Chapter 55: Converts
Avaryss found Quenya lying where she had fallen. Beric's assessment of the situation had not done it justice. Quenya Sai Malloc was not simply "hurt bad."
Avaryss frowned.
Quenya Sai Malloc…was dying.
The battle field had fallen silent. Bodies littered the factory floor. Most of those bodies were either Republic or Jedi, most, but not all.
It seemed that they had been reinforced while Avaryss had been dealing with Sy Dar Bynn. Major Forn's commandos had finally managed to catch up with them. Those soldiers now moved throughout the Jedi' safe house, securing it against any further threat, there were far fewer than there had been when they began this mission, Avaryss thought that the commandos had lost between three fourths or half their number.
Her soldiers had paid a heavy price for this victory, but it was a victory, none the less.
Avaryss sought out Major Forn, but did not see him among the soldiers.
"Who is in charge here," she called out.
"That would be me, my lord," one of the soldiers said snapping to attention and saluting.
"What is your name, soldier," she asked.
"Lieutenant Mithel, my lord."
"Where is Major Forn, Lieutenant," she asked.
The young man shifted uncomfortably.
"Dead, my lord, he was killed in the ambush these Pubs set up for us."
Avaryss cursed under her breath.
Damn, she thought.
Forn had been a good soldier, but perhaps, not that good.
He had fallen into the same trap she had, had he not?
She at least had been able to fight her way out of it.
"Then you have inherited his duties, then," she said glancing at the remaining soldiers.
"I expect you to live up to his example."
""Yes, my lord," the young man said snapping to attention, "All will be as you say, my lord."
Avaryss nodded, pleased.
The boy knew his place.
"Prepare your men to move out," she ordered, "If you have any demolition charges, set them accordingly, we can leave no trace of our actions here."
"It will be done, my lord," the lieutenant said saluting again, immediately he began barking orders to the remaining members of this team.
Avaryss nodded.
Well trained this one.
She would mention that to the captain upon their return to the destroyer, such professionalism should be rewarded after all, but first, she had another matter to attend to. They could not leave Quenya behind, alive or otherwise. She knew too much about Avaryss' operations.
She would need to handle this matter…quickly.
Ensign Holli sat at her side, holding the broken Devish' hand, the engineer had wrapped herself in the brown robe of a slain Jedi, the combat suit she had worn when she had doubled Avaryss had been left in tatters after her transformation into the Wookie form she had used to fight this battle.
She glanced up when Avaryss and Beric moved to her side, but otherwise did not move. Avaryss did sense a change in the engineer, a sense of…skittishness that she had not sensed before.
Why, Avaryss wondered, the spell that she had used did no lasting damage to the host body, according to the records she had read, it was not so different than going to sleep.
It was not like you could see what was happening around you while you slept.
"Are you hurt?' she asked.
Holli shook her head no.
"It is nothing serious, my lord," she said, managing a weak smile, " A few scrapes and burns, but no one had any real chance to do any real damage, I think that I surprised them."
"No doubt," Beric said nodding thoughtfully, "Why did you never tell any of us that you were a changeling?"
"She told me," Avaryss said quickly, before any argument could break out between the two. Beric was her brother and a good soldier, but he was also pure Sith Military.
She knew the military opinion on aliens serving among them, an opinion she feared that Beric shared.
"It was my will that Holli's secret was kept, and no one can doubt that it was useful, our enemy suspected nothing."
"If it matters," Holli added, "I've always considered myself an imperial officer first and foremost, I rarely use my…natural abilities."
Beric nodded, if he understood Avaryss could not say.
"It still would have been nice to have known," he said under his breath.
"It was my choice, lieutenant," Avaryss reminded him, "Holli saved my life back on Hoth, she earned our silence, and besides…we all have our secrets after all, don't we?"
She gave him a sly smile.
"I think we can excuse Holli's choice to keep this particular one to herself."
Avaryss leaned in closer, so that only the engineer could hear her.
"Did any of these soldiers see you change?" she asked, "Do any of them know what you are?"
"No, Milord," Holli said, "I had returned to my human form before they arrived."
Avaryss smiled.
"Good," she said, "Very good, "it saves us having to take steps to protect your secret."
Holli winced, she was quite smart, she no doubt understood what it was that the young Sith meant.
Holli was Avaryss' secret; she would not let it slip out to others beyond her crew.
