Kory had at last finished administering her most novel infection-prevention strategy to the patient.
In Kae'rena's time on Korriban, she had only ever seen slaves die of their injuries, or force themselves to recover on their own. She had never before witnessed any form of medical endeavour, and while it was not intended as belittlement, she was compelled to admit that any treatment would have seemed inventive from her vantage point. In the end, however, lack of knowledge or experience did not prevent her acknowledging that Kory had shown more compassion for the Professor, than any she had witnessed in her own personal history. It was, nevertheless, inconsequential. What ultimately mattered to her was that Kory believed it would make a difference. She trusted Kory, and so she trusted her judgment.
The process was ended with a joint effort. Kae'rena's only prior involvement had been to ensure Kory, who had torn away sufficient parts of her lower robe to use as a substitute wound dressing, was not interrupted from her ministrations, or interfered with personally by the male-dominated group.
"Kae, lift his chest off the floor so I can wrap him up." Together they completed the job. Kae'rena kept him sufficiently elevated while Kory proceeded to apply the cloth tightly around his torso, before lowering him gently back to the floor. The final act of care was done.
"Kory, shall we sit him up against the wall?" Kae'rena asked, as she did not feel leaving him lying face-down on the floor showed proper respect for all Kory's selfless exertions.
"Good thinking, Kae," Kory spoke in agreement, "judging by earlier, he seems to find the sitting-position emotionally reinforcing. I hope it's his coping mechanism, because he's going to need a good one." Kae'rena grabbed one arm, and supported her grasp under his shoulder with her free hand. Kory did the same, and in relatively perfect synchronicity they craned his person into a sedentary posture, before pulling him along the smooth cell floor to rest against the bulkhead.
"So," Kory concluded. "Now we wait for him to wake up."
"How do you think he'll react?" Kae'rena asked, wondering whether the Professor would revile Kory as the cause of his injuries, or let the past to itself on account of her attempts to treat him.
"No idea, Kae," Kory was forced to concede, "but as callous as it sounds, he's in no condition to get personal, and it's two against one. So I'm not too concerned about any retaliation. At least, not yet." Although Kae'rena could not fault Kory's logic, she was not able to supress a twinge of anxiety, which involuntarily shot through her. Instead of fixating on the point, she decided to turn her attention to the occupants of the cell.
The holding area, viewed outwardly from the centre point, seemed relatively vacant. Besides the three of them, the remaining cell population had gathered now on the opposite side of the room. It appeared they regarded any association with this closed trio, which circumstances had seen fit to create, as a sure way to further their misfortune.
Given the substantial under-utilisation of the room's capacity, Kae'rena was forced to wonder whether they ought to expect any new arrivals, but then recollected how the major had been so irate that Marrkus had let even one slave expire. It was an attitude which stood in contradiction to her life experience. The Empire had plenty of slaves on Korriban, and the present group did not appear to possess any unique skills or faculties, which made them especially significant, or difficult to replace.
Kae'rena knew that she had no unique appeal, and again challenged herself to find an explanation as to the Empire's purpose. "'Alleged importance to others within the Empire'," she repeated with her mind's voice, remembering the major's cryptic denouncement. Plagued by the riddle, she still could not fathom who would make such an assertion, what the exact nature of their elevated status was, or who the 'others within Empire' could possibly be.
She eventually dismissed her reflexive inquiry as an unsolvable mystery, but realised there may be a known reason how Kory had been caught up in all this intrigue. She, after all, had a unique attribute – she had friends in relatively high places. As soon as the realisation took hold, she began to develop theories on the matter. Notwithstanding that Marrkus may have had nothing to do with Kory's current dilemma, Kae'rena believed it the most likely explanation. Feeling that all Kory's prior misrepresentations had earnt for her the right to answers, she turned to her friend, determined to secure further details, and enquired, "Kory?"
"Kae?" she replied, in a playful manner.
"Tell me about you and Marrkus. I sense there is quite a story standing behind the two of you," Kae'rena said, smiling.
Kory had been expecting this to be brought up at some stage. "Stop smiling, Kae'rena," she said, responding with an absent-minded quality, "There's no twisting, turning tale to be told."
"You could have fooled me, Little One," Kae'rena retorted, emphasising the pet name, which Marrkus had used to refer to Kory, as evidence to the contrary, "But, if you so say."
