CHAPTER 6
Carletta spent the rest of the day calming herself, readying her mind for whatever lay ahead the following week. The trials were bound to be some of most brutal forms of punishment she'd ever experience in her entire life. She wasn't sure if she wanted tomorrow to come slowly, or come as fast as it could so that she could get it over with. The only thing she was sure about though, was that she would not concede to anything she had to face, no matter what pain or price it would bring.
In the end, night fell swiftly and morning quickly dawned upon the temple. The high rock walls cast shadows that loomed over the grounds as the warm sun rose from behind the temple. Carletta woke early and headed to the grounds, steeling her nerves. She didn't have to wait long before Matturn and Peligrous were seen approaching her.
'My Lords.' she said, bowing low.
'I hope you're prepared for this Carletta.' said Matturn curtly. 'My pride, as well as your life are on the line.'
'I promise I will not fail.' said Carletta, bowing again.
'Shall we begin?' said Peligrous with the merest hint of a devilish smile. Both of them nodded and followed Peligrous into the courtyard, making their way to a line up of Fury-class interceptors.
'Where are we going, off world?' Carletta asked.
'No.' Matturn answered shortly. 'We're simply heading to a very sacred place that has picked out the strong from the weak for millennia.' Carletta quickly gathered what he meant. A test of strength was to come first.
With the wave of her hand, the interceptor's landing door opened at Peligrous' command. Once inside, Carletta sat behind the two Sith in the cockpit and soon they were slowly lifting up into the red sky. They flew low, so low Carletta could see the rocky desert dart across the windshield. There was nothing, except dust and stone, but Carletta was smart enough to know that there were things far more sinister lurking out there.
The minutes slipped away faster than usual when the ship slowed and began the landing sequence. Carletta guessed they were over fifty miles away from the temple.
When they walked outside, Carletta found herself standing on top of a great dune, overlooking a vast, sun soaked sea of dust, rock and other dunes. Matturn and Peligrous led her away from the ship and started to descend the steep dune. Reaching the bottom that was shadowed from the low sun, Carletta saw a pair of stone pillars, each with a pair of chains at both ends and partially buried bones scattered about it.
'This Carletta,' Peligrous began. 'Is one of our most sacred and ancient of tests: the Path of Strength. You are to be chained from wrists to ankles and will attempt to release yourself and make your way on foot back to the temple as fast as you can. Anything more than three days will be considered a weak effort. Understood?'
'Yes.' said Carletta solemnly.
'Then stand between the pillars.' There was only a second of hesitance, but Carletta slowly walked to the pillars and turned round to face them. Peligrous didn't move toward her at all, motioning her hand to the chains that lifted up and clicked around Carletta's wrists and ankles. Now her arms were suspended above her head. The chains weren't long and restricted her movement which warranted a deep, calming breath.
'We'll see you soon hopefully … for your sake.' Peligrous half sneered as she strode back to the ship. Matturn stood a little longer.
'I expect a good result Carletta. Remember; three days - don't be late.' One last stare and the Sith Lord marched away. Seconds later, Carletta saw the the ship take off, dust flying. Instantly, Carletta pulled and tugged hard at the chains, but it was only for a few moments. She knew she'd need the Force for assistance in this challenge, so she shut her eyes and breathed with a deepness that matched the sound of the breeze being blown. The vision of the chains snapping from the pillars filled her mind. Carletta focused harder, screwing up her face all in the pursuit of only seeing that one moment.
Minutes (or what felt to be) passed when she finally exited the half trance. She stared up at the pillars and saw her restraints still linked with them, but the ends looked pulled somewhat and gave her a satisfactory amount of hope.
The hours passed away gently, just like the soft wind that blew the dust across the dunes and the cruel sun whose warmth grew unbearably as it rose into the sky. At this point, Carletta had now repeated her attempts in breaking the chains, but they always felt more difficult with each try. She could almost now hear the echoing screams that once belonged to weaker, less fortunate students. The Dark Side practically coated this empty, desolate place. Somehow, it weakened Carletta's strength. Maybe it was the growing sound of those hopeless cries, or the ferocious heat of the day, but Carletta struggled more and more with her attempts.
