Chapter 7: The Beauty Parlor

"The boy has been stabilized, my lord. It was not easy, but at last…it is done."

"Well done, old friend, well done indeed," Lord Feer said clasping old Warmaster Feore on the shoulder.

The dark lord grinned triumphantly.

"Now maybe we can find out just what is so special about this one."

Avaryss looked down on the monitors, watching as two of their guards removed the young man from a kolto tank.

She hated to admit, but she felt sorry for him.

What was coming soon for him would not be pleasant.

Three days had passed since the gathering, and in that time, Lord Terrog had struck back hard at Feer holdings. Several of their interests here on Dromund Kaas had been disrupted. Key agents among the imperial hierarchy had been eliminated.

Clever cyborg, Avaryss thought, he was smart enough not to make a direct assault, not one that they could hold up as evidence and could take to the Dark Council. He had wisely used pawns that could be discarded or eliminated quite easily, everyone in House Feer knew who was responsible, but they had nothing to accuse of him, nothing they could take to the Dark Council.

All the brazen power plays on Dromund Kaas of late had made the council quite nervous. So many games were playing out, with little caution or thought to what would happen if they played out all at once, no one was exactly sure what was happening.

Through the Force, a sense of dread and doom had settled over the capital. Everyone could feel it, from the highest lord to the lowest hopeful, and yet, no one did anything to try to hold the lords back, they continued their games in spite of the unpleasant truths that were swirling around them. The gathering had done little to curb the cycles of revenge that were playing out all across the capital.

The Emperor might have been able to convince the lords to stand down, yet once again, the throne remained silent. No word or directive came down from on high.

The Sith Lords were on their own.

House Feer was just one of many Houses embroiled in its own rivalries. Of course they were the only ones who had managed to retrieve the mysterious prize from that Republic safe house on Tatooine. They knew that both Darth Terrog and Darth Baras had sought to acquire the boy, though little more beyond that.

Why everyone was hunting him, and why the Republic thought him so important that their agents had tortured him for twelve hours none could say. Only he could tell them that.

And right now, there was a debate going on, no one was sure exactly how to proceed.

All of the main players of House Feer had assembled to discuss the matter.

So far, they had not reached a conclusion.

"Give him to the interrogator droids, father," Bael said grinning hungrily.

"They will get us what we need."

"I must point out, young master," Feore said stoically, "The Republic men tortured this boy for hours…he gave them nothing."

Bael snorted dismissively.

"What do pubs know of extracting information," he spat with disgust, "You have spent hours putting this boy back together."

A hungry light flashed through the boy's eyes.

"Let's have some fun tearing him apart."

Avaryss did not reply, though she almost rolled her eyes. There it was again, her master's son default towards violence.

It may not serve them well here.

"Can we even be sure that this is worth our time, my love," Lady Synestra asked her husband, "I've read the reports that Avaryss retrieved. This boy is nothing; he is scum, the dirt beneath our feet…"

"And yet, the righteous Republic chose to torture him for hours for some reason," her master said rubbing his chin thoughtfully.

"There is clearly more to this than we can see."

Avaryss regarded the monitors again, now free of the carbonite, their "guest" looked much younger and far more vulnerable than she had thought before.

Do not underestimate him, she thought, this one is clearly a survivor and the Force has a destiny for him, or at least a part to play. She could sense it even more strongly now that he was awake, even from several rooms away, she could feel the Force moving around him, offering many possibilities.

"The Force swirls around him," she said speaking up for the first time, "Given everything that is happening, we must proceed with caution."

She looked at her master.

"Even the dimmest of Hopeful would be able to sense that this boy is more than he appears. You can feel it, even from here."

Synestra sniffed at her comment.

"Swirling Force is sometimes just that, girl. It is swirling Force. If the boy knows something, then our interrogator droids will dig it out, and if that proves ineffective, the Force offers many gifts in the field of extracting information."

Avaryss nodded, she knew that to be true, but she had read the same reports her master's wife had.

Early on in the boy's interrogation the Jedi had been involved, apparently a knight had been present when he was taken, and had tried Force persuasion to get the young thief to talk. It had proven ineffective, the boy was too strong willed. If he remained so after hours of torture and being frozen alive, she could not say.

The dark side was powerful, possibly limitless, but the Sith themselves were not…not yet.

"I do not deny what you are saying, Milady. I only think that we should not risk destroying the only leverage we possess when we are not exactly sure what we have in our hands."

"The apprentice speaks wisely, my lord and lady," Feore agreed, "Whatever we do, we should proceed with a delicate hand, if the boy still proves resistant, then we turn to stronger methods."

Still stroking his chin and pacing, Darth Feer nodded.

"I cannot deny my desire to see this matter handled quickly," he mused, "I would like nothing better than to let the droids down there tear the boy apart, and extract everything of use from him. Time is of the essence. Terrog moves against us, and no doubt even now Baras is scheming. Time is a luxury we do not possess."

Feer shook his head.

"No, I do not believe that rushing ahead is the right call. Feore and Avaryss are correct, we must move slowly. Terrog's agents sought this boy, and Baras was willing to risk one of his apprentices to acquire him. Baras is not the type of man who leaps into things lightly. He likely knows what value the boy has, already, or at least has an idea of why the Republic treated him as they did."

"Torture proved ineffective," Avaryss reminded him, "according to the interrogation reports, as they tortured this man, the pain just made him dig in his heels more and he became more resistant."

Bael rolled his eyes and sneered.

"If not torture, then what?" he demanded.

He glared at Avaryss.

"What you think? Do you think we should be nice to this scum? That we should be respectful and ask him to tell us what he knows? That is ridiculous!"

"Perhaps not so ridiculous, my son," Lady Synestra offered.

All conversation stopped, all eyes fell on the lady of the house.

She was smiling wickedly.

"Pain and terror are not the only weapons the dark side offers us. Sometimes what we seek can be just as easily acquired through temptation as it can through brute force."

"Perhaps," Bael agreed grudgingly, "But brute force is underrated, and far more fun."

"Fun is not what we are here for," his mother reminded him, "This is about getting what your father needs, what our house needs."

Feer smiled.

"I take it you have an idea, my darling?"

"I do husband," she answered, "The Republic dogs tried a mailed fist; that proved ineffective, perhaps what is needed now is a softer touch, a velvet glove, so to speak."

She gave Avaryss a wicked look.

"A woman's touch," she purred.

It took Avaryss a moment to grasp what the lady meant, her red eyes widened.

"No," she said flatly, "I refuse."

"You don't even know what I was going to ask," the lady said.

"I can guess," the young Sith replied, "The answer is no."

Her master looked at her.

"That does not sound like you, apprentice. Normally, you are more than eager to serve and do what is necessary."

"In battle, yes, against your enemies, of course," she said quickly, trying not to provoke her master's anger.

She did not want to do this.

She couldn't do this!

Not after Fehl…maybe not ever again.

Lady Synestra no doubt suspected the reason for her hesitation.

The older woman leapt on her weakness like a shark.

"Is the idea so repellant to you? The boy is not unattractive, and it is not like I'm…that we are asking you to do something that you have not done before."

"Yes, milady, that is not the reason for my hesitation."

"Then what is it then?" Synestra demanded, "To flirt with a young man, and lie to him. Your lady mother should have taught you to do those things long ago."

Avaryss frowned, but managed to keep her other emotions in check.

Once again, the lady of the house presumed too much. She had no idea what kind of woman Mya Lylos had been, how she had raised her eldest daughter.

Avaryss had always been more of a tomboy then a little lady. She had been her father's daughter first, definitely a daddy's girl. She had preferred riding her swoop bike and getting into trouble with Ro, over being a prim and proper lady. Pamir had been the sweet little girl in their family, her mother's pride and joy, and that had ended so well for her hadn't it?"

Avaryss eyes narrowed.

"It was not until she met Fehl that she had finally realized what it meant to be a young woman. The desires he had inspired had made her submit in ways that she had never thought possible.

I gave myself to him, she thought, but it was not like he gave me nothing in return. We shared much together in our private moments.

She immediately regretted thinking of Fehl; those emotions were strong, too strong…

The lady picked up on them immediately.

Her smile turned slyer.

"If it makes you feel any better, girl. Try to imagine the boy as your pure blood toy. I'm sure you learned quite well how to please him, before you poisoned him, of course."

Anger flashed in Avaryss eyes, her hands clenched.

She had been willing to endure much because Synestra was her master's wife. She had shrugged off the superior attitude and the snide comments about her origins. Bringing up what had happened to Fehl into this however, that was something else, something far else.

She had gone too far!

In that moment, Avaryss did not care that the lady was her master's wife. It was all she could do to keep from drawing her lightsaber and making the old witch answer for speaking of things she knew nothing about.

"Enough, Synestra," he master said, "Leave the girl alone."

The lady nodded, but never lost her triumphant smirk.

"As you wish, husband," she said, "As you wish."

"Apprentice," Lord Feer said.

His word drew her back from the building rage in her chest. She blinked and found herself back in the now again.

"Yes, my master," she said.

"Could you do it?" he asked, "Could you get this young man to give us what we need?"

She winced, but months of conditioning as his apprentice allowed her to answer.

"I could try, but this is not really my area of expertise."

He snorted with amusement.

"I'm sure that you will excel, and if you do not the usual methods of torture are still open to us. The boy will tell us what we need, one way, or the other."

Avaryss nodded, thought she seriously doubted that torture would work.

The boy would not survive, she could not say how she knew that, but she did. He would die under interrogation, and they would learn nothing.

If she succeeded however…that would be something different, something more, her master would have no reason to doubt her loyalty ever again.

There was value in that, wining that kind prestige.

Again she felt a desire to resist, to deny, rise up, but this time, she clamped down on it, hard.

The things we do for power, she thought glumly.

"I…I can get him to talk, my master," she promised, "I can get him to sing like a little bird for you."

Feer beamed at her.

"Excellent, apprentice," he exclaimed, "most excellent."

Avaryss nodded grimly.

She would do it, or at the very least she would try.

Bael was grinning like a fool again, no doubt the boy's overactive imagination was working overtime, imagining exactly what she would need to do to get their young prisoner to open up to them.

Lady Feer was smiling as she gently put her arm around Avaryss, guiding her away.

"Come with me, child," she purred, "I think the combat suit you are wearing is not…appropriate for this type of mission."

She laughed lightly.

"Fear not though, I think I can see you fully outfitted for what is to come, at the very least, you will make a good first impression."

Avaryss let herself be led away. Surprisingly she felt more worried about this then she had when standing outside that safe house in the Tatooine desert.

Battle was an arena she had come to know well, what she was about to face with the prisoner, unfamiliar surroundings.

Yes, she had learned to speak with a man, with Fehl. She doubted that this boy would react in the same way. It had been her power and grace that had first drew Fehl's attention, it had not been about flirting. She had not wiggled and giggled to get his attention. Plus, what she had Fehl had could not have been considered a courtship. Yes, they had dined together and trained together, but that had been work, everything had been about work, except when they were alone.

When they were alone…well…no one could seriously call that courting. It had been more like the mating of two vicious predators.

That part of her had been for Fehl, and Fehl alone, she was not eager to share it with someone else, not even for power.

Your bloodline must not end with you!

The words struck her like a slap. They sounded like they had come from Master Adaz, her teacher and mentor on Fury 9.

You are too young and too powerful to think that you should be the last of your line. Eventually, your heart will heal, and you will produce heirs, both for the good of your family, and the good of the Empire. I did not give you my family's sword so it could end up as some fool's trophy of war, it is for your children, and your children's, children's, children.

She could almost see the old pureblood's disapproving gaze.