"Thank you," Kory said. She had a suspicion, though, that her newly designated protector was not willing to relent entirely, and she would not so easily avoid revealing some detail of her personal history with Marrkus.
"Yet, the two of you seemed very close, Kory. No denying that," she resumed, phrasing her question in the guise of an irrefutable observation. Kory admitted defeat. Kae'rena had now talked her into a position where a subtle deflection would no longer be effective.
"Somehow I thought you were not going to let this go," Kory exclaimed, with a protracted exhalation. "Well, it really is not anything particularly exciting. My father was a freighter captain, as I told you. From as far back as I can remember, I was going along on regular trade missions with him. We had residential quarters on Nar Shaddaa, in the Duros Sector near to the Star Cluster Casino, but I grew up in the cockpit, starring out at the stars. That ship was more home to me than Nar Shaddaa. Even if our quarters were more comfortable than the on board accommodations, any hardship was worth the possibility of returning to Kaas City, even if for a short time."
"Did you live in Kaas City before Nar Shaddaa?" Kae'rena sought to clarify, finding she held great interest in Kory's past.
"No. We made cargo runs to the Dromund System regularly enough, but unfortunately, we didn't have cause to dock at Kaas Spaceport nearly as much as I'd have liked. Kae. The Imperial Capital is . . . well . . . it is . . . "
"Impressive?" Kae'rena cut in, uncertain at her choice of word, but believing proffering a suggestion would help keep up the flow of the conversation.
"Yes, impressive," Kory replied, frustrated at her inability to find a suitable descriptor, "but it's so much more, Kae. It's . . . it's an experience. One needs to be there to appreciate it fully. Anyway, what was I saying?"
"Quarters on Nar Shaddaa? Trade missions?" Kae'rena reminded her.
"Yes," Kory continued, picking up on her story without much difficulty. "Now you have to understand my father was an honest trader. I know that sounds hard to believe when you consider we called Nar Shaddaa our home, but he made sure his payloads out of Imperial Space were all legit, down to Bills of Lading. Those were happy times, cert and sure."
"I cannot remember my earlier life," Kae'rena commented. "It must have been completely unremarkable. Your childhood sounded exciting, thrilling even," Kae'rena said, as she smiled at her new comrade. Kory, to her surprise, did not smile back. Something was not right. As Kory began to turn away from her, Kae'rena contritely enquired, "Did I say something to upset you?"
"I'm fine, Kae," Kory replied, turning back to face her. "It is just thinking on all this again brings back a lot of baggage, even if there are happy memories in and amongst it all."
"How deeply regretful," Kae'rena assured sincerely, as she sought greater understanding of Kory's troubled past.
"Circumstances started to change," she began to explain. "We started doing back-to-back cargo runs, but the credits just seemed to get us nowhere. The freighter needed maintenance more regularly, which didn't help. The Cartel kept raising their 'Protection Levy'. Imperial Customs Clearances became more difficult and costly to obtain. The Universe, in general, seemed to be holding a grudge. I was always told it was just a natural reaction to economic downturn, and that things would be fine as long as we kept up the number of trade missions to see it through. I was nine years old. What did I know? He said things would be fine. I believed him."
"I get the sense there was more to it," Kae'rena prompted, clearly displaying her sympathy.
"You could say that. The situation improved slightly, but, unlike before, I observed him speaking to this twi'lek progressively more over the course of the next twenty four months. Also, instead of being taken on the freight runs, I was suddenly being left on Nar Shaddaa. I couldn't understand why. By then, I had become a decent co-pilot, so I didn't think it was because I was a burden, or got in the way."
Kae'rena listened intently. "What was it then?" she asked, urging Kory to continue.
"Turned out that the twi'lek was an associate of Bruga the Hutt. He had been running contraband for the Cartel out of Imperial Space, and didn't want me on board in case he ran into trouble."
Kae'rena looked puzzled. "The actions of a concerned father, but hardly that of an honest trader," she said, "He must have had a rea –"
"He did what he had to do!" Kory screamed, visibly in a pain-induced rage and on the verge of tears.
