raising her head slightly, Klara careful picked up the tray and set it in her lap only for her lips to curl back in disgust when she realized most of its contents were once again scraps of meat based food just as they had been for all her other meals. Ignoring the pained groans of her empty stomach, she plucked off of tray the small glass of water that was included with her meal and pushed the rest away from her. Lifting the water to her lips, she thirsty gulped it down despite the fact that it only worsened the churning of her stomach and then tossed the cup aside as well. Taking more deep breaths to keep herself from throwing up, she rested her head against the wall to her right and began to slowly tap out a message.
Reiya, are you there?
A long pause ensured before tapping echoed from the other side of the wall.
You're tapping is even weaker than yesterday, Klara. You need to eat. You're losing your strength.
No. I'm not eating that heap of flesh. Even if I was willing to compromise and eat it, it would do me no good because it will probably make me sick.
Klara, the last time you ate was six days ago and that was just a little bit of bread. You can't go on like this. You'll die!
No. I'm not letting them win. It's going to take a lot more than an empty stomach to kill me, Reiya.
Suddenly, the door to Klara's room opened again and the same two sentries she had encountered her first day on the ship filed into the room, guns pointed threateningly at her as always. Sighing, the Lepidoptan slowly rose her to feet and placed her arms behind her back while the two robots circled behind her, grabbing her wrists tightly as they tucked barrels of their blasters underneath her folded wings and pressed them against the small of her back to prompt her forward. Blinking as she stepped into the light of the hallway, Klara drank in the sight she had grown accustomed to: pairs of two or more sentries roughly dragging prisoners out of their cells and forcing them into a double file line. Taking her place directly in front of Reiya, the pirate shook from side to side to clear away the blurriness clouding her vision but it only seemed to make the problem worse. As she stood in line, the sounds around her began to distort and warble till they were indistinguishable from one another while her now significantly slimmer body swayed unsteadily back and forth. Reiya bit her lip a Klara took one particularly steep lean to the side and after quickly shooting a glance at the sentries to make sure they weren't looking, she hastily stuck out an arm to steady her friend.
"Thank you…" Klara mumbled. However, something about Reiya's arm quickly caught her eye, "Rey, what happened to your scales?!"
Reiya hastily yanked her arm back and covered it with her hand to hide the small, discolored scabs that poked out from amongst the patch of turquoise scales running up her forearm. She tried offering her comrade a reassuring smile, but Klara wasn't buying it. However, before she could question her friend further, a loud slap rang throughout the hallway as one of the sentries struck her across the face. Glaring hotly at the responsible mechanical soldier, Klara spat at him before returning her gaze forward and shuffling after the rest of the group, which had already made its way down the first hall and around the corner. The world continued to blur and sharpen randomly the entire walk to the arena, the buzzing symphony of all the ship's functions thundering in her ears as if they were being broadcast over a loudspeaker. It wasn't until they stepped into the dimly lit arena maintenance closet to retrieve their mops, buckets, and rags that she experienced peace just for a moment, but sadly that moment did not last very long at all and she was soon roughly shoved into the arena by the sentries.
The crew in charge of cleaning up the carnage from the fights was just filing out as Klara's group entered. Even the prisoners who were veterans on the squad seemed shaken today, their eyes glossed over a distant as they reflected over what they had seen. The newer members of the squad were turning ghastly shades of whatever their natural skin tone was and all of them looked like they were about to be sick as they leaned against one another, mouths agape and sweat trickling down their brows. Klara's heart clenched fearfully in her chest as she entered the area and was greeted by the smell of iron and sweat. The numerous blood spatters were bright red today, indicating that the fight had been recent, and although that meant they would be easier to clean up, the Lepidoptan's stomach dropped nonetheless.
The female Galra, whom Klara had learned was called Scriphix, was not standing on the floor like usual but loomed in the stands above, glancing over her shoulder with disdain at the returning crew for only a moment before turning back to whomever she was conversing with. Armed with a bucket of lukewarm soapy water and a threadbare rag that was in serious need of retirement, Klara shuffled over to what had more or less become her designated corner, doing her best to keep all the water from sloshing out of her bucket as she stumbled along. However, as she walked, she felt her foot bump something and heard a metallic clink as said object skidded across the floor. Allowing her curiosity to get the better of her, Klara trailed after the tiny, bloodstained, golden trinket, which looked like a badge of some kind, and scooped it up into her hands only to drop it along with her bucket of water when she realized exactly what she was holding.