She would kill to keep that from happening.
Knowing that Holli was safe, Avaryss now turned her attention to the wounded Devish.
It did not look good.
The girl radiated pain. When she had struck the wall she had clearly broken many bones. Her arms and legs were twisted like some rag doll, her right arm bent at an angle that was not possible in nature, not normally anyway. Plus, there was the lightsaber hole burned through her gut. The blade may have cauterized the wound, but…
It would not save her; the girl's injuries were too extensive. Had they had a medical droid here, they might have been able to stabilize her long enough to get her to a kolto tank, but here…
No, she was already dead, she just had not accepted it yet.
She could feel Quenya's presence in the Force flickering, she was not gone, yet, but every moment they waited drew her closer and closer to that abyss.
"Can we move her," Holli asked, "We have to get her to a kolto tank."
"She would not survive being moved," Beric said shaking his head, "It is amazing that she had lasted this long."
Avaryss looked down at her wounded disciple; Quenya stared backed at her with eyes clouded with pain.
"How are you feeling?" she asked the Devish.
The girl laughed a laugh that turned into a groan of pain.
"I can't feel my legs," she confessed, "I am trying to stay focused on that, is be better than thinking about the rest of the pain, yes?"
She winced and coughed, blood and saliva ran from her mouth.
"It…it seems that I will not be being heralded as a hero," she said, "It is seeming that my place is to die here."
Avaryss frowned.
As a Sith, she should have simply let the girl go, or at the very least put her out of her misery. Quenya had always questioned her place in the dark side. Perhaps this was its punishment for failing to let go and accept her new reality?
Yet…she had fought bravely here, and she had aided Avaryss when she needed it, she had saved her life.
It is the destiny of the weak to die for the strong, the darkness whispered, the girl has learned her place, now…she should die and prove that ideal.
That translation is how most Sith would see this. They would see Quenya's end as an extension of the Sith philosophy, but that still did not change the fact that she had risked her life for her master.
Such courage should be rewarded, should it not?
Avaryss looked around, there was something she could do, but it was not for prying eyes, and it could be lethal to those not in touch with the Force.
The young Sith nodded, she had come to her decision.
"Clear the room," she called out; both her own crew and the surviving commandos looked up.
"Secure our prisoners for transport," she ordered Beric, "I need to speak with Quenya in private. We must be ready to move as soon as I join you."
The soldiers, use to obeying the orders of a Sith, followed them without question. Beric and two of the commandos secured Sy Dar Bynn and his Padawan for transport. Avaryss did not speak again until she was sure that the soldiers were away. She went so far as to check using the Force, making sure that no one remained within ear shot.
What was about to happen was for Quenya's ears, and hers alone.
"You will not survive much longer," she told her wounded disciple.
Quenya coughed and shook her head.
"It is being alright," she said, "I am not being afraid to die."
"Even if you don't have to," Avaryss asked, "this does not have to be the end for you."
She smiled slyly.
"I can save you."
Quenya, despite the pain, gave her a curious look.
"The dark side is not being strong in the healing arts."
"True," Avaryss said, "But this will not be healing, not in the purest sense. It would be using the dark side to force your body to be repaired."
Quenya gave her a skeptical look, but at the same time, Avaryss sensed a flicker of hope inside of her.
She smiled.
Perhaps this did not have to be the end for them after all.
"But there is a price, power always carries a price, Quenya, the dark side most of all."
"What…what price?" the Devish asked, she coughed and coughed.
It would not be much longer.
Avaryss' smile turned into a frown.
"You must stop resisting. I can use Sith magic to make you whole again, but you need to let go and stop trying to find your way into the light. This spell will not work on someone who still clings to the weak trappings of the Jedi."
Avaryss gave her a cold look.
"Embrace your fear and hate, and I can save you. If you continue to resist, cling to the light you will die. The choice is yours."
Avaryss could see Quenya wrestling with her decision. The girl did not want to die, not if there was a chance to live, but at the same time, she still feared what she might become, much as a young girl named Keera Lylos feared how the dark side would change her.
She had gotten over that fear, accepted the change.
It was time for Quenya Sai Malloc to do the same.
"I…I can't," she murmured.
"Do you want to die?"
"No."
"Then stop resisting this, you know that I can do what I promise. You just have to let go."
