The slaver lured the soldier outside and the doors to the lounge room closed. Elon turned to leave, but balked. The general was still there. She thought he had left. His presence had disappeared. Now, it was back. He had hidden it from her.

"What do you want, male?!" she spat.

Ka'nine stood. "Be at ease. I mean no harm."

"That's what all of you men say."

"I can sense you. I know you can sense me. You're a force sensitive, but you don't want your master to know," the jedi softly spoke. He stood and patrolled with his arms down at his sides. "You're very powerful."

"I have no choice, but to be. What is it to you?"

"I know you've done some rather devilish things with your abilities. Lorne's told me your fury. You managed to launch him into space once, didn't you? With no hands."

Elon just glared at the man, her vibro ax planted beside her, ready to be activated if the man got too close or he said something she didn't like. He was pretty damn close, now.

"You know I'm right. Who taught you what you know?"

"You're treading ground that doesn't belong to you, jedi," the woman growled.

"Have you thought about becoming one?"

"What?!"

"Yes, I could save you from this enslavement your people are destined to. We've had twi'lek jedi before. You'd be no different. No more serving customers. No more dancing to please your master. No more forced encounters. No more arena battles and near death experiences. You wouldn't have to hide your true self from the man you hate. Don't think I can't sense it in your heart."

"You know nothing about how I feel."

"I do. I know how to read other people, even the slaver. He's worried about you."

"Not ME. He's worried about me not FOR me. Get it right, general. If you say anything to him, I am not afraid to slay you."

Ka'nine nodded and paused. He was about twelve feet away from the woman now. She was somewhat hooked by his words, but all the same she was ready to bolt or fight back. "My right hand man is interested in you. Why do you refuse to please him?"

"If you are a jedi, why would you be so supportive of freeing me, yet ask me such a foolish question. Do you hate bondage or not?!"

"I do hate it. I do."

"You couldn't get me to leave here. I don't want to be a jedi. Go lull someone else with your romantic tales. I'm going to be here for a long time if I don't get free on my own."

"You don't want to leave your…sister, is it?"

Elon's bosom heaved with a sigh. "No. There are others on here that should be freed too. I don't like to be singled out when there are more that need the help just as much. Leave or I will do it for you."

General Ka'nine drew up his hands and backed away. "As you wish. You should think about the augmentation."

"I don't want anything done to my body. Saur doesn't need it either. It's not necessary. We're fierce warriors and Lorne is proud of us. Leave me, now."

Ka'nine dipped his head to the woman. He backed away and departed. Elon hugged herself once more feeling very unsure. Being a jedi would mean freedom of this hell hole to some extent, but she would still be subject to the religion and the beliefs. She just wanted to go home and everything be the way it was and practice her own religion she had grown up with. It would never be so. Why she kept making it resolute in her mind, she didn't know. Her family might have moved on by now. Her grandmother was most likely dead by now. Maybe. The woman had made a vow to live for over a hundred years. Elon liked to think that she had. It kept her going. Her mother and father weren't near death yet.

"Sir, will he take it?"

"He should. The twi'lek is dangerous. Extremely. The damn bastard doesn't know what she is." Ka'nine perched himself on a stool at a counter top.

Jearec looked about for the deadly woman. "How come she hasn't killed him yet?"

"She's waiting."

Jearec snorted. "For what?! What the hell?! Just kill the son of a bitch and get free."

"You didn't seem to oppose the lifestyle a second ago from what you told me."

"I don't. She does. I just don't understand why she's waiting."

"There are others she wants free. She's a leader. A motherly-figure to the other females. She's waiting for the right time when they can all be freed at once. Otherwise, yes, she could kill the man at any time."

"I still don't get why not now. Either way, he's dead and they're all free."

"No, soldier, each slave, except for her and the cat is co-owned with another trader to some extent. If he dies, they get shipped out to their other owner and he fully owns them. The twi'lek is highly researched. She's very smart and very alert. She knows it would be suicide to kill the man now. She would be pursued. She couldn't keep track of all of these doomed souls if her life depended on it. They'd die in their escape. She doesn't want that."

"So she suffers all the while longer?"

