Chapter Eighty: Empty
The swirling mists of the mines were practically toxic when breathed in all day. The chiseled out halls were filled with deep coughs, cheeks stained with soot and defeated tears. The eyes of the slaves around me were hollowed and sunken, their gazes blank. None were more distant than the soft violet eyes of Seku.
Watching her brother get murdered had done its number on all of us. Tal had all but stopped his attempts at making me smile, and when he did try, his own smile was cracked and broken.
It was a mask that was easy to see through.
While Tal's silent nature was new and worrying, I could tell he would pull through. Being strong for his sister was weighing on him, though.
Seku was the true concern. She hadn't spoken or eaten on the way back from the Drazkel system, after the whole thing went south. Since getting back to the facility, we'd all faced the wrath of the warden for our friend's 'outburst.' It was no use telling them that he'd only coughed.
None of them cared. They were just angry their money-potential was lost.
Seku hadn't recovered like the rest of us, her body only growing thinner, her face more drawn and blank. She barely responded when we dared to whisper to her, all participation in shenanigans gone.
Not that we were pulling any since losing Silais.
She'd lost hope, and the will to live. Like so many others here.
They'd finally beaten her.
We were only in the mines a few hours when I felt like something was terribly wrong with my friend. Between exhausted breaths and the shaking of her limbs, I wasn't sure how long she'd remain standing. And no one was sure what happened to the slaves who got sick or collapsed, but we could only assume.
They never came back, anyways.
"Seku," I whispered, my voice hoarse from the stale air. "Are you okay?"
She stilled only for a moment, her neck turning to look at me as if she was a machine. Her yellow skin was nearly white it was so pale, her cheeks concave and her gaze empty. She looked at me, unseeing, for a few moments before returning to her work as if I'd never spoken.
Or maybe her silence was an answer in itself.
I glanced nervously at Tal, who shared my worry, but didn't stop in my work under the watchful gaze of the guards. These ones were especially cruel today. I wondered if their supply shipment had run late again; the last time it happened, the guards didn't have their caf for a week.
Six slaves were killed by irritated guards that week.
A horrible coughing sound finally made me stop, looking up in horror to watch Seku gasp for air as she leaned on her shovel. Her entire tiny frame was shivering, her bones prominent through her skin.
"No breaks, skug!" a guard growled as he approached, pushing me and Tal into digging our shovels in again. We watched out of the corner of our eyes as he approached Seku, yelling in her ear. "Are you deaf?"
She turned slowly, as she had for me, looking at the guard with no emotion. He took it as a challenge, striking her across the face. She tumbled to the ground and I heard a crunch, though she didn't react in pain. Instead she coughed, the sound wet and heavy.
My shovel dropped as the guard raised his whip to strike her, Tal beside me in a moment. We had stood by while Silais died….and there was nothing we could have done. But neither of us could bear to stand by and watch again. We couldn't lose someone else.
Consequences be damned.
We barely made it three steps before we were sent to the ground, electro-whips stinging our backs and bringing our collars to life. We screamed, both with pain and anguish as we saw the third guard lay his whip over Seku again and again.
Our own lashes ceased as we scrambled back to work, blinded by our tears. After a while, Seku's cough stopped with a few horrible wheezes, no longer reacting to the lashes aside from a few twitches of her limbs.
She was gone.
And I worked.
She was only eleven.
Seku would have died no matter what had happened that day. Like many others who worked in the mines, she had been deteriorating fast. Especially after Silais died.
If it hadn't been the whip that took her, it was likely the despair.
She would have been a perfect slave, had she not lost herself in her grief. That was the artistry of mass enslavement. Finding the medium between submission and self-destruction.
It didn't work for her. But it had worked for me. Was working for me….I suppose.
There was a snap of fingers, my eyes refocusing immediately to find the warden's expectant hand lifted at his side from across the room. I hated how quickly I moved, silent and diligent. I collected the wine, as I knew he was calling for and placed the goblet in his open palm. He didn't turn to me as I receded a few steps back, hoping to retreat back to my place on the wall.
While my memories weren't pleasant, I'd be lying if I said they didn't fuel me forward. Arguss kept the lives of those trapped her over my head. If I acted out, they'd die. One by one. So I obeyed and I acted the part, all the while fuming over my past as it was wrenched out of the dark places I'd tucked it away in my mind. With each resurfaced memory of this terrible place, I boiled over with more and more anger.
