Chapter 11 – Suspicions and Revelations

Yup. I'm back.

How's it going, everyone? In other news, though, there are now over 312 pages of story and I'm actually getting very close to the end. Honestly, I never thought the day would come. Also, guess what? I'm finally on Archive of Our Own! I'll be cross-posting my stories there too in due time under the same username.

But on with the chapter!

Ronderu was sitting in a corner of her cell, her feet drawn up against herself and her arms wrapped around them. She rested her jaw on the top of her knees, her glowing golden eyes staring ahead blanky at nothing in particular. Ronderu heaved a sigh. She was bored. The silence in the cell was intense – the only noise came form her whenever she shifted her position slightly.

She found herself wondering what was going on outside, and where they were now.

Was the General still in the ship's bridge? Were there guards stationed outside her door? And if so, would it be the Magnaguard with the controller for her collar? And where in space were they – near a planet or still en route?

She got to her feet with an irritable huff and idly shifted her weight from foot to foot as she looked around the bare cell. Striding to the door, she pressed an ear to it, straining to hear beyond the solid durasteel plate before her.

"Say, do you know who's in this cell we're guarding?"

"Err… no…"

Ronderu recognized the voices as those of Battle droids. Most likely there were two stationed just outside the door. At their voices, though, she couldn't help but crack a smile. It seemed that even droids were entitled to their own thoughts.

"Whoever it is, they must be important," said one droid.

"Why do you say that?"

"Well, because the General's own bodyguards were guarding this cell before we were."

"Oh yeah…" Came the surprised voice of the second.

"So like I said – whoever it is, they must be important."

"Roger roger."

Ronderu drew back a moment later, having realized that that would be all she would hear.

Tapping the first thumb of her right hand thoughtfully against a tusk, she paced the length of her cell, trying to think of a way to escape. She had decided that she had spent long enough in solitary confinement; it was high time she caused some mayhem, she thought with a grim smile.

But before she could do anything more, she was struck by a sudden wave of emotions.

Confusion, fear and pain swamped her senses, making her stagger back and lean against the wall heavily for support. The last to come was the anger and Gods, there was so much of it. But these emotions…

…They weren't hers.

And there was… someone. Someone almost completely overwhelmed by all that suffering and pain that they were almost gone – almost completely erased from existence. But a small part of that same person still struggled against what seemed to be an unstoppable, unrelenting storm of emotions.

It was in that moment, though, that Ronderu realized that she knew whose emotions she could feel now. She knew.

"Qymaen…" Ronderu breathed.

He was alive.

She felt her heart leap with joy, even though she herself didn't know whether to laugh or cry. He was alive! She wanted to shout it out, just so that she could hear those words with her own ears. Alive. Ronderu laughed for the first time in many years. It had been a long time since her laughter had been real; since it had been genuine, and born from joy and not to simply mask her fear.

It had been a long time since she had actually been happy.

Ronderu could scarcely believe it, though. Qymaen was alive; she could feel it. And after so many years spent feeling as if she was missing a part of herself, it now felt like an unseen weight had been lifted from her shoulders. Mentally, she reached out to Qymaen – to her soulmate – where he floundered weakly in the waves. She felt his fingertips brush hers, and then she was grasping his hand in hers. She pulled, straining every fiber of her being as she did, as she struggled to pull him from the waters of his grief.

I'm here, she wanted to tell him. I'm alive. You're not alone anymore, Qymaen, you never were; I was always here.

I promise I'll find you. I will return to Kalee. And I'll be able to tell you… everything…

Wait for me Qymaen. I'm coming home.

Qymaen…

Qymaen jai Sheelal…

Where… is she…? My soulmate…

Grievous awoke to a splitting headache and a strangely familiar voice echoing through his mind. He could barely make out the words being spoken. And the language… it wasn't Basic – no, it was Kaleesh. He blinked blearily, only just remembering the last thing the voice had said; Wait for me, Qymaen. I'm coming home.