"Keep it quiet in there, filth!" came a harsh voice from the control console. Kory had quite forgotten about the specialist, who had remained on duty, which was especially inadvisable since this imperial would certainly not look on her as kindly as her Marrkus. Nevertheless, her next words were saturated with venomous hate.
"Damn her!" she cursed, in sharp, cutting voice, before taking a few moments of silence, and turning to Kae'rena with a look of apology. "I'm sorry, Kae. I didn't mean to bark at you like that."
"Bear no blame, Little One" Kae'rena spoke, in as soothing a voice as she could. "We don't have to talk about this if it is too upsetting for you."
"No, no. It's fine," Kory said, recovering her composure. "You were asking about Marrkus, not my greater life story. I only have fond memories of him, so I don't mind talking about it." Kae'rena was glad to see once more some glimmer of positivity enter Kory's expression. Her memories of Marrkus were like tiny suns, shining brightly on her mind, and warmly on her soul, and Kae'rena was encouraged by this, allowing her to continue her story.
"At any rate," Kory began, "smuggling contraband became the order of business for the next several years. I, as a result, was left alone on Nar Shaddaa to my own devices. I didn't see much of my father anymore, so I had to create my own entertainment."
"'Your own entertainment'," Kae'rena repeated, without trying to hide her amusement at how Kory had phrased what she expected were her youthful indiscretions. "I can only imagine what you mean by that," she said to her ironically, having a clear idea of what a character like Kory would get up to, if she were left to her own devices.
"Well, by this time I was closing in on my thirteenth birthday. Maybe my double-digit years emboldened me. Still, there wasn't much I could do in the Duros Sector. But I sure did what I could," Kory admitted, grinning with mischief.
"So this is how Marrkus comes into the picture," Kae'rena concluded for her, eager to make the connection between the two of them.
"That's right," Kory confirmed. "Marrkus' parents were members of the Imperial Diplomatic Service, and were assigned to the Imperial Legate's senior legal staff on Nar Shaddaa. This was during a time the Empire was engaged in a head-to-head bidding war against the Republic for Cartel mining rights on one of their outer-lying worlds. From what Marrkus told me, they were also in the middle of negotiating a permanent treaty with the Hutts, and the entire Legation was being worked day and night. So, he was in much the same position as I was."
"I understand then," Kae'rena responded with a roguish smile. "So the two of you partnered up in creating 'your own entertainment'?"
"It was a bit more complicated than that, Kae," Kory revealed. "I'll give you the short version. I was eventually arrested – an interesting story, but for another time. The next morning, Marrkus was thrown into the same holding cell. The Cartel's idea of fair treatment of prisoners was checking occasionally that they had air to breathe. We spent almost seven nights in custody, without any food or water. No officials of any sort came to interrogate or check on us, and without any heat, we had no choice but to cosy up to each other to keep hypothermia at bay. We were both lucky to find ourselves together in a cell because it appeared we had just been thrown in there to rot. It was even luckier that, eventually, his parents were able to use their political position to convince the Cartel to spring us both."
"His parents secured your release as well?" Kae'rena asked.
"Certainly looked that way," Kory confirmed. "Marrkus spoke to them in private the one morning. He never wanted to tell me exactly what was said, but I always imagined he had simply asked them to try. Wouldn't have thought it would be difficult. I wasn't exactly a master criminal."
"Fortunate for you, you had such a well-connected cell mate," Kae'rena pointed out.
"Very," Kory sent back in agreement. "It must be true that adversity shared binds spirits together, because since that incident the two of us did almost everything together. In retrospect, he being some years older had the effect of tempering my impulsiveness with a small degree of sounder judgment, which was probably a good thing, even if meant less exhilaration."
"What did your father say about it all," Kae'rena asked, "how did he react to how you and Marrkus met each other?"
"Are you that naive?" Kory replied, in disbelief. "He never found out. Marrkus' parents were far too absorbed by their political agenda to take an interest in either of us, beyond ensuring their son didn't cause a diplomatic incident. I certainly didn't volunteer the information, and Marrkus wasn't going to sell me out. True friends keep each other's secrets, so they do."
"You are the closest I've come, Kory," Kae'rena said, re-summoning her earlier emotions on the matter. "My singular memory is being a whipped labourer for the Empire, but I agree. Friends should keep each other's secrets."
"That's good to hear, Kae, because I'm trusting you to keep this between us," Kory said, winking at her.
