Kianna was practicing her Juyo form on the practice dummy having decided that sparring with Kira was simply too dangerous. Her body flew as she slashed and parried away from invisible attacks, it was like dancing, something else she had dared not to do since she had freed herself from the Emperor. So she moved her feet and swept her body in the familiar marshal forms and simply emptied her mind of thought and became movement. Her practice blade struck out against the immobile dummy again and again, faster as she worked herself into a sweat. The force swirled around her, fluid and soft in that moment. One heart, she thought to herself as she let the energy build, there was no darkness here, only fast moving swirling light, her old friend, familiar, comforting. Kianna spun with a flourish both feet leaving the floor as she kicked the dummies head. When she landed her left side was met with a painful crack, she dropped her practice saber and clutched her side, the breath knocked out of her, and all those evil questioning doubts invaded her mind again. The glowing light fell back, and she was met again with the dark little gnats that ate at her, guilt, self doubt, self pity, blame, and with those gnats, the locusts that could eat her alive, hate, anger, frustration and above all else fear.

"You still leave your left side open to attack." Lord Scourge stood waiting holding the second practice saber.

"Still?" It unnerved her how for such a large man, he moved like a shadow, she could never hear his boots fall. She could never tell he was near unless he wanted her to know, and it was only then that she could sense his overwhelming power.

"You had the same weakness when we trained aboard the Emperors fortress." He cocked his head, unapologetic. "Now attack."

Kianna hated that he knew her on a level that she did not even know herself, she grit her teeth and attacked. Lord Scourge bested her within seconds.

"Again." He commanded, and Kianna obliged.

Kianna attacked again, this time she held her own, but the swirling light eluded her, and the darkness, the little gnats, only seemed to bite at her ankles, tripping her up. Soon Lord Scourge had the advantage and pressed his attack, his powerful strikes made her whole body shake. Anger got the best of her as she flipped up and over him, she pressed him, closely using the same tactic she had used on Kira, but Scourge was not Kira and he changed his stance, then before Kianna could compensate he slammed her into the floor, denting the metal. She tasted blood in her mouth, Scourge's eyes bore into her as he pinned her in place, a sneer on his lips.

"Stop thinking, you cannot defeat me, let alone the emperor if your body is doing one thing and your mind is elsewhere." He chastised her like a child, and she supposed to him she was a child.

Kianna spit blood and griped her saber, her pride wounded, and she attacked again, and again he bested her, effortlessly.

"Jedi, your mind should be here, where is it?"

She growled and attacked, he was too strong, as he parried her strikes, hopelessness started to wear on her, he was right, she would never defeat the emperor. Scourge must have sensed the weakness, because he dropped the practice saber, and ripped Kianna's out of her hand and then slapped her full across the face, sending her reeling. He grabbed her before she fell and held her in a choke hold with one hand, he spun her around so that her back was to his chest, his other hand twisted her arm painfully behind her back. With her free hand she grasped at the hand at her throat.

"Enough!" he roared in her ear, she stopped struggling in his arms then and was still. "This self doubt will be your undoing." He squeezed his huge hand around her throat. "In this moment, what do you want? What is needed?" His mouth was next to her ear, lips brushing against skin so he could make sure she was present and listening.

Kianna couldn't speak, and she started seeing black spots in front of her eyes as she gasped for breath. For a moment, she wanted to die, she wanted to simply die, for this to end. She didn't want to save the galaxy, she didn't want this burden. She heard a cold bitter laugh from Scourges deep and warm voice.

"I have endured for 300 years waiting for you, empty of emotion, of senses, I betrayed far better Jedi then you because I thought you were salvation, that you had the strength necessary. You think you suffer Jedi? You think you suffer?" His words were dark, full of anger, "I would be happy to oblige you Jedi, if it is despair and death that you want then I will give them to you, for you are of no use to me in your current state. I will wait another 300 years, empty of all things that make me a man, if it means finding someone worthy."

Kianna knew a moment of panic as the second stretched forth with no air, and she fought back, the force giving her strength as she pulled the hand away from her throat, just enough for her to grasp it. She shifted her legs her feet barely reaching around Scourges firmly planted legs, and then she hauled with all of her strength, the light surging around her, helping her flip the imposing Sith Pureblood on to his back. She called her light saber to her hand and knelt on him, leveling it at his throat. Her grip did not waver as the blue beam was held inches from his flesh. He smiled from his position, a feral predatory grin, his eyes held living fires.

"I am worthy." She rasped, he was right, she suffered, but not enough for this hopelessness, there is always hope, and for the first time since hearing about Scourges vision she believed it. "I am worthy."

"Good. Now what is it that you want in this moment?" Ever the teacher.

"What I want, is to let go of this damnable guilt, I want to be free of accusing glances and hushed whispers. I want to be free to do the job assigned to me without my character being questioned at every turn. I also want to run you through with my light saber." She could feel the power pulsing around her, it mingled with Scourges own, and he laughed, a low deep chuckle at her final statement.

"And, what is needed Jedi?" He asked his second question. Kianna grinned wickedly at him, but shut off her saber and stood up, offering her hand to the man sprawling on the floor. He took it, his hand was warm and red, and engulfed her delicate blue fingers.

"You" she said simply, her hand still wrapped in his. "You are needed, I need you to remind me of my strength, of my power, of who I am, I need you to challenge me, as you just have. I have never thought for myself, before the emperor took me, I followed the Jedi code and the orders of the council blindly, small wonder that the emperor took hold of my mind so easily" She leveled a look at him, red on red, "I need an ally in this mess, and a teacher, who is not afraid to teach the hard lessons." She thought of Orgus Din, taken from her too soon, he had been a good teacher, the council, had rushed her training, she had not been ready, and she knew it, and they knew it. So she would learn from the only teacher she had access too, council be damned.

Scourge watched her, the determination in her hoarse voice, the despair that had so disgusted him gone, for the moment. His eyes flicked down to where their hands were still clasped, and he could feel their energies drifting and intermingling with each other. Energy was one of the few things he could still feel, and the effect was not all together unpleasant, even if it was light side energy.

"Then I am yours Jedi."

T7-01 rolled into the cargo hold, beeping excitedly. "Data chip = decrypted / results = coordinates"

"Thank you T7. Where are these coordinates?" Kianna asked, curious about the mystery her sister had left her with.

"Coordinates = Belsavis"

"What is the droid going on about?"

"Just some family business to take care of after we finish saving the planet." She turned back to Scourge and offered him an impish grin before leaving the room. She was worthy, and she would prove it.