"That...That was a medal of the inhabitants of Rygnirath, of Coban's people…" she thought, her hand cupped over her mouth to prevent her from throwing up as her heart stuttered in her chest. Dropping to her knees, she felt hot tears beginning to drip down her cheeks as her throat was filled with suppressed sobs. "Coban….No, he can't be…..Not him…..Why him?"
"What are you doing?! Clean that mess up!" Scriphix screeched from her perch, but Klara barely heard her as she stared at the medal as it now seemed to glare accusingly at her. Reiya was at her side by now and staring that the little badge as well, her big eyes widening even further as her fair skin turned whiter than a ghost.
"Don't make me come down there, princess! Stop gawking and get cleaning or you'll be in the ring next!" Scriphix continued to scream but she fell silent as a slender hand clamped firmly down on her shoulder.
"Now Scriphix, give the poor girl a break. That was one of her comrades that was so brutally butchered in the arena today. Let her grieve for a moment." Lotor purred softly before releasing her from his grip and making his way down the steps and onto the arena floor, Narti and Ezor in tow. As he passed, the other prisoners all dropped to their knees and kept their eyes on the ground, but Lotor had little interest in them. Crouching down in front of Klara, he slipped his forefinger underneath her jaw and gently tilted it upwards so she was looking him dead in the eyes.
"I could've prevented this. While he would have still been a prisoner, I could've had him and the rest of your crew placed on the maintenance crews along with you and your giant friend here. All you had to do was say yes." he cooed as he gazed at her with mock sympathy.
Reiya's nostrils flared at Lotor's words but the second she took a step towards the prince her arms were immediately grabbed by Narti and Scriphix. After shooting a glance in their direction to make sure she was adequately restrained, Lotor returned his attention towards Klara only for his smirk to falter when he noticed the glassiness of her eyes. "Klara?"
Klara weakly glanced up at Lotor again before her eyes rolled back into her skull and she began to fall backwards. Lotor immediately lunged forward to catch her before her head hit the ground, his heart pounding in his ears as he stared at her pale, gaunt looking face that was far too corpse-like for his own personal comfort.
"Klara?! Klara?! Klara, answer me now!" he exclaimed as he began to roughly shake her, but her body merely flopped about like a ragdoll. Temper and panic rising in unison, Lotor whipped around to glare at Scriphix, you shrank back beneath his gaze.
"What have you done? I told you to make her life a living hell, not kill her!" he hissed as he menacingly rose to his feet and stalked towards her, Klara still cradled in his arms.
Scriphix swallowed a whimper as she took a single step back. "I...I...She…I did what you ordered, sir!"
"You can say that to me with straight face? I didn't want her to die; I wanted her to suffer!" Lotor spat as he thrust Klara's limp body into the woman's face. "You are responsible for this. Pray for your own sake that she makes it for if she does not, you can count on me holding you personally responsible for my victory being stolen from me."
Scriphix took a second step back before dropping down to one knee, her expression grave. "Yes, Prince Lotor."
Ignoring her completely, Lotor jerked his head to the side as a signal for Narti and Ezor to follow him quickly exiting the area with Klara held close to his chest. Reiya tried to run after them, but the other prisoners hastily caught her and pulled her back, hugging her close as she silently cried.
"Narti, I want two druids brought to my room immediately. Tell Haggar it's urgent and if she doesn't cooperate then drag the druids there." Lotor barked as he bustled along, his eyes never lingering from Klara's face for too long. "Ezor, I want all records on Klara brought to me as well. Security footage, schedule, everything you can find. That wench Scriphix better hope I don't find anything that links directly back to her."
Ezor and Narti nodded in understanding before quickly dashing down the first hallway that branched off of their current path. Meanwhile, Lotor continued forward, paying no mind to the stares he received as he briskly made his way to his room, all the while glancing at Klara's chest to make sure it was still rising and falling. Upon finally reaching his destination, he hastily shuffled inside and set Klara down on a nearby couch just as Narti returned with the two druids. The two druids glanced back and forth between Lotor and Klara, and although masks covered whatever portion of their faces that weren't draped in shadow, he could tell they were confused.
"I have a personal vendetta to settle with this woman. She cannot die until then. Figure out what is wrong with her and fix it." the prince barked. Seeing Ezor slip through the door with a tablet in hand, he stepped away from Klara so the druids could begin their work and approached his general.
"What have you found?"
"I managed to find her entire profile on the prisoner database. I've already reviewed the contents and I think I spotted the problem. Take a look at this." Ezor stated before handing the tablet over to Lotor.
The prince raised an eyebrow as he read through the data. "This is her meal log?"