Kory's acknowledgement of her made Kae'rena surge with rapture, as she smiled warmly back. "We'll be as inseparable as you and Marrkus were," she affirmed, intending to consolidate her first real social connection. The moment the words passed her lips, though, she regretted her thoughtlessness. As Kory's mind hung on the ramifications of the last word spoken, Kae'rena knew she had wrought an eclipse. The light of those suns existed, but were now hidden in obscurity, just as in cruel comparison, Kory's friendship with Marrkus, a cherished and valued companionship, remained, but forever sundered from her.
Kory turned away from her, and she let her to her grief. In any event, Kae'rena preferred the silence to the alternative, and believed she would only risk making the situation worse by speaking. She knew she had only meant to communicate her promise to be as dedicated to Kory as Marrkus was. Nevertheless, Kory would need to internalise her loss on her own terms. She could not interfere with the natural course of things, and so contented herself with being seated on the durasteel floor, flanked by Kory on the left and the Professor on the right, and waiting.
The assumption of silence between them did, however, allow her to overhear what some of the other prisoners were saying on the opposite side of the room. Nothing was particularly informative unfortunately. They were as much in the dark as she was, and were asking much the same questions as she was. Still Kae'rena could not imagine what was going to happen, regardless of how much she forced her imagination to conjure some explanation.
In the middle of processing another far-fetched theory on her current predicament, a familiar clamour ripped the silent air. The hatch was being opened, bringing with it the entrance of four specialists led by a well turned-out officer. Kae'rena, having only moments ago pleaded for a clue, now regretted that her entreaties had been answered. Kory was still consumed by her introspection, and showed no signs of reaction to the latest development. "Kory!" Kae'rena whispered, desperate to capture her attention. She was ignored, and her only recourse was to slide slightly over and elbow her gently in the ribs.
"What?!" she snapped
"Imperials," Kae'rena replied, paying no heed to the aggression in her voice. Now was not the time to be overly sensitive. "Looks like whatever is happening, is happening now!" Kae'rena's mind and body were once again enslaved by her terrible fears, as the latest disaster of her life presented itself. Unexpectedly, she felt the sudden grasp of Kory's arm around her torso, who whispered to her,
"We'll make it."
She interpreted this as Kory's assurance that she would get over her misspoken comment. While this did lift a small burden from Kae'rena's troubled mind, it was not quite sufficient to forestall the growing dread brought on by being finally faced with the inevitable. The lead officer waved casually to the specialist at the control console, who had risen to attention pursuant to keying in a command at his control station. The energy field lowered and the four guards passed through the entrance, but fortunately had been drawn first to the larger group of prisoners.
"Kory," Kae'rena whispered.
"Yes?"
"What about the Professor?"
"Who?"
"The Prof–. Never mind, just be ready."
Kae'rena turned to her right, on which side the Professor had been seated. She began to nudge him, encouraging him to wake up. He did not stir. She didn't want to shake him too roughly on account of his physical condition, but was being forced into taking more aggressive action. She shot a glance over to the guards on the other side of the cell, and saw they had nearly completed chaining up the other slaves. Time was running out. Once again, Kae'rena turned to the Professor. She shook him with elevated levels of vigour, before grabbing his jaw in her left hand to shake it. Yet, he was not ready to re-join the waking world. "If only I were able to be unconscious for this," Kae'rena wished to herself. "Kory," she said aloud this time, but at no higher volume than a gust of wind. "He's not waking up."
"Is he dead?" Kory urged.
"No. He's still breathing," she reported, which Kory was relieved to hear. "We are going to need to carry him. You take his left side, and I'll take his right. I wouldn't be surprised if the imperials just chain him to the column, and make us to drag him along the ground, otherwise."
Kae'rena and Kory took standing positions at their assigned sides of the Professor. They placed their respective arms around his upper body with a sufficient stretch to allow his underarms to rest on each of their straining forearms. At last, they carefully hoisted him to his feet, moments before the guards came to chain them to the column. Walking and carrying someone would be difficult enough without the added complication of shackles. Determined to cover as much of the gap as possible unimpeded, they met the guard at approximately the middle of the holding cell.
The imperial paid it no mind that they were supporting another prisoner's weight. He simