It's possible I made this chapter above K, so don't read if you're not sure.
Chapter Ten
It was so easy to forget that you were surrounded by enemies, Lilith thought. She was beginning to like this motley group of fools, even thought she would have to kill most of them. When the time came, Lilith would make Zerrick gut Shaela while she was still alive, so that the stupid trooper would know who had killed her. As for Nex, Lilith would let him die honourably, and let him go down with his ship. And Zerrick, well, Zerrick would be hers forever. But not yet. Not until the right moment. At this moment though, she was plummeting fifty thousand feet through a storm with only a parachute and the Force. Lilith, Shaela and Zerrick had suited up with flight suits, and each of them had retrieved a parachute. Then Nex opened the airlock and they all shot straight for the planet. Zerrick seemed to be enjoying himself, if his joyous shouting was any indication. Shaela however, was quiet, and she had spoken twice. Both times telling Lilith to 'shut it, or else'. It was enough to make Lilith laugh, which again got her another talking to. Then out of the corner of her vision, she saw Zerrick zoom by, and he flipped around and waved.
"So, who's up for a race?" He asked over the comlink built into each helmet, everything from the last hour completely forgotten. Immediately, Shaela agreed, and after her, so did Lilith. Zerrick smiled, and he spun around and picked up speed, bolting further ahead. After him came Shaela, who careened to the side and crashed into Lilith, sending her spinning away, dazed. After she had both recovered, Lilith used a boost of speed from the Force to pull ahead, and eventually catch up to Zerrick. Sure enough, she slowly slid past Shaela, waving and smiling as she went. And just to make sure that Shaela knew who the top dog was, Lilith let a little fluid run out of her pack, which splattered all across Shaela's body and head.
"Ack, that's disgusting!" Shaela coughed out. Lilith waved back to her, smiling. "That's the idea sweetheart!" Lilith and Shaela continued their bullfight for another few thousand feet, then Zerrick began laughing.
"I win. And it was so easy too!" Both women glanced down, confused. Turning on her scanner, Lilith realized that Zerrick had already landed, probably using the Force to speed himself up, and to slow down when he neared the ground. Then there was the distinct whine of an assault cannon.
"Um, one sec. Maybe I could use some help . . ." Zerrick trailed off, obviously embarrassed. As Lilith neared the ground, she could just barely see the dark glow of Zerrick's lightsaber, and a series of red bolts emanating from a position about twenty-three metres away from him. Lilith angled for the shooter, Shaela pulling up beside her.
"We need to activate the chutes!" Shaela screamed, When Lilith didn't answer, Shaela reached back and pulled her own chutes, zipping up a few feet. Lilith slowed slightly, drawing on the Force. As she fell, Lilith counted out the feet in tens. At thirty feet, she flipped around and pulled out her lightsaber. She landed right behind the shooter, swinging down in a hard, direct strike. When Lilith stood up and opened her eyes, she saw two halves of a large man, cleanly cut.
"Uh, thanks." Zerrick said, lying on his back, bewildered.
"So uh, we taking prisoners or souvenirs?" He ask, noticing Lilith pick up one half of the dead man's helmet. Lilith looked down at him, offering her other hand and smiling.
"Why, whatever I please of course!" She said brightly. "Come along now." She ordered, and Zerrick dutifully followed. Lilith looked and tried to make out Shaela against the dark clouds. Then she saw a speck of white, and Shaela soared out of the fog, landing on Zerrick. They both cried out, and the parachute covered them. Lilith heard Zerrick say some pickup line, something along the lines of 'Well hello there'. She heard Shaela giggle, and then Lilith threw the parachute off them.
"Hugs later, destruction now." She ordered. Both of them dutifully stood up, and began marching behind Lilith towards the entrance. They had landed about a kilometre away, and it took only five minutes to arrive. Once they had settled on a vantage point, Lilith took a look at their adversaries.
"Three turrets, sixteen men and a battle droid. No problem!" Zerrick said happily. Shaela and Lilith both turned to look incredulously at him.
"What?" Zerrick asked, noticing their stares. "Oh, nothing." Shaela said. "But you're going first!" Lilith insisted, pushing Zerrick forwards.
"But, but . . ." Zerrick stammered, but he withered under the glares of both women. As much as Shaela didn't like Lilith, they were a lot alike, Zerrick thought. When Lilith pushed him, he tripped into a root, and hoped dearly that his fall looked something more like a dive for cover. It seemed to, because both of the girls ducked down. Zerrick crawled towards the waterfall, unsheathing his vibroknife. He needed stealth and silence right now, and his lightsaber was neither. He crept up behind the first guard, and pulled him down into the bush, slashing him across the throat and in the chest. Zerrick hoped that the man's death was painless, and quickly donned the armour. It wasn't Imperial, more private security. Grabbing the man's blaster, Zerrick marched out of the bushes, getting closer and closer to the entrance. Zerrick had an EMP for the turrets and the droid, but he'd need to move fast to take down fifteen men.