Quenya gasped and shuddered, a wave of pain rippled through the Force, she was still holding on but…
A wave of fear washed away any bravery that the girl might have felt.
She looked at Avaryss with desperate eyes.
"No," The Devish gasped, "I…I don't want…"
"You know the price girl," the young Sith growled, "Pay it, and be done with it."
"Master," she gasped, "Master Avaryss…please don't let me go."
"Save yourself, you have the power…now do it."
Quenya glared at her, Avaryss could feel her anger rising, her hate.
Finally, she said the words.
"Yes."
"Yes? Yes, what?"
"I…I am accepting your offer."
Avaryss closed her eyes and reached out with the Force.
She opened them and glared at the girl.
"You're lying," she spat.
"I'm not."
"If you weren't you will be under my power, the magic would be fixing you."
"I said I accept."
"STOP LYING AND LET GO!"
"I have."
"NO YOU…"
"I SAID I ACCEPT!" the Devish gasped blood and saliva dripping from her mouth.
Avaryss shuddered, she felt the change, and smiled.
She gestured with her hands, gathering the darkness to her.
"Excellent," she said opening her eyes, she let her body fill with the darkness the death and pain that been unleashed by the battle here. She glowed with violet light, her eyes becoming two yellow stars, blazing in the darkness.
She placed a hand on the dying Devish girl's forehead.
"Now," she murmured, "Be whole."
The dark side reached out and enveloped Quenya Sai Malloc.
The alien girl screamed. She wailed in agony.
It is okay, Avaryss thought; your old self is dying. Don't worry…it happens to all of us.
She felt the dark side moving through her, it drew deep from the bodies of the slain, Jedi, Republic, and imperial, all withered under the touch of darkness, all that they might have been flowed into Avaryss, flowed into her, and through her.
Quenya's body became one with the darkness.
For Avaryss it was a heady sensation.
Part of her wanted to try to hold onto the energy to keep it for her own. Perhaps even to drain away what remained inside Quenya. She resisted that desire, it would not serve here.
She knew from past experience that she could not hold onto that energy, it would just slip away if she tried, no she could use it though, pour it into Quenya save her life.
The Sith apprentice grinned.
She would transform her reluctant disciple into a true ally of the Sith.
It was a delicious idea.
She continued to draw in energy, to force it into the dying girl's body, she felt her bones knitting back together, the wound in her belly being forced to regenerate.
The girl had been very close to death, perhaps too close.
It was a miracle that Avaryss was able to pull her back.
Quenya thrashed under her touch, her spine restored, her body becoming more and more whole by the second, and then…just as quickly as it began, it was over.
The girl's eyes rolled back into her head, and she fell still.
Avaryss gasped as the connection ceased, for that one brief moment she felt…supercharged, the dark side filling her up, making her strong, almost…invincible.
It faded as quickly as it had come, she found herself back in her old body, her connection to the darkside back to normal.
She looked down at Quenya, the girl breathed easily once again, she now bore a scar across her belly, but for the most part she was fully healed.
Avaryss grinned.
The dark side comes through again.
"Quenya?" she said in a sing song voice, "Wake up."
The Devish's eyes opened, no longer were they the pale yellow of her people, they now blazed the golden and red of the Sith.
"RARRRRRH!"
Quenya lunged forward, seizing Avaryss by the throat and forcing her to the ground, the girl's sharp nails dug into her neck, and if not for the Force, holding those fingers at bay, she might have been choking Avaryss at that moment.
The young Sith laughed.
Finally, she thought.
…There was the anger she had been looking for.
"You're feeling better I take it?" she asked the girl sweetly.
Quenya continued to glare at her, no doubt angry that he fingers could not dig in tighter to her savior's throat.
There was gratitude for you, Avaryss thought.
Oh well, she thought, you're welcome, none the less.
The girl growled again.
"Unhand me," Avaryss ordered.
The girl did not let go.
Avaryss gestured. Quenya was thrown back hard. Avaryss rolled over cartwheeling back to her feet. Quenya tried to rise, but the young Sith pinned her in a Force grip; she struggled and snarled, more animal than person in that moment.
"Control of yourself," Avaryss said, "I did not save your life so that you could turn into a slavering animal."
Quenya finally stopped fighting, yet she still held her savior with cold gaze.
"The anger," the Devish hissed, "the hate…I…I was not being prepared, not for this, not for what it meant."
She dug her nails into the stone; if looks could kill Avaryss would have been stone dead in that moment.
"I hate you," Quenya spat.
"You're welcome," Avaryss said sweetly, "As for you hate, you will learn how to deal with it, to nourish it, and let it feed your power. Only I can guide you down this path now. What I did, how I saved your life, it has bonded you to me in a very intimate way. You are mine now."
Avaryss gave her a cold imperious look, standing straight and proud.
"Kneel before your master."
Quenya hissed, but at the same time, Avaryss felt acceptance rippling out through the Force. The girl had opened the door and stepped through, there was no going back now.
Avaryss released her, and stood back while the girl found her way to her knees, to her knees, and bowed her head in submission.
Avaryss nodded.
The apprentice had learned the first lesson.
"What is thy bidding," she hissed.
"That we return to the destroyer, and quickly," Avaryss said, "If the Jedi have any more allies here we will need to be away quickly.
Quenya smiled, not the smile she had worn before, but a Sith smile, a predator's smile.
"We can be asking Sy Dar Bynn," she said, "He will be talking, I think, after he has been properly…motivated."
Avaryss almost laughed.
"I could not have said it better myself, apprentice," she said gesturing for her student to rise.
"Then let us be returning to the ship then," Quenya said smiling.
"Let us be having some fun."
IOI
The journey back to the Vaiken's Fist passed without incident.
The commandos destroyed the Jedi safe house; they made it look like a gas line explosion. If the Hutts complained, there would be little evidence linking the Sith to the destruction, if any. Plus, those that lived in the abandoned factory district would make little complaint, or at least, any complaint that would be listened to.
Bound and gagged, Sy Dar Bynn and his apprentice could only glare at the Sith and her followers. Both Beric and Holli had been shocked to see Quenya walk out of the building under how own power. Plus, the girl's very presence in the Force had changed, she had gone very close to death, far closer than most would have liked.
It had left its mark on her, what that meant in the future, she could not say.
She sent word ahead to have one of the interrogation suites prepared. She was eager to find out more about the conspiracy, how many Jedi were involved, and where they might be hiding. If anyone would have answers to those questions it would be the man in charge.
As for Xen Loor, she continued to blaze with the dark side, she felt like a star on the verge of going supernova.
Quenya glanced over at Avaryss, her new Sith eyes glowing in the dim light of the shuttle.
"I thought we were going to kill them?" she whispered, "Is that not what the Dark Council was asking for? Wasn't that what they are expecting from you?"
"Patience, my friend, they will die," Avaryss said, "But only once I've extracted what I need to know.
The Devish nodded, Avaryss could sense her impatience however, her desire to end this.
Avaryss frowned.
We need to work on this, the dark side can be like a drug if you let it, the trick was nurturing patience, and recognizing when to hold it in check, and when to release it.
Quenya would need to understand that, but that understanding only came through time and training.
She still had so much to learn.
She took her place beside Rink, who had come to get them. The old freighter that the Sith had used for the pick-up was one of many ships that Sith intelligence kept for infiltration missions. It looked worn down, but Imperial engineers had kept it in full working order.
Rink had noticed the change in Quenya, not just the way she moved, but the way she felt in the Force, the boy might not have been Force sensitive, but you did not have to be to notice the change.
Quenya was no longer hiding her emotions, they flowed freely now. Avaryss was surprised to sense a…attraction between Rink and the Devish, or rather; the alien girl was attracted to him... He did not seem to notice it, too lost in his own attraction to his missing Twilek girl, she supposed.
She would mention it to Rink, later; make sure he was aware not to send out any signals that her new student might…misinterpret.
Sith knew what they wanted, and could get angry if their desire was resisted or denied.
She would rather that Quenya not kill her pilot over some…misunderstanding.
Captain Brune had been waiting for them when they arrived. He was surprised to see that they had brought prisoners back. Avaryss assured him not to worry.
The prisoners would not be staying long.
The interrogation suite was ready by the time the Sith and her crew had stepped down the ramp.
Avaryss was eager to get started.
It had been too long since she had had a chance to truly indulge her darker impulses.
She was quite eager to begin.
Xen Loor was taken in first, after what had happened on Nar Shadda she was quite eager to speak with the girl alone.
They had much to talk about.
She let Quenya play with her first. This would be the Devish' first time using an interrogation console. Avaryss stayed back, making sure that the girl did not push the Padawan too hard.