I would kill Keeper Arguss. Even if it killed me in the process.
But I wouldn't do it while so many others were at risk.
"Stay," the Zygerrian said lazily over his shoulder as I tried to slink away. I stopped immediately, folding my hands before me and keeping my head down. I may have been liberated years before, but I remembered the rules of slavery.
When he was done reviewing whatever schematics he was pretending were important, Keeper Arguss finally turned to me, a triumphant smile on his lips. His eyes raked over me and my ragged and torn dress. It made me uncomfortable.
His clawed knuckles dragged over my cheek with some messed up version of endearment. "Look how far you've come in such a short time," he celebrated. I desperately wanted to bite his fingers off. But I didn't move. "I knew you would come around."
Just wait until you don't hold lives over my head.
He seemed to hear my thoughts as he floated across the room, his fingers steepled before him. "Of course, I can only assume you will try to kill me once there is a chance. You did become a bounty hunter, after all." Arguss chuckled deeply. "Though," he continued with a feigned face of contemplation. "I did achieve breaking you once before…"
My chest tightened, trying to fight off that memory. I dared to speak, my voice rusty sounding. "What do you mean?" Somewhere in my mind, I registered that something was wrong in the facility. There was a rise of fear. Panic. Despair. What was going on?
His brow quirked at my finally speaking, but he didn't punish me. The Zygerrian only smiled toothily at me before turning his chair away. He waved his hand, dismissing me, but I only stood in place.
My mind was racing, praying that somehow he didn't know about Rex and my connection. Though would that even matter?
I realized it didn't when the doors hissed open, revealing Rex and Obi-wan, both bound and looking worse for wear. Their eyes cut rapidly around the room until they found me standing rather dumbly near the holoprojector. I was looking at them, but I didn't see a clone and a Jedi.
Instead….I saw a tiny orange Twi-lek.
The warden's fist around my brand was painful, since it never really seemed to heal in the reconditioning facility. Nothing really did here. The worse pain was the one in my chest as it heaved with sobs.
I was begging him. Pleading that he spare my friend.
"Slaves don't have friends," was his growling reply. He threw me down to kneel on the control room floor, my hands slapping the metal loudly. They left steaming handprints as I found my feet slowly, my palms slick with sweat. Two guards appeared at either shoulder, their whips at the ready.
I didn't move as the doors hissed open, revealing Tal. Losing both of his siblings had made our bond even stronger. More desperate, maybe. Holding on to each other was all we had.
"Ah, welcome my friend," Arguss greeted the Twi'lek. Both of our hackles raised; a kind slaver usually meant they were hiding something horrible. And Arguss was never kind. "Please, do come in."
Tal caught my gaze, seeing the worry and desperation there. He stepped into the room, shoved by the guards accompanying him. He was frail, like all the rest of us, his face and clothes smeared with soot and sweat. He was trembling.
The guards brought my friend to a stop before me, the guards kicking out his knees. My jaw clenched, but I only watched with fear in my eyes. And guilt. Terrible guilt.
The warden backhanded Tal, a spray of blue blood erupting from his mouth. Some of it speckled my soot-stained shirt. I stared at it blankly, my terror sending me into a dissociative daze. "You and your siblings were trouble from the start," Arguss growled at the Twi'lek. "I should have spied a rotten bunch when the eldest of you couldn't even make it through the Xrexes Cartel." He rolled his eyes, his chair humming as he floated away.
My gaze was back on Tal. His head was bowed, watching the blood drip from his lips to a small blue puddle on the floor. Finally, he wiped his mouth tiredly with the back of his hand, meeting my eyes again. He looked….like he knew what I feared.
And he expected it to happen.
I cut my attention back to the warden as he laid the whip across Tal's shoulders. The boy screamed, my ears ringing with the sound. I'd never forget it. On instinct, I surged forward to protect him. The guards at my shoulders were faster, claws digging into my elbows harshly as they held me back.
Subs erupted from my chest as the warden continued his torture, slowly beating the child towards unconscioussness. Or worse. I fell slack in the guards' hands, the two practically holding me upright when my knees hit the floor. I was in Tal's downcast eyeline now, though I wondered if he could see me. His head was likely ringing, electricity coursing through him. Not to mention the terrible black eyes that were starting. One was already swollen shut.
"Please," I whispered to the warden finally. "Please stop this."