"Hey! Jonas, what are you doing here?" One of the guards yelled at Zerrick. Zerrick sucked in a breath, deepening his voice.
"I thought you might want to know that there's absolutely nothing. At all." Zerrick said. The commander's eyes widened, and he went for his pistol. Quickly, Zerrick shot both the commander and the man beside him. Diving to the side, Zerrick plucked out his EMP and tossed it at the droid and the turrets. There was a large discharge, and Zerrick charged forwards, blasting at anything that moved. When the dust cleared, there was only one man left standing. Zerrick leapt on him, and saw he was only about seventeen. Without thinking, Zerrick turned his blaster around and smashed it into the kid's temple. Not a killing blow, but one to keep him asleep for a while. Zerrick turned back to where he thought Shaela and Lilith were hiding.
"All clear!" He yelled. When they didn't come out, Zerrick raised the blaster and waited. Then a hand grabbed his shoulder.
"Ah!" Zerrick shouted in surprise. Standing behind him was Shaela and Lilith. "Why would you do that?" Zerrick asked pitifully. Shaela smiled at him and patted his cheek. "Because it's fun, of course." Zerrick glared at her, and picked his way through the corpses towards the entrance. Then an angry voice started yelling over the comlink on Zerrick's left greave.
"What's going on out there, Corporal?" Is the new commander here yet? Or has she not even shown up." Zerrick gaped at his arm, and slowly replied.
"Uh, I can't quite hear you sir. Maybe you could come out here and say it again?"
"Fine, I'm coming out." Said the angry man. Zerrick motioned to the girls to hide, and took up a position. When the angry man came out, Zerrick saw he was wearing an Imperial troopers uniform with a sergeants symbol. Zerrick shot without thinking, sending the bolt clean through the sergeants head. Lilith quickly jumped on it and dragged the body out of sight. Zerrick ran up to Shaela, but he couldn't see Lilith.
"One sec!" She called out, hidden from view. Zerrick glanced inquisitively at Shaela, but she just shrugged. A few minutes passed, with Zerrick waiting by the door with his blaster, and Shaela keeping an eye out for Lilith. Soon after, Lilith called out, saying she was ready. She walked out, wearing an Imperial officers uniform and carrying a pile of armour.
"I checked it out, and the armour should fit you Zerrick. And he did say that the new commander was female, so I should pass. Get it on already!" She said, exasperated when Zerrick simply stood there. Zerrick jumped up, pulling pieces of his own armour off and replacing them with the dead sergeant's. Meanwhile, Shaela walked up to Lilith and grabbed her arm.
"And just where did you get your uniform, may I ask?" Shaela said. Lilith simply pointed at one of the bodies lying around them, only this one was stripped.
"I found the new commander." Lilith said, smiling up at Shaela. "Come on Zerrick. Also, the sergeant's name was Wyrlan. Just remember that." Lilith said, marching towards the entrance to the base. Zerrick pulled on the breastplate, the last piece, and was about to run after her when Shaela grabbed his shoulder.
"Remember Zerrick, you need to deactivate the ray shield on the hangar so Nex can land the ship. Got it?" She asked him, and Zerrick nodded. Shaela let go of his arm, and he rushed to catch up to Lilith. The two of them approached the main door, while Shaela crawled into a ventilation duct. Zerrick and Lilith approached the sealed door, and when Lilith came within two metres, a key code popped out of a wall.
"Enter passcode." Said an emotionless voice, probably a droid. Lilith raised her hand for a moment, and Zerrick realized she was drawing on the Force to guide her. Slowly, she pushed three, four, nine, six, pound.
"Phew," Zerrick sighed as the doors pulled open. "I didn't know if that would work!" He said excitedly. Lilith glanced back at him, showing a sly smile. She put a finger to her lips condescendingly, and continued into the Imperial base.
"Well, here we go." Zerrick said, raising his rifle and following her in.
With Zerrick behind her, and Shaela crawling through a duct a few metres ahead, Lilith knew something was going to go wrong. But would it be caused by herself, or by someone else, she wondered. It was strangely quiet, quiet enough for her to actually listen in to Zerrick's thoughts. Unfortunately for her, his mind was a scrambled mass of memories, manuals about droids and several near-death occurrences.
"Be careful," Zerrick whispered, touching her arm. "There's three beings ahead. I can tell that one's a Sith." Once the words left his mouth, Lilith drew herself out of his mind and expanded her awareness. Sure enough, around the next corner were three presences, and one was surrounded by the dark side.
Surrounded, but not drawing on it. Lilith grinned. The Sith was obviously in charge, but he was weak in the Force, and after a few checks Lilith deemed his mind weak as well.
"Be careful." Lilith ordered Zerrick. "We need to get past without a fight." Zerrick saluted, and quickly pulled on his helmet just before the two of them turned the corner. Standing ahead was the Sith, a relatively good looking pureblooded Sith, and he was backed up by two Imperial troopers with Corporal designations on their armour.
"I'll take the minions, you take out the queen." Zerrick whispered to Lilith, smiling.