Your line must not end with you.

In spite of herself, she found that she was nodding.

What had happened to Fehl had hurt her, she could not deny that, but at the same time, she owed it to her family to build a dynasty. On Oridanna, the Lylos family line had ended with the destruction of her family, but that did not mean that it could not survive in some form. She still drew breath, and that meant that there was still a chance to ensure that her family was never just a mere footnote in the history of the Empire.

But this, what her master was asking her to do now, was not about her bloodline; it was just another mission, though how she would choose to fight would be quite different than she had on other jobs her master had asked her to carry out.

She tried not to appear sullen as Lady Feer led her away, led her off to prepare her for her meeting with the young man they had pulled from the carbonite.

What would she do to get what House Feer required? Whatever it took, she supposed.

The thought made her shudder.

Whatever it took.

IOI

Avaryss spent the next hour in Lady Synestra's private chambers. Her master's wife was bound and determined that she would look irresistible before unleashing her on their prisoner.

Avaryss once again resisted the urge to roll her eyes.

The boy was not the son of some high lord; he was a street rat from Nar Shadda.

She felt it unlikely that he would respond any better to her if she looked like some Alderannian princess.

"Never underestimate a good first impression, the lady reminded her, "It can set the stage for all other interactions."

She smiled broadly.

"He must want you, the second he lays eyes upon you, that is what you must do, that is why you are now here...

She gave Avaryss a knowing look.

"My dear husband would be most displeased if his little apprentice could not pull off such a simple seduction, oh how disappointed he will be."

She chuckled.

"Let us try not to disappoint him, shall we?"

Avaryss could sense the lady's desire to see her fail. The fact that it would hurt their house did not seem to bother her one bit.

It was the type of short sightedness that she had come to expect from Bael, at least she now knew where the boy got it from.

Once they were sealed inside her chambers, the lady of the house got to work. She summoned her personal servants and they got to work on turning Avaryss into an irresistible beauty. She was bathed and perfumed, and once that was done, one of the servants applied a small dose of make-up. They braided her dark hair and put it up in the most fashionable of styles, they painted her nails, and showed her various pieces of jewelry, icing on the cake, one of the servants called it.

Avaryss was sorely tempted to break the girl's neck. She'd ice her cake! It was only the presence of Lady Synestra that things did not turn violent. She likely would not have approved of her husband's apprentice destroying her personal servants, no matter how much they annoyed her. They fluttered around her like birds, commenting on this and that, giggling like this was all some private joke... It was all Avaryss could do to hold her temper.

And watching over it all was the Lady Synestra. She watched with a mix of curiosity and enjoyment. Clearly she was taking pleasure in Avaryss' discomfort.

The apprentice tried to not let it bother her. She tried to ignore her master's wife.

This is for the good of the house, she kept telling herself.

For my master.

As the servants worked, it gave her a chance to finally get a good look at Lady Synestra's inner sanctum. She had never been allowed up here before now, and she found herself eager to see exactly what the lady had chosen to hide from her.

The trappings of wealth were here, but that could likely be found in any high lady's chamber. She saw few books and or data pads, perhaps the lady of House Feer was not an avid reader.

The only things that she saw that hinted at what Lady Feer was truly like was a small glass case against the back wall, a case that contained no less than six lightsabers.

The sight intrigued Avaryss.

Had those blades belonged to Jedi the lady had slain? She did not strike Avaryss as much of a saber duelist. Maybe they were weapons of Sith that she had outfoxed; perhaps they were mementoes of successful coups.

Avaryss could not guess.

Besides that, she saw many holos. Most were pictures of the lady during her younger days. One even looked like it had been taken when she was Avaryss' age, in it, the lady was dressed in the garb of a second level acolyte, and if she was not mistaken, the holo had been recorded somewhere on Korriban.

Avaryss sniffed.

So the lady had graduated from the Sith Academy? Unsurprising, she supposed, but it definitely seemed unlikely.

Synestra did not carry herself like one who had struggled to earn her spot in the Empire; that may have been different years ago, but now. She had grown complacent.

Avaryss filed all this knowledge away for later.

Who knew when it would come in handy?

The only person featured in her holos more than herself, was her son. There were no less than fifteen holograms of Bael at different stages of his life, from birth until now.

A mother's love cannot be doubted, Avaryss thought, no matter how depraved the offspring. She…

She paused.

What was that?

On a table near the lady's bed, hidden behind several other holos was one showing off the entire Feer family, with one exception, or rather an addition she did not know about.

Hm.

What was this now?

The picture likely had been taken about ten years ago, Bael was only a toddler in it, a babe in his mother's arms, and standing next to the lady…was a young blonde hair girl.

Avaryss blinked.

Who was this?

She needed to use the Force to enhance her vision, to make sure what she was seeing was true, but as she looked again, she nodded slightly.

Yes, it was indeed a young girl; she looked about seven or eight years of age.

The lady must have felt Avaryss' surprise, because she addressed her almost immediately.

"What are you looking at girl?"

Avaryss smiled slightly.

"A family," she responded, "And someone that I don't recognize"

Avaryss gave the old woman a sly look.

"I did not know that you and Master Feer had a daughter.

The lady's expression remained cool, but the fire in her eyes was anything but.

"WE have no daughter," she said flatly.

"Then what is…?"

Synestra stopper her with an icy glare.

"I have no daughter," she repeated.

Avaryss nodded, very well then, still despite what her master's wife said.

She promised herself to look into it. Maybe mention it to Bael, he could be manipulated.

She would see what she would learn.

When the servants finished they retreated back into the shadows, Lady Synestra guided Avaryss to a large mirror near her bed.

The sight shocked the young apprentice.

The slender young maid staring back at her was quite attractive. Far more than Avaryss ever thought she could be. The dress robe that the servants had put her in was cut quite low in front, and even lower in the back, showing off her Sith tattoos.

Avaryss blinked, the sight…unsettled her a bit.

I look like my mother, the thought came unbidden, despite possessing a few scars and the eyes of a Sith, she did indeed look like her late mother, or rather how her mother had looked when she was young, back before the stress of being married to an overseer and caring for five children had gotten to her.

Synestra looked pleased.

"You are a pretty little thing aren't you, when you try."

Avaryss shrugged dismissively.

"Beauty fades," she said flatly, "Power is eternal."

The lady laughed lightly.

"Spoken like a true graduate of Korriban," she said with amusement, "Do not be so quick to surrender your beauty to the dark side, my dear. It is a very potent weapon in itself, as you shall no doubt see in the next hour or so."

The lady grinned triumphantly.

"A lightsaber and Force persuasion is not the only way to get what you want. A kind word from a beautiful girl can do much in the right circumstances."

She leaned in close to her husband's apprentice, whispering softly in her ear.

"Never think that this house will one day be yours. I've worked too hard and too long to see it pass to anyone but my son. The day my husband falls will be the day that a new Lord Feer takes the throne, if you cooperate you will be rewarded, try to resist and you will be cast down with my dear husband."

Avaryss gave her a sly smile.

"I'm sure your loving husband would be so happy to know we've had this talk."

Synestra smirked.

"You think he is not aware of my desire to see our son advance? He knows, dear, and I'm sure he also thinks that such an occurrence is as unlikely as you ever becoming a full Lord of the Sith."

The lady laughed lightly.

"My husband did not get where he is by elevating potential rivals. You have use for him, for now, but never think that you will be anything more than a humble tool."

Avaryss shrugged.

We will see, milady, she thought.

We will just see.

If Synestra picked up on that thought, she did not show it.

"Come," she said, "My lord is waiting, they should have the boy cleaned up and prepared for you by now."

She took Avaryss by the hand and let her out of her chambers.

"Do not fail, child," she said, "My lord husband would be most displeased with you, if you failed.

Avaryss nodded.

Lady Feer had nothing to worry about.

She…did not fail.