To my surprise, Arguss actually stilled, his fist around the whip about his head. Slowly-almost as methodically as Seku did before she died-his head turned to look at me. There was a terrible glint in his eye and I could tell he was trying not to grin.
I watched him warily, but whispered again, "Please, stop."
"Why?" he asked curtly, his brow lifting curiously.
"I'll do anything," I swore, staring at my friend. He was barely conscious as he slumped in his knelt position, hands splayed on the ground between his legs. His lekku were barely grown at his young age, hanging limply over his shoulders. "Just stop. I'm begging you."
"Yes," he mused, grinning openly now as he tapped his chin with the butt of the whip. "I can tell. Anything? Submit to my teachings?" I swallowed thickly, but nodded. "Submit to slavery? Be a good little skug." I nodded, slower this time, despite the fear for Tal driving my decision. "Say it," Arguss hissed at me.
Something inside of me broke. I had nothing anymore. Nothing but Tal. He was the only family I had.
I realized this with a dawning clarity, my mind setting into stone. This young, orphaned and alone Twi'lek was my brother now. We would look out for each other.
And he would do the same for me.
I bowed my head, tears streaming down my cheeks as I willingly signed away my freedom. Finally, I looked up, meeting the warden's glinting eye. "Yes. I will do anything. I'll be the perfect slave. Be sold. Bought. Treated as seen fit by….my masters. I will do as you ask. Just please, stop hurting him."
A smile broke on the warden's face. It was full of pride and triumph. My gaze was only on Tal, who was wheezing. His stare seemed unfocused, but it was on me. Or, at least, trying to be. He seemed broken. On the outside and the inside.
I felt a hope, though. We would survive this, because we had each other's backs. He'd covered for me. Saved my life, even. It was my turn.
Keeper Arguss grabbed my jaw, turning me to look at him. I hadn't realized that he'd gotten so close to me. "I find your offer to be acceptable," he said gently, his hot breath washing over my face.
He pushed me back suddenly, leaning back in his char. He clicked his fingers, the guards lifting Tal to his feet. They were supporting him, mostly, but at least they weren't dragging him, I guess. I assumed they were to take him back to the sleeping quarters, since they likely wouldn't offer him a medic.
"And I will show mercy to your friend," the warden continued, his words drawled. He moved quickly, far quicker than I imagined a man of his size could move. There was a knife. A sickening, wet thunk. A gasp of air, as if every particle in Tal's lungs were pushed out at once.
My mouth fell open, barely registering what had happened. Tal was on the floor, the guards having released him. There was more blood than before, slowly pooling around his emaciated torso. The same blue blood stained the knife in the Keeper Arguss' hand.
I didn't move at first, barely finding the ability to breathe. Everything closed in around me, my vision getting dark at the edges until I saw only Tal's body on the floor. I knew he was gone. I wasn't sure how, but I knew.
It had to be true, because the flame of hope in me that I'd expected to guide us through this hell had gone out. Snuffed in a single pinch of fingers. The warden's fingers.
I felt nothing as he chuckled. Felt nothing as he explained that he'd never had let Tal live. That he owned me now, as he'd shown mercy, as he'd promised. And it was true. I was a slave now. Obedient. Silent. Owned.
But I didn't feel that way.
Instead….that was nothing. A hollow feeling deep within me that ate endlessly at my soul. The reality that there was no end to this. There was no escape. I had nothing. Would own nothing. Would be nothing.
Am….nothing.
The electro-staffs whirred as they sparked to life against Obi-wan and Rex's backs, shoving them down the stairs to the control room floor. They both grunted, their pained sounds snapping me back to focus easily.
The warden had been alluding to having broken me before. He'd actually managed it, when I was left with nothing. There was no feeling. No long for freedom because I didn't even exist anymore.
I stared at the back of the Zygerrian's chair with a dark gaze, my nose scrunching slowly. I'd lost everything to the warden once. Back then, I was young and powerless. I never had a chance.
Now I was powerful. Dangerous. Deadly.
And really really angry.
I wouldn't lose anything else to this horrible creature ever again. My head bowed as the warden greeted our new guests warmly, resuming my position but closer to the group rather than the wall. "Someone wishes to speak with you."
His chair shifted closer to me, his hand holding out expectantly for his wine. I handed him some diligently as the holoprojector sparked to life, revealing the face of Dooku. I swallowed my scowl, and then a smile, as I sensed a familiar presence draw near.
Skywalker was close. It likely wouldn't be long before I sensed Ahsoka with him.
Well, I guess it was a perfectly-timed escape plan to coincide with my need and want to kill the warden. I'm so glad that worked out.
"Obi-wan Kenobi," the Count greeted, arms folded before him. "In chains once again, I see."
"Count Dooku," Kenobi returned, unable to keep himself from being sassy, even while enslaved. "Still afraid to get your hands dirty?" Rex finally caught my gaze, and it occurred to me that he had probably been watching me this whole time while I stared holes into the back of the warden's chair.
I gave him a small nod, trying to convey that I was both okay, and that we were getting the haran out of here. He seemed to get it, though I sensed his worry about my state. Lines streaked down my cheeks from tears, my hair raggedy, and my eyes puffy. I wasn't exactly the picture of health.
Or even 'okay' for that matter.
"I would gladly make an exception in your case, my friend," the Count allowed. I couldn't tell if he was being sarcastic or not. "I wanted to say a proper farewell before Keeper Arguss puts you to death."
So what I'd feared was true. Arguss planned to kill them in front of me like he did with Tal. Though it seemed to be Dooku's choice.
"Given up on enslavement then?" Obi-wan tried, likely having felt Anakin as well. He was stalling now.
I hadn't expected the dark look that fell over Dooku's face. "Not entirely. Keeper Arguss is a talented slaver," he explained, my dread growing with every word. "He believes creatures of all manners can be tamed. You're just needed to tame mine."
My brows knitted, my feed sliding backwards on the metal to take some space. As if a foot will somehow alleviate the reality of Dooku's words.
Rex and Kenobi caught on two, the latter scowling. "Your creature? What creature?" A beeping went off on the other side of the room, our heads turning. I felt my friends' gazes on me. Despite Obi-wan's questions, he suspected the same as I did.
The Dooku was in search of a new assassin. And a broken slave was a perfect choice. Dooku had planned to buy me. Or maybe he'd have just taken me from the Zygerrians once I was obedient. That felt more his style.
"Keeper," one of the Zygerrians said from his place at a control panel. "The slave ship Tecora is making an unscheduling landing on platform two-four."
"Skywalker," Dooku growled immediately. I sensed Ahsoka now, since they were actually at the facility now.
Arguss leapt into action. "Destroy that ship!" There was a pulse of worry as the turrets rained hell down on the Tecora, blowing it to bits. I didn't sense Alema, and I was searching for her. Anakin and Ahsoka must have stopped off somewhere to keep her safe.
Which meant reinforcements were likely on the way.
A breach alarm was triggered at one of the main doors leading from the landing pad. Anakin had gotten out in time and was trying to cut through the door. Dooku whirled, glaring at his kneeling prisoners.
"Kenobi, tell your young friend Skywalker if he does not surrender, the slaves will be terminated in his name," he commanded. He flicked his hand, which apparently was a symbol for one of the Zygerrians to get us in contact with Anakin.
It took only a moment, one of the communications workers nodding to his master as the guards pulled Obi-wan to kneel before the communicator. I glanced at the screen, seeing that they were connecting through the security door's control console.
"Anakin," the Jedi called through the intercom, a live feed of Anakin's scowling face coming on screen for us to see. He was cutting his way through with his lightsaber. Ahsoka was tucked behind him in the cover of the door. "I'm glad to see you, but I'm afraid our host feels otherwise."
Skywalker's brow lifted. "Well, you can't make everyone happy, Master."
"They're threatening to kill the slaves unless you surrender," Obi-wan argued.
"It's good to see you're always ready to negotiate." There was a darkness in Skywalker's tone, but I didn't agree with him. He hadn't been here. He hadn't seen so many of them die already. "But I've had enough bargaining with slave drivers."
There was something beneath his words. Something had happened wherever he had been. I assumed he was some pet project by the queen. She was vain like that.
Just like Keeper Arguss.
"Anakin," Obi-wan's tone was full of warning and exhaustion. "You must realize this is a fight you cannot win alone." He was asking if we had backup.
The younger jedi glanced sideways as he kept cutting, nearly all the way through now. He was smirking, a mischievous look in his eye. "Who said I was alone?"
Thank Ka'ra. That both solidified Alema's safety. And the reality that I would be killing Keeper Arguss today. That wasn't something I'd let anyone steal from me.
Another alarm sounded, this one smaller and coming from one of the control panels. "Keeper," the station's attendant called, "A fleet of warships has dropped out of hyperspace in sector six."