Qymaen…

That was a name he hadn't heard in a long time. It had been his name once, in what now seemed like a lifetime ago. It had been the name of a warrior, of a son, a leader… Why was he remembering it now? And… that voice… Whose could it have been? Was it the effects of a Jedi mind trick? Grievous didn't know, but he wanted to find out what it meant. He was still in the shuttle and it was only just landing in the hangar of his ship.

Shakily, he got to his feet.

At any other time, he would have been disgusted by how weak he felt, but he didn't today. He had other, more pressing issues on his mind. As he stood, he reached to the back of his hip with his right hand, removing from it something that had been attached there, something that wasn't his. It was the controller for the shock collar that Ronderu wore. Grievous had taken it from his Magnaguard just before they had come in to land on Felucia. It had been a good thing that he had, or else it too would have been destroyed when the droid had been flung into the burning tank.

The shuttle landed, the ramp extending as soon as it did. Grievous limped out, wearily realizing that he would need several repairs. But before he headed up to the bridge, he headed to the brig on a whim. Approaching Ronderu's cell, he found the two Battle droids that were guarding it standing away from the door and – if it was possible – eyeing it with what appeared to be suspicion. Grievous frowned to himself, the pain in his head intensifying ever so slightly as he did. Both droids turned at the sound of Grievous' footsteps, the one that was further away saying "Uh-oh!" as it saw him.

"What's going on?" He asked them, even though he was not in the mood for bad news of any kind.

"Well, uh…" The droids glanced at one another uneasily.

"There seems to be a bit of a problem, Sir," said the one closer to him.

"What problem?" Grievous asked in a low voice, his eyes narrowing dangerously.

"Uh…"

"Has she escaped?" He asked them.

"No, but…" The Battle droid trailed off awkwardly. "That's the problem, Sir, the prisoner's not trying to escape anymore."

"… How is that a problem?" Grievous frowned, feeling his headache intensify.

"We heard the prisoner banging around for a little while," the droid further away informed him, "but then they stopped and we heard strange noises like…"

"Choking?" Suggested the other.

"Oh yeah, we heard choking." Agreed the first droid.

Grievous' eyes widened in horror, panic surging through his mind though he had no clue as to why that was.

"What?" He demanded, aghast.

Without waiting for an answer, he pushed the droids aside and slammed a fist against the panel beside the door, destroying it in the process. Nevertheless, the door slid upwards with a mechanical whoosh. Grievous hesitated at the door, his eyes peering into the gloom of the cell beyond. He leaned in, feeling unusually self-conscious as he did, and looked around.

Where was Ronderu?

He got his answer sooner than expected when something dropped onto him from above the doorway. The sudden force made him collapse, his damaged foot giving way below him. He landed heavily – and awkwardly – the bottom of his faceplate striking the floor and jarring his head.

But that was enough to clear his mind.

Even as Ronderu had scrambled off him, ignoring the Battle droids slowly picking themselves up, Grievous had turned around and grabbed ahold of her foot in his right hand. The female Kaleesh hit the floor with an "oof!", but almost immediately, she pushed herself up on her hands and knees, looking over her shoulder at Grievous. As she did, both their eyes met and Grievous felt… something inside him. It was a feeling he couldn't identify.

But he wasn't given the chance to ponder it any further, because just then, Ronderu lashed out at him. A powerful kick from her free foot connected with his faceplate, one of her claws scraping what felt like a sizeable gouge in it and Grievous abruptly, reflexively, let go of the foot he held. Ronderu's reaction was immediate; she was in her feet in an instant, choosing to run from him rather than stay and fight. Smart choice, Grievous thought with a half-smile as he got to his feet with a groggy shake of his head. But even so, she would not get far, he knew.

Grievous crouched low for a moment, his eyes alight with anticipation as he judged the distance. He smiled as he lowered his head. And then he sprang.