"Yes sir."
"And the notes say that most of the food came back untouched…"
Frowning, Lotor turned to the druids to the Klara. As he stared at her, he realized she looked much thinner than most of the other prisoners, including the rest of her crew.
"So she's malnourished…" he concluded quietly. After thinking for a moment, he continued reading through the meal log. Ezor could tell based on his pinched brows and pursed lips that he had an idea.
"Her meals...they're all meat based…." Lotor finally mumbled.
Ezor tilted her head to the side in puzzlement. "And that means…."
"Ezor, bring me that book we acquired on her people. I believe I have overlooked something important."
"Yes sir."
As Ezor scampered out again, Lotor shot one final look at Klara. Her face twitched occasionally as the druids examined her but other than that she was still very much unconscious. Nonetheless, he quietly whispered aloud a single promise to her.
"You are not allowed to die, pirate, not until you've begged for mercy."
When she could finally open her eyes again, Klara was surprised to find herself sprawled on a couch with an IV attached to her arm. Groaning, she tried to sit up but found that her muscles were still asleep.
"So you've woken."
Klara immediately whipped her head in the direction of Lotor's voice, glaring daggers at him as he leaned against the nearest wall, his smiling eyes fixed on her face.
"You're a lot of trouble, you know that. Your scaly Syrose friend just about caused a riot when we took you. I suspect her punishment is currently being discussed as we speak."
Klara's eyes widened in horror, causing Lotor's smirk to grow. Crossing over to her, he eased himself down beside her on the couch and grabbed her chin.
"You can put a stop to this. All you have to do is say yes."
"...No…..I will never allow myself to be tainted by your kind…." Klara grunted weakly as she scowled up at him. Despite her circumstances, the fire in her eyes seemed to glow even brighter, much to Lotor's disdain and confusion.
"Very well then." the prince sighed as he rose to his feet and began to walk away. "It is a shame. Perhaps after your entire team is dead you will come to your senses."
Klara's heart lurched as her mind flashed back to the image of Coban's bloodied medal on the arena floor, and before she could stop herself, she had instinctively reached out and grabbed Lotor's arm before he could leave. The Galra prince glanced back at her with a hint of amusement.
"What is it? Have you more to say?" He purred knowingly.
Klara swallowed thickly, mentally bracing herself for what she was about to do. "I-I'll do it. Please, just don't hurt them any longer."
Lotor's face brightened as the bells of victory rang in his ears. However, this wasn't enough; he needed more.
"Very good. However, I must apologize for I have been dishonest with you. When I proposed that you would bear my child, I was merely jesting. I just wished to see how low you were willing to sink. Seems you truly have no shame after all, your highness."
Klara didn't know how to respond as feelings of anger, fear, shock, and humiliation whirled around in her head to create one chaotic typhoon.
"You mean...You won't save them…"
"I'm afraid so. It's not your fault; you had nothing to give me in the first place in exchange for their lives."
No. No, she couldn't let this happen! She couldn't!
"Please, there has to be something you want from me."
"I already have you groveling at my feet. What more could I ask for-"
"I'll be your servant!"
Lotor blinked at her sudden exclamation before smiling. "Oh?"
"I'll grovel at your feet every day. I'll bend over backwards to please you. Just don't let any more of them die." Klara pleaded, her lip quivering though she refused to cry.
"Hmm. That is a tempting offer." Lotor sneered. After a moment, he pressed a button on the wall and two sentries walked in a moment later. "Take this woman and have her bathed and groomed. Dress her in the garb of a royal servant and bring her back to me when you are done."
The sentries bowed respectfully then quickly dragged Klara out of the room. As she walked with her head down, Klara felt violated and used. Half of Lotor's threats had been no more than mind games, and Conan had paid the price for her not being able to distinguish between a bluff and an actual threat. Rage coursing through her veins, she grit her teeth and clenched her fists as she thought of Lotor's cocky grin.
"He thinks he has won? Heh, he's sorely mistaken. The cycle of revenge doesn't cease, not until one of the parties is dead."
Haggar's frown deepened as she mulled over what the druids had told her.
"See what you can find out about this girl. She could potentially be a problem." the old witch mumbled to her minions before lurking off, leaving the druids to do her bidding. As she was walking, she stopped when she heard footsteps and quickly hid behind one of the many large pillars lining the hallway. Her eyes narrowed as she watched two sentries walk past, the girl the druids had described standing between them.
"It would seem Lotor has decided to make himself a new toy. This could prove…..troublesome."