"Jedi reinforcements," Arguss realized a lot later than the rest of us.
Dooku sneered, looking around at his prisoners. "Kill them all." The guards lifted their blasters, unsure if that meant me as well. I wasn't even sure, but as the facility quaked with the first attack run from Republic bombers, I knew only one thing.
I wasn't going to wait any longer. I thrust out my hands, propelling all my sorrow over the holoprojector to slam into the warden's side. He and his chair went sprawling, meaning I was free from his constant threat; His finger was always hovering over the button that would deal me a shock heavy enough to put me down cold.
"Rex, now!" Obi-wan called, using the Force to free both himself and the clone from their collars. I curled my fingers, ripping the collar from around my neck with the Force easily. We all leapt into action, Kenobi flipping through the air and freeing his bindings in moments.
I swung low on the guard closest to me, sweeping out his feet to send him to the ground. From there, the Zygerrian, rattled, was easy to kill. I swept the whip from his dead fist ducking as the second guard opened fire with his blaster. Keeper Arguss was crawling around somewhere on the floor, but I ignored him for now, leaping over the comms unit when the guard's gun overheated.
With a sharp flick of my wrist, my electro whip was around his blaster, dragging it forward out of his grasp. The Zygerrian snarled, rushing me with claws and teeth bared. I ducked him, flicking the whip again to catch his ankles. He fell, screaming as his body was enveloped in electricity. I dragged it from him, dealing a hard kick to his face. Something crunched under my shoe.
He fell to the ground, but I didn't have a chance to check in on Rex and Obi-wan before I slammed from the side. My assailant and I toppled over the warden's fallen chair, my arms raised to protect my face from his claws. The pain in my forearms was sharp as Arguss dragged angry lines across them.
I growled back at him, clenching my fists. The Force rippled off of me, sending him and two other guards flying backwards. From where I was sprawled on my back, legs still tangled over the warden's chair, I could feel something familiar. Something within his chair reacted to my energy, making me prod at it more. I longed to reach out for it.
"Kill her!" I heard Arguss scream as he struggled to find his feet. I didn't react, merely turning on the ground to graze my fingers over the buttons on his chair. The thing inside, which I now recognized with a devilish grin, whispered which button to press.
I obeyed, a side panel hissing open to reveal a beskar hilt with depictions of a Shriek Hawk and a Mythosaur carved on its surface. My lightsaber, Kenobi's beside it. I put his on my belt, lifting my own in my hand. It felt right in my palm, the kyber buzzing warmly at being reunited with its wielder.
I looked up darkly as the two guards I'd thrown back slowly raised their blasters, their eyes full of fear. They should be. The white blade ignited at my side, shining bright among the dull red lighting of the facility. The guards opened fire, but it was easy to block with my rediscovered weapon. I redirected one's blasts into the other, leaping forward quickly to slice through the second.
"No!" I heard Kenobi yell, my eyes cutting to Arguss. His hand was on a control console, the screen beeping with warnings. The slaves.
My lightsaber twisted deftly in my hand, the blade whirring with each swing. I stared at Arguss as he cowered, wanting to take my time with this. Then there was a hiss of a door, my head whipping around to see a new squadron of reinforcements coming to protect the warden. They were under attack, after all.
I deflected a few shots, but had to dive behind the comms to take cover. We were losing momentum. Rex was backed into a corner, but was holding his own. Kenobi looked...worse for wear, the guards landing a few good hits with the electro-staff.
"Kenobi!" I called, tossing his weapons through the air. The Jedi kicked off the wall, catching it easily and bringing the ignited blade down on his attackers. I refocused on my own issue, clenching my fist slowly as if I was grabbing hold of the guard furthest from me that was laying fire over my hiding spot.
I felt the Force bend to my will, pulling the guard forward violently. He bowled into his companions, the groups toppling down the steps to my level. I hurdled the comms unit, now devoid of Dooku's image, slicing through the first two guards before they could get up. The next grabbed my wrist in the air, holding the lightsaber above his head.
He snarled in my face triumphantly, but that was his mistake. I changed my grip on the lightsaber, twisting it to slice through his arm. The guard screamed, but was silenced quickly as I dragged the lightsaber across his chest as I ran past him to my next target.