He easily covered the distance between them in that single leap, and barely a second later, he collided with Ronderu and threw her to the ground in the process. The fall was not one she would be getting up from so easily. Lifting her up off the floor, he pinned her to the wall of the corridor, between two doors that led into cells.

From where she was held before him, Ronderu's eyes were ablaze with anger. She was positively seething, Grievous could see; every muscle on her body were tensed, her hands were closed around his hand that held her throat and there was a vicious scowl on her face. Grievous' own eyes gleamed with amusement, his mouth curled into a smile that showed in his eyes.

"And just where were you going, Ronderu?" He asked with a tilt of his head.

"Far away from you, General," she replied with an acid undertone.

"Leaving so soon?" He chuckled. "Why would you do that?"

"Hm, that's a difficult question to answer," Ronderu answered sarcastically, her eyes still livid.

Grievous laughed, his right arm detaching from one another – much to Ronderu's surprise – the lower one reached for the controller which he held up for her to see.

"And you would leave even without this?" He smiled.

She growled at him in response.

"If I had to," she said with her teeth bared.

"How would you remove your collar, Kummar?" He asked, tapping it with a claw-like finger.

"I'd think of something, Grievous," Ronderu sneered in reply.

For some strange reason, he felt pleased that she had called him by name and not simply by his rank as he'd told her to earlier. It sent an odd tingle through the back of his mind and Grievous knew that he would have felt it down his spine, too, had it not been replaced many years prior.

"I'm sure you would have, given enough time," he said. "But for now, you are my guest so I invite you to stay a little longer."

"For a host, you're not giving me much of a choice," Ronderu all but spat the words, straining against his hands.

Once again, Grievous laughed, but it soon gave way to another coughing fit. From her position before him, Ronderu snarled as Grievous' grip on her tightened involuntarily. For the second time in the same day, her attempts to escape had been thwarted by none other than General Grievous. She could feel the resentment she already bore towards the cyborg grow, but at the same time, she felt almost… sorry for him.

As she let herself take in his appearance, it was plain to see that he was injured. Part of his left arm appeared to be missing and there was a neat slash that looked like it had been burned into his chest plate. The various pieces of armour plating on him were scorched in some places and dented and pierced in others. Even his faceplate was scratched and stained, and he seemed to be favouring one leg over the other.

Just what had happened for him to end up in such a state?

Recovering from his coughing fit, he turned his head towards her again. As they looked at one another, Ronderu could see the weariness in those troubled eyes of his. But he was a droid; surely he couldn't feel tired? He seemed to be… thinking about something, but as to what that could have been, Ronderu had no clue.

"Droid!" He suddenly snapped, startling Ronderu.

"Uh, yes Sir?!" The droids said somewhat hesitantly, standing to attention.

"Go to the bridge and have this ship turned around; I want it in the Clacis Sector at once!" He ordered.

"Roger roger!" The droids nodded, their previous fear evidently forgotten.

The droids turned and marched away, leaving Ronderu and Grievous alone in the corridor. And despite Grievous' injuries, Ronderu couldn't help but feel uneasy all of a sudden. She glanced back at the General and was startled to find his intense gaze on her. As if he was studying her. She eyed him warily, wondering what it was about her that made him look at her like that. She didn't like it and wanted him to stop.

"Something wrong, Grievous?" She forced a careless tone into her voice.

And it worked; he blinked, snapping out of whatever trance he had been in. Grievous said nothing, and for a moment, Ronderu wondered if he was even aware that he had blanked-out for those few moments. He reached out with his free hand, using one talon to open a cell door that lay to her right. Grievous was about to push her in when he hesitated. He had put away the controller and now reached towards her with that hand, to brush aside some of her hair that fell across her face. In response, Ronderu snarled at him, making it clear that she didn't appreciate the physical contact.

"You're bleeding," he stated. "What happened?"

"It's none of your business," she growled back at him.