"Keep calm, I'm handling this Sergeant." Lilith admonished Zerrick. "Can you sense anything about our Sith?" She asked. Zerrick nodded, and motioned to the saberstaff hanging from the Sith's belt.
"He's an inquisitor, and a new Lord. So he still outranks you, Commander." Zerrick said. Lilith shut him up with a hand signal, and waved him along with her. Together, they marched right up to the Sith, and Lilith saluted.
"My Lord, Commander . . . Maria, reporting." Lilith said, supplying the name from the Sith's memory of a report. The Sith looked her up and down, and Lilith noted how his eyes lingered on the curves of her body, on her face and on her long, brown hair.
"Welcome, Commander. Corporal Masin, please escort Sergeant Tolaski to the hangar, so that he can see off what's left of the old commander." The Sith said, clearly attempting to intimidate Lilith. It was a test. Lilith knew that Imperial commanders had to show no emotion when in the presence of a Sith, so if she looked intimidated or fearful, he would know she wasn't who she said she was. But Lilith had been trained by the best, and this meagre excuse for a Sith couldn't do anything.
"Why don't you come with me Commander, and I'll show you the base layout." The Sith said, staring at her body again. His wolfish gaze unsettled Lilith, and she stammered when she spoke.
"Of, of c-course." She said nervously. This Sith might be an idiot, but he was still Sith. He was obviously fuelled by passion, which would make him dangerous and powerful. Nonetheless, Lilith still needed to eliminate him. She allowed him to steer her through the base, which was smaller than Lilith assumed. They passed the barracks, which only held thirty bunks. They went passed the mess, the armoury, and Lilith stopped when they reached a massive door. It seemed to made of pure durasteel, and Lilith could sense nothing beyond it.
"The doctor's lab." The Sith explained. "He has ysalamiri in there, as to dissuade any Force-users to enter." The Sith pointed down the hall to a row of doors. "Those would be the officer quarters. Your room, the sergeant's room, my room. Come." The Sith demanded, pulling Lilith along. Once they reached the doors, Lilith sent a silent plea to Zerrick to hurry up and let Nex in. The Sith pulled open one of the doors, and made a gesture with his hands, expecting her to go in. Lilith was worried about entering the small room, as most of her fighting abilities were meant for open space, and would probably kill her as well as the Sith. When she entered, the Sith slid in behind her. She pretended to examine to bed, the cupboards and the desk, while she was really attempting to hatch an escape plan. Unfortunately, that wasn't what the Sith had in mind. He slid the door shut, and flicked on a lamp.
"You see, Maria, we have a special way of doing things around here." The Sith drawled, addressing Lilith with the name she gave him. "Here, I am master. You are in my favour, and you are rewarded. You defy me, and, well, you end up like the last commander. Understood?" The Sith asked. Lilith nodded, real fear entering her features. If it came to a fight, the Sith would certainly kill her. So her only option was to subject herself to him, as revolting as it was.
"So, Maria, what will it be?" The Sith asked. Lilith drew in all her newfound hatred of this Sith, and looked up at him.
"I am yours . . . Master." She said like a slave, after only a moments hesitation. The Sith grinned wolfishly. "Excellent. Now, you might not want to move." He said, grabbing a fistful of her uniform and tearing it off. Thankfully, Lilith's uniform was in two pieces, torso and legs. So the Sith had only torn off a chunk of her shirt. Unfortunately, it was a large chunk that had previously been covering her chest.
"Mmm," He mumbled, staring at her. Slowly, he thumbed the activator on his lightsaber, and it hummed on. Lilith screamed, squeezing her eyes shut. But death did not come. She heard the buzzing of a moving lightsaber, and felt heat near her legs. Then something brushed down her legs. Slowly, Lilith opened her eyes, and saw the other half of her uniform lying on the floor, cut in half.
"Kneel." The Sith ordered, moving closer. Lilith obeyed, still fearing for her life.
"Bow to me." The Sith continued. Lilith leaned forwards, and the Sith stepped forward. He nudged the side of her face with his boot, and she realized what he wanted. Slowly, she kissed both his feet. The Sith kneeled down, bringing his lightsaber temptingly within reach. With a smug smile, the Sith ran his grubby hand up Lilith's arm, and around her neck.
" You are mine now." The Sith said, raising Lilith. She wasn't being choked, but the Sith was still holding her a foot of the ground by her neck. Now or never. Lilith's hand shot towards the Sith's belt, and nicked the lightsaber. The Sith's eyes widened just as Lilith thumbed the switch, and the Sith's angry gaze was frozen on his face as he toppled over, dead when he hit the ground. Lilith coughed several times, and scratched at her throat where the Sith's metal gauntlet had left a nasty scrape. Picking herself up, Lilith paced to where her clothes lay. Unfortunately, they were a steaming pile of rags now. Lilith looked back and forth at the Sith's corpse, and her destroyed clothing.
"Ah, kark it." She shrugged, and started working on the Sith's belt.