Ka'nine nodded. Jearec scoffed and caught sight of the twi'lek walking out of the resting lounge. She found the slaver and circled the great cat on the floor, observing the man. She settled next to Lorne and curled her legs to her body, caressing the slaver's flared brown hair.

"Oh, now she wants to be loved on?"

"Just let it go Jearec. You're as bad as Jango himself."

"Yeah? I'm nothing like the man."

"You seemed to have inherited his lust for women."

"What about the damn cull?"

"Easy. He is your brother."

"Yeah, WAS. You had me chuck him, remember?"

"I haven't forgotten."

"Ka'nine!"

The jedi turned to the slaver who had escaped the playful hands of his bodyguards.

"I'll be attending the annual race, as usual this year."

"Good luck," the general replied with a smile.

The twi'lek glanced at him and looked away. It would be a good idea for her to be augmented. The clone was dangerous after he had been. The twi'lek was even now. If she was augmented she could be brought to her knees the same way the clone had with the fail-safe design.

"General, you cannot tell me you wouldn't like her under your command."

"She's very strong willed like Feral was. She wouldn't be any different for me than the slaver. She may cooperate and at other times she may go her own way. It's hard to say. Perhaps, soldier, when she's resting you could have a go."

"I don't think she sleeps, general. Ever."

Ka'nine laughed and patted the armored shoulder of his right hand man.

"I'm not saying it anymore. If any one of you touches me again, I'll tear your damn arm out of its socket."

"Rache, we're only trying to help."

"I'm alright, Feral. I'm alright. I've healed myself enough to walk around. I just need to rest more and work on healing myself later. For now, there's you. How do you feel?"

The clone shied away from the woman's hand to his head. "Rache, it's all I can do to stay conscious."

"Then you need my help." Rache's hand seized the clone's head and the man fell back on his bunk. The force warmed his face and mind and he rested.

Suil covered Feral back up. "I'm going to see what Syth is up too."

The pirate lord shouted, angrily at the beast that hissed at him in refusal. "Dozer! Damn you! How long has he been like this?" The pirate lord's hands hopelessly went limp to his sides. "This is unacceptable, Warren."

"My lord, he's just upset with the racket earlier." The scruffy red-headed human pirate nervously rubbed his hands together.

"He could hear it in his stall?"

"Apparently. He's no cooperating."

"He's just worried. He can see I'm all right. Son of a bitch. Rache isn't going to like coming down here." Syth turned away.

Suil snarled as he entered the room. The Dozer snarled back, huffing a bit before he realized there was no threat. He paced about in his massive stall. His tail lashed at the chrome walls.

"Hell, he hasn't even eaten!" The redhead whined.

"He needs too. Feed him even more. He'll burn calories like a fire to dry vegetation. I need him energized for the damn race." Syth was swift on his departure.

"My lord," Suil stopped him with a forearm. "You can't do this."

"Suil?"

"It's too dangerous to stop with the clone."

"Suil," Syth got in his face for privacy, "I have a contact that will speak with me if win the race. I need this win!"

"Then who is going to do it?! You?!" Suil inquired.

Syth trekked away. The doors to the Dozer's bay hissed closed and the man was gone. Suil observed the male narglatch. The pirate lord didn't know who would do the honors of reining the beast on the track. Nobody had the gall or the expertise, nor the will of the creature to obey. Syth had the creature's attention, but not anybody else. Maybe, the healer, but she was in no condition to go down to a planet and jockey the terrible beast to win a race.

"I'm so…tired." Rache shifted to face the bunk wall. She made displeased noises all the while, lying with labored breathing for a long while after once she had succeeded.

Feral sat with one leg in the air and one leg hanging off the bed. Something had to be done. Something. Anything. He could hijack a transport ship, but the pirates were on high alert, now. Even though he had an understanding with them, he was still a piece of…of…property. To more than one person, at this point, in a manner of speaking. How in the hell that had happened, he didn't know. He didn't see it coming. The republic was one, Syth second, and the slaver the third.

Feral watched Rache. She preferred to sleep curled in a ball, it seemed. Probably to conserve warmth. He had done the same thing. She groaned and shuddered.