Why would he even want to know? Ronderu thought indignantly.

"Tell me," Grievous urged, his voice barely audible.

Ronderu was about to snap back an irate remark, when something made her bite back her scathing retort. Maybe it was because the General possessed the controller to her shock collar; maybe it was because he carried laser swords with him. Or maybe, just maybe it was the earnest, almost concerned look in his eyes. They were still troubled – yes – but troubled, it would seem, because she would not tell him.

Why… why would he care…?

"It… was one of your droids…" She found herself responding slowly, thoughtfully. "When they threw me into the cell, I… cut myself."

"… I see," Grievous responded just as slowly.

Slowly – almost carefully, it seemed to Ronderu – he moved towards the cell and put her down on the floor inside. Ronderu looked at the General, a thoughtful, confused frown creasing her face. Why did he suddenly care? It didn't make any sense. But then he stepped back from the door, his right hand extending towards the control panel. And then, for some reason, he hesitated.

"I'm sorry…" He said softly. "Ronderu."

And then the door closed, sealing her in the gloom.

Standing inside, she barely registered the low rumble as the ship jumped to hyperspace once more. She remained staring at the door, her gaze distant and contemplative as she replayed the conversation in her mind. Something about it had been… odd. Out of place, somehow.

And then she found it: Grievous – he had called her Kummar.

Where had he even heard that name? she had never once uttered it in his presence – all she had called herself was Ronderu. In fact, it had been many long years since anyone had called her Kummar. And how had he even known to call her that? It didn't make any sense – no one offworld of Kalee had ever heard that name. And what had Grievous' last words meant? He had said he was sorry, but sorry for what? The little scratch his droids had given her? The fact that he was keeping her here against her will? Just what was he sorry about?!

Ronderu felt like she was going to explode.

She had so many questions and no answers to any of them. And then, of course, there was the puzzle that was General Grievous himself. She didn't know what to make of him anymore and now… now he was – dare she say it? – caring? She wasn't sure if he was truly the villain she had originally made him out to be, or whether he was… something else entirely.

But still she felt her anger simmering away inside of her. A part of her – the part of her that had never stopped being a warrior – hated the General with a vengeance and was now positively seething that she had been unable to break free from him even when he had been injured. There was no denying the fact, however, that Grievous' robotic body put him at an advantage over her. Metal did not feel, it did not tire. It wasn't even alive.

And Ronderu did not like that.

Pacing her new cell, she ignored the light bruising she was beginning to feel along her back, from where Grievous had collided with her. There was just something else he could be sorry for, she thought spitefully. Ronderu halted by the door, her arms folded as she still tried her best to answer what few questions she could. Where were they headed to now? What was in the Clacis Sector? And where in the galaxy even was it?!

Snarling a curse in Kaleesh, she slammed her fists against the door in anger and frustration, the noise echoing slightly in her small cell. Exhaling a sigh, she rested her forehead against the cold metal of the door. She remained that way for a while before it finally clicked. She had thought it herself – no one offworld of Kalee knew of Ronderu lij Kummar. So could that possibly mean that General Grievous had, at one point, been to Kalee?

She drew back from the door. The more she thought about it, the more plausible the thought seemed: he knew Kaleesh, he had called her Kummar and certainly seemed to know more than he let on. But suddenly, Ronderu's mind flashed back to his eyes; those slit-pupiled eyes…

Was it possible?

Could it be… that the General was…

Kaleesh?

Aaand that's it – thanks so much for reading!

Plus, at 3149 words exactly – excluding the author's notes, of course – this is now the longest chapter I've posted for the story! Hooray!

Also, I am so so sorry for the long wait. There's been a lot of stuff coming up irl for me, including enrolling in a course and college :P Not fun, but I gotta get it over with. Well, with any luck this chapter was worth the wait (on account of it being so long) and I hope you enjoyed it!

So until we meet next – stay safe everyone!