The delay with the third guard had allowed the others to get up again, my blade meeting an electro-staff. At least they weren't bringing fists to a lightsaber fight this time. The other guard focused on me had his blaster raised. I wrenched my blade to the side, wedging it between the edges of the staff, to pull the guard sideways. He took the shots meant for me in the back.
I thrust out my hand, launching his body backwards and into his friend. They both crumpled against the far wall. I heard a pained yell, my eyes cutting to see Kenobi losing his fight. Horribly.
I leapt up to the next level with an ease that surprised me, my blade catching the whip that was aimed at Kenobi's back. It twisted around my lightsaber, sparkling and fizzing as the guard dared to drag me closer. I feigned fighting him before shifting my weight suddenly. I turned the blade, charging through the guard as he pulled me to him.
Wrenching free from him as he fell to the floor, I pulled my blade up quickly, slicing off the hand that was aiming a blaster at my skull. I ducked as he screamed, his two friends turning away from the barely conscious Kenobi to rush me. Catching the blaster as it fell from the guard's limp hand, I stood again, firing two quick shots. They both found their mark, the guards falling heavily.
I turned, shooting the kneeling guard as I rushed over to the control panel. It was sparking and destroyed. Keeper Arguss laughed deeply behind me, having found his chair again. He spun in it merrily, gleeful at my horror.
Tapping a few keys, I opened a frequency to the Republic fighters. "This is Kida Fett. I repeat, Kida Fett from within the facility. The controls are destroyed and the slaves are in danger. There's nothing we can do from here."
"I cannot move the cruiser in for the rescue operation until those enemy cannons are destroyed," a voice responded immediately. I recognized the grovely, mechanized tones. It was Plo Koon.
Anakin joined the frequency. "We'll take care of those cannons. Just make sure that cruiser gets down here. We are running out of time!"
I stared at the useless controls, my heart racing. No. He wouldn't take anything else from me. Near the door, Rex downed the last guard, only for the door to hiss open again.
"Incoming," he called, battling against the first with his own electrostaff. I blocked the second's shots, my anger only growing. My fist clenched, both of the guards lifting into the air, their fingers grasping at their necks. Rex stopped, his shoulders heaving with each breath as he turned to look at me slowly. His gaze was a mixture of shock, understanding, appreciation, and fear all in one.
I pushed out, letting out an anguished yell as they both flew backwards into the wall, crumpling to the floor. My saber disengaged as I knelt, trying to catch my breath and recompose myself. Finally, I stood, glancing to see Rex checking on his general.
"Is he okay?" I called as I returned my sights to Keeper Arguss.
"Unconscious," Rex called back. I took that as a good sign. At least it wasn't dead. I nodded, mostly to myself, as I slowly strode towards the warden, lightsaber igniting in my hand again.
He chuckled nervously. "Come now. I know a Jedi won't kill an unarmed man."
I scowled at him, slashing my blade through the bottom of his chair. It careened sideways, crashing against the control panel. He was terrified, but stuck amongst the warped metal of his chair. "I'm not a Jedi, di'kut."
I stopped suddenly, glancing back at my captain. "Go. Get Obi-wan out of here. I'll be right behind you."
The clone hesitated, his honey eyes filled with concern. "Are you sure?" I nodded mutely, and he listened. I appreciated him not pushing. I suppose he understood, in a way. Rex gathered the Jedi, slinging him over his shoulder as he took up a blaster in his free hand.
As the door hissed open, I turned. "Rex." He stopped and looked at me immediately, worry and love in his gaze. I swallowed thickly, my voice cracking. "There were children."
Captain Rex nodded immediately, his brow furrowing with determination. "I'll find them." I trusted that, not responding as he left with the Jedi on his back. The door hissed closed behind them, leaving me alone with Keeper Arguss, alarms blaring around us.
"Well?" he snarked, trying to appear brave. "Go on then. Do it. Kill me."
My thumb brushed over my beskar hilt, the lightsaber disengaging again. It hung on my belt easily as I knelt in front of the warden where he was half-sprawled on the floor. The darkness in my mind wasn't foreign, but it wasn't the voice of Darth Bane or Count Dooku poisoning my thoughts.
The darkness was entirely me. And I let it fill the room, emboldening me with power. I gave the Zygerrian a smirk, my hand reaching out to float before his forehead.
"I will," I promised darkly as my mind began to tap at his. "But first, something worse."
MANDO'A
Haran- hell
Ka'ra- Stars (ruling council of fallen kings)
Di'kut- idiot