The afternoon came to a close, the heat began to withdraw as well as the sun and the wind died down, yet Carletta was still chained, still tired from the day's hot sun and now a lot weaker than she was this morning. The chains were now so close to breaking point, but she couldn't muster the strength or the focus needed to do so. Exhausted and indisposed, her head fell limply and her heavy eyelids closed shut. Just a little bit of sleep to reclaim some strength …
A screech nearby startled Carletta to awake. She scanned the dark landscape, lit by Korriban's many moons. The night brought a chill to the air, yet it didn't seem to stop the creatures screeches sound ever closer to her. The sounds became clearer which allowed her to identify the sounds as almost bark like. She didn't have to question what it was for long as the fearsome beast prowled into her line of sight, causing her eyes to widen in horror. It was a tuk'ata, otherwise known as a Sith hound. Bred by the Sith to be guards, these huge beasts were nothing short of relentless, merciless beings. It stood on four strong legs, bore a long snout adorned with three rows of teeth and a crown of horns. The behemoth's red eyes shone brightly as it gazed at Carletta, its jaw hanging open with a so obvious lust for food. Carletta only let herself freeze with terror for a moment before she tried with renewed might in pulling the chains off. Tuk'ata were intelligent creatures Carletta knew, so even the most dim witted hound could easily ascertain that she was an easy meal. The tuk'ata slowly approached her with an air of confidence Carletta could sense. It was now a few feet away, urging her to yank at the chains, yet they resolutely clung to the pillars.
'Come on!' Carletta bellowed, breathing so fast she barely got enough air. There was a moment she lost all hope, that death was unavoidable, but something rose from inside. Her rage at being so helpless bubbled like boiling water and her complete fear of the tuk'ata filled her mind. No balance to be felt now, only total darkness. Right when the tuk'ata made the motion to pounce, she cried out in frustration, anger and terror. All four chains snapped off the mighty pillars as though they were only leaves being plucked off a tree, causing the tuk'ata to wearily hold back. It screeched its bark in Carletta's face, but she did not flinch, nor move. A new, more brutal instinct had risen from within that convinced her it was better to fight rather then flee. Making the first move, the tuk'ata leapt at her, jaws wide open. Carletta swung a chain still cuffed to her wrist right into the hound's side. It fell with a yelp, but quickly got to its feet again, screeching threateningly. Carletta threw out her hand and the hound suddenly flew backwards, yet it remained intent upon her. Summoning a steeled nerve, she lunged forward, swinging a chain straight down onto the creature's head. The hit had to be hard Carletta reckoned, since the tuk'ata made a strange yelp and crouched low before it crept away.
Carletta half sighed in relief, but it was cut unbelievably short when four other individuals jumped out from behind the dune. Her arms fell limply at the hopelessly grim sight, allowing the tuk'ata pack the window of opportunity. They all pounced at their small prey, teeth bared and clawed paws flying towards her. The first one slammed Carletta to the ground, knocking the air out of her. The others' jaws made straight for her limbs, but she was quick to roll backwards and come to her feet again. The tuk'ata went for her again, but she simply jumped high into the night sky and when she fell to the ground, Carletta swung a chain right down upon one of their backs. It cried out in pain and fell. One down, four to go.
They crept carefully now, aware that Carletta was just as much a threat as she was prey. She swung the chains at the beasts, keeping them at a safe distance, but they remained undeterred. Food had to be scarce for them to be this determined Carletta thought. She tried to back away, but the tuk'ata were smart enough to circle her, keeping their fiery eyes set on her without a single blink, snarling hungrily with drool dripping from their jaws.
Constantly looking over her shoulder for any surprise, Carletta continued to thrash her chains around until she felt something slam into her back, throwing her forward. One of the hounds had become impatient and taken a chance. It now had Carletta pinned to the ground. Its pack slowly approached as it opened its jaws close to its prey's neck. Carletta took only fast, shallow breaths as terror clenched hold of her mind which thought desperately for how to escape. Closing her eyes, she moved one of her chains around the tuk'ata's neck. In a split second from killing Carletta, the hound jerked its head about, making strangled cries. It clawed at its neck, but slipped and struck its paw right down Carletta's back. She screamed in agony at the deep wounds, but somehow mustered enough strength to stand up while the tuk'ata suffocated. The three other hounds now looked fearful, creeping back, and Carletta felt a strange joy about it. Wincing still from the pain in her back, she wound the chain tighter around what she assumed to be the leader of the pack. Its cries sounded more choked, it could no longer stand, squirming in the sand till it moved no more. The only sounds now were the soft breeze and Carletta's fast, shaky breaths.