Avaryss had something special in mind for her.
"Easy," she warned her student, "Let us not do any lasting damage, at least…not yet."
Quenya giggled, enjoying her new freedom, her liberation from the shackles of the light.
"I'LL KILL YOU!" the Padawan snarled, her eyes now glowing as golden as Quenya's any self-control that she might have once had having been thrown away.
"Why," Avaryss asked, "Why would you want to kill us?"
Xen glared at her, her dark side eyes flashing.
"You are Sith," she hissed, "You murdered so many of my friends, so…so many of my teachers!"
Avaryss sighed.
"I am not one of the Sith that attacked your temple. I don't know why I have to keep explaining that."
She shook her head.
"May I make a small suggestion here?"
Xen was panting, struggling against the restraints; Avaryss had had Quenya give her just enough Sith poison to dull her powers. The young Sith knew the damage that an overdose could do.
She was not about to waste the girl's talents if she did not have to, in fact she had a plan.
Now she just had to see if the girl would play along with it.
"You know…your conspiracy did not have the desired effect you wanted. The Empire is not in danger of falling apart, in never really was. As soon as the lords realized what was going on, what you and your friends were doing, they realized that it was better to use you. They pointed you in the direction of troublesome rivals, and used you to eliminate them.
Avaryss shook her head.
"Sy Dar Bynn has been serving the Empire the whole time; he simply did not know it."
"You're lying," Xen hissed; she looked like she wanted to tear out Avaryss' throat with her bare hands. She might even have tried if she was not restrained.
Such fire could be useful, Avaryss knew, she had read enough of Darth Hecaetus' writings to recognize a resource when she found it.
She was not willing to let this one simply pass away not if she could help it.
She smiled.
"It has been almost eight years since that attack. The Sith that carried it out have grown old and complacent in that time. Angral, Malgus and the others, they profited well from role in their attack, but success has made them go soft, now…they are vulnerable, just waiting for someone to knock them off their perch.
She gave Xen a sly wink.
"You just have to know how best to strike at them."
Xen ceased her struggles, despite her anger, she was listening now, wondering what exactly it was the Sith was offering. They had gone from torture to talk.
The girl no doubt wanted to know why.
"Someone told me once, that only a Sith could destroy another Sith," Avaryss continued, "I have my own enemies in the Sith order, those that will not survive my vengeance when the time comes. I recognized the fact that the best way to get close to them was to join the order myself, to learn their secrets and to trick them into letting down their guard. It is a slower plan perhaps, but the chance of success is far higher, and when you get to do the deed yourself, the result…well…it is far sweeter than simply watching a ship explode in the distance."
Xen said nothing, she continued to listen, continued to watch.
Unlike Quenya she would not have to push hard with this one.
Xen already knew the truth, she was simply afraid to admit it.
"Your master was nothing," Avaryss said drawing closer, whispering in the girl's ear. In seeking to end the Sith he opened himself up to the power of the dark side, he felt its power, but in the end was too cowardly to embrace it, to take that next logical step.
Avaryss shook her head.
"His limitation was his downfall.
Xen blinked, her lip quivered she looked like she was about to cry.
"I felt it," she confessed, "When I tried to strike at you, I felt…I felt the change. I felt it when Pendo died…when…when I…killed him."
Xen whimpered; the sound that escaped her throat after was between a moan and a giggle.
"I never realized how strong the dark was until that moment. I heard its call when we were in the lower levels, but…I denied it. For Fenn and the others, I turned away.
The girl shook her head.
"I was such a fool."
"You were naïve, but that is something that can be changed, you can learn from your past mistakes and move forward."
"How," Xen asked, "Being a Jedi, being trained to be one is all I know. I…I don't want to live with that hypocrisy anymore. Master Sy said it our duty to protect the rabble from themselves, but…he was wrong."
The girl's eyes narrowed.
"No one deserves protection, they need to get out of the way or be cut down."
Avaryss smirked.
"See," she said, "You have already learned from your mistake. That is the first step to finding true knowledge."
"Yes," Xen agreed, "But…the Empire is still responsible for so many deaths. I lost so many friends, how do l live with that?"
"By claiming justice of course," Avaryss said, "Even now I'm rising through the Sith ranks. If I end the threat of Sy Dar Bynn's conspiracy, I will rise even faster, and where I go, my associates will not be far behind."