This was his entire fault. He should have been more aggressive with the wolf-man to leave while they had the chance. If so, Rache would be all right and he wouldn't have been thrown from space and left to die. That still didn't make sense. Pay in republic currency to have him brought to justice, just to dispose of him.

"He knew I was alive, still…but…he left me there. The ships left!" Feral fell back on the bed and buried his face in his hands, cackling grimly. "This makes no DAMN sense!" The clone kicked himself bolt upright again in frustration. He rubbed his temples. He just wanted this to come to a conclusion. It had been far too long. No, he could go longer. Yeah, in fact, he could use more time to plot a proper escape. The shistavanen, though. He would be on his case. He would know. He couldn't seem to hide anything from the predatory humanoid.

"Boshy?" Feral whistled softly. "Bosh! Baby Boshy, girl!" He looked about, grimacing in pain all the while. "Dammit, Boshy! Where are you?!" The effort was lengthy, but Feral managed to bear his own weight and stand. A hand cupped itself over his mouth immediately. He fell into the neighboring bunk bed post at the foot of the bed. He swallowed hard and moaned. "I do NOT feel good. This is…worse than the damn drugs the slaver had me under." He checked on Rache, covering her entirely with Suil's blanket and staggered to the door way.

Feral rested. The world spun about and he heard a hiss a bit after. He met the other wall in the hallway, facing the doorway he had just twirled through. He felt sicker than ever, now. He forgot the door would actually open if he stood in front of it. He was used to his bunker doors back at the base. It would take them longer to open.

"Boshy!" Feral whimpered. He stood ungracefully, pawing at the wall. "C'mere girl!" The hallway lulled about, echoing with afterimages of the interior. Nothing seemed to be stable. The clone turned left. The hallway became especially unbearable and blurry and then cleared somewhat. Had he actually turned at all? "I think I just went in a circle. I'll make sure that bastard pays for this!"

"Clone?"

The watery noise drew him about. The hallway shook violently and he saw the clawed and furry feet of a black mass of sorts.

"Oh noh oo beh bou."

Feral winced. "Whah?"

"Oh no oo beh bout! Geh heah!"

"Don't feel good!"

"I know that! Are you deaf?!" The wolf man raved and limped with the clone back to his bunk. "You're not supposed to be out. Rache would have a fit. Let me guess, you're hungry?"

"Wha'd you say?" Feral slurred.

"If you cover me in ANY bile, I swear to the stars I'll lay you out and you won't know what happened to you. I don't need something nasty like that in my fur!"

The world lulled about once more. An ill groan crawled from the gut of the green-haired man and he writhed. Blankets covered him once more. Why him? Why did he still care why him? He didn't know anymore. Nothing was anything at the moment. He was sick. That was all he knew. Boshy was gone. Where did she go? He didn't know. No, he didn't know.

"You have such a beautiful voice, love. To think, I have it all to myself, my control."

Her hands ran down his chest and soon he felt very ill. The clone jolted with a cry. "Leave me alone!" The blankets were wrestled to the floor.

"Feral!" The wolf-man growled. "What is wrong with you, now?"

The man hit the floor and his hands felt about the edge of the bed. "She's touching me."

"She really screwed you up. This is one hell of a time to have a post trauma occurrence. Get back in the bed, now."

"Let go of me, now!" Feral shouted.

Suil fell into his own bed, narrowly missing the healer. The wolf man shot up with a snarl when the healer kicked at him for disturbing her.

"Woman! You best stop that!"

"What the hell are you trying to do? Damage me further?!"

"No! It's Feral! He's not acting right! He thinks that-that slaver is on top of him. Where did he go?!"

"Just hold still, you can't get away. I won't let you!" She cackled at him. She mocked his pained cries. "Rest now!"

"No! I won't! Stop it!" Feral screamed. He ran, looking for a way to escape. It was hard considering he was so ill he could barely stand.

The right hand pet, hulking and rife with biological enhancements by the slaver herself apprehended him. The wrestle was a struggle for life itself. He didn't want pain. No strange pains or anything else that didn't make sense nor felt right. Bull was stronger than he and he was restrained in bindings once more. Darkness wafted in.