For a while the tuk'ata stared at their fallen member, then set their gaze at Carletta. This time however there was no hunger in their eyes, it was something Carletta could only guess at. Was it curiosity, respect, sadness? Whatever it was, it made the pack no longer in the mood to hunt as they let out soft howls, turned around and prowled away. Carletta wasted no time in catching her breath and started to climb up the dune. The pain in her back still gnawed at her and the soft dust made for constant slips, but determination won in the end when she reached to the top.
To get back she let the Force guide her and the memory of home strengthen her will to move forward. Ascending and descending dunes, she set her trail for the rocky horizon. Beyond that was the temple. The night was filled with distant cries and howls from Sith hounds that were so frequent Carletta no longer feared the sounds, not even when they lay nearby. The sights of cliffs and huge boulders closing in gave her small flecks of weary hope. The temple was still tens of miles away (she didn't even think she'd travelled a quarter of the way there) but Carletta knew it was lurking somewhere behind the tall backdrop of red stone. Only problems were navigating steep cliffs and possibly facing more of Korriban's night hunters. And somehow, Carletta had an odd feeling, a wanting in facing such challenges to prove herself, despite the deep wounds in her back and the dry thirst that was starting to sink in. It was the Dark Side's influence and she knew it, and now, she was starting to like it.
Matturn sat in the sleeping quarters of his ship, locked in deep meditation. Although Peligrous had offered him a bed in the temple, he was smart enough, and paranoid enough to know how many ambitious students would jump at the chance of cornering a high ranking Sith Lord. There was a time where he'd relish the opportunity in picking off the weak and stupid, but right now he had a possible student to focus on.
A little over two days had passed since leaving Carletta chained in the desert and in all that time Matturn had been trying to feel her through the Force, wanting to know what she felt. It was vague though. He knew she was still alive, but anything else was difficult to tell. Matturn opened his eyes when a beeping sounded from his holo-projector. Pressing the response button, the blue figure of a Sith Guard flickered on.
'Lord Matturn, the student's returned. She's outside the courtyard.'
'Very good.' said Matturn, turning the projector off and sweeping away from his ship. The sun stood high and bright upon the grounds, bringing a near unbearable wave of heat. Matturn stood looking out to the horizon which shimmered, but that didn't stop him from spotting a lone figure that ever so slowly approached the temple. Crossing his arms, Matturn firmly stayed where he was, waiting impatiently until Carletta was mere feet from him. Her robes were tattered, torn and blood stained. There were scratch marks running along her mask and she was now accompanied by a foul stench. The chains were still linked to her and dragged along the sand. She staggered wearily to him when she finally collapsed to her hands and knees, panting desperately for breath.
'Two days and nineteen hours. Reasonably quick, but still lacking.' said Matturn coolly.
'Lacking?' Carletta panted indignantly, now looking up to his masked face. 'I faced three different packs of tuk'ata in one night. I spent over a day without any food or water. I've been bitten, nearly quartered, gored and impaled and you say I am lacking!?' Carletta found it painful to speak even a single word, but with hatred erupting so violently, she refused to be silent.
'You actually think facing some simple hounds and walking through a desert are accomplishments?' said Matturn with a dangerous curiosity resonating. Without warning, Carletta felt a boot kick her straight in the chin. She fell on her back, dazed and more sore than ever. 'I'll tell you what accomplishment is.' Matturn spat, leaning closer to her. 'Slaughtering a hundred Jedi, laying waste to entire Republic systems, taking the initiative and assuming a Dark Councillor's place by force. Ruling the galaxy without fear, pain or the slightest sign of mercy to one's foes. That is what accomplishment is Carletta, not some test of endurance, but taking authority and letting no challenger take that authority from you. If you still don't understand it, then I should finish the hound's job.' Carletta replied with only a whisper.
'Then teach me how to get it … to take authority.' Matturn considered her and stood up again.
'Maybe, but for now you still have a few more trials to complete.' Turning on his heel, Matturn swept away. 'Get yourself mended and then report to Peligrous.' Slowly picking herself up, Carletta kept her eyes on the Sith Lord, hatred swelling. For now though she would have to take the punishment, for the sake of her home.