Xen nodded, she had a quick mind.
She knew what it was Avaryss was offering.
"The best we to deal with an enemy, is from the inside," the Jedi girl said nodding, "You could get me closer to them, couldn't you, Malgus and the others, those that destroyed our temple?"
"I could," Avaryss said, but what would be in it for me?"
"I was my master's apprentice," she said, "His right hand; I learned many of his secrets, including how to contact the leaders of the other cells we set up."
"Cells," Avaryss said, "What cells."
The girl smiled.
"Master Sy had a way of contacting the others, a special frequency that only those who agreed to help us knew. He even set up a fall back spot if something unforeseen happened, a way to bring all the leaders together to reevaluate our strategy."
Xen giggled, but at the same time had tears running down her face.
"I can give them to you, all of my master's pawns. You could end his plan in a matter of hours."
"And why would you do this?" Avaryss asked.
"So you could take me with you," Xen said, "You could get me close to Angral and the others, the ones I want to kill. I had thought master Sy's plan would do that, but I was a fool, he does not understand the Sith, he does not understand the dark side."
She looked at Avaryss with new eyes.
"But you do, you could get me closer, so close that my enemies would never see me coming. I could end them all, and watch as the life leaves their eyes. I…I want that."
Xen ceased her struggling.
"I will give you them, all of them," the girl promised, "If you promise to take me with you, give me the chance to avenge my friends and teachers."
"You will need to know more about the dark side if you are to be accepted," Avaryss warned her, "Are you prepared to learn?"
Xen laughed.
"Master Satele and the rest of the council are weak, Master Sy recognized that, and he was too cowardly to take the next step. I am not."
She nodded.
"I'm willing to learn," she promised, "If you will teach me."
"What?!" Quenya said, "Master Avaryss, you cannot be doing this!"
"Afraid of a little competition Quenya," Avaryss laughed, "You want to be my heir and apprentice; you will need to prove yourself, like this one is willing to."
The Devish frowned, she was unhappy with this, Avaryss knew, good.
Let them fight, the darkness whispered, Xen and Quenya will be so busy competing for your attention that they will never think of joining forces to challenge me directly. In time the stronger of the two will emerge, and she will be my true apprentice, and by that time, I will have grown more powerful still.
It will be…a most intriguing game.
Avaryss nodded.
"You shall be my apprentice then," she informed Xen Loor, "I will teach you the ways of the dark side, and together we will deal with our enemies, and redraw the map, remaking the Empire in our image."
Xen giggled, she sounded like a child on feast day morning.
"At last," she said, "I have found something real, a goal that is reachable, and an ally to see me through it."
She bowed her head; she would have knelt had she not been restrained.
"I accept your offer, my lord," she said, "Please, train me."
Avaryss nodded and gestured with her right hand.
The restraints fell away, and Xen Loor dropped to the floor, kneeling before her new lord and master.
"I'm ready," she said, "What do you wish of me."
Avaryss smiled broadly. She had never been so pleased.
Darth Hecaetus was right.
Corruption could be both easy and fun!
Of course one final test remained one final act to make sure that Xen Loor was serious about all this.
She went over to the interrogation console and pressed a series of buttons.
The wall to their left irised open, revealing the cell next door.
Sy Dar Bynn hung from his own interrogation table, he was heavily drugged, but even then the man radiated both anger and disbelief.
"This can't be happening," he gasped, "I'm…I'm Sy Dar Bynn. I'm superior! I must be dreaming. I must wake up from this nightmare. Wake up. Wake up. Wake up."
Xen blinked.
"What is this?" she asked.
Avaryss came up beside her, handing the girl the lightsaber she had taken from Sy Dar Bynn's master.
"This is your first test," Avaryss said, "Your trial of faith."
The Sith grinned.
"This man stands in the way of your journey, of your desire to kill your enemies. You know what you must do."
Avaryss stepped back, her hand on her own lightsaber, just in case this was all some ruse.
"You know what you must do," she repeated as Xen Loor looked down at the lightsaber in her hands.
"Kill him," She said, "Kill him now."
Xen blinked, her Sith's eyes wide with surprise.
"Go ahead," Quenya said from behind the console, clearly not thinking the other girl had the guts.
"We are waiting."
Xen looked over at Avaryss.
"But I…"
"You know what you must do," Avaryss reminded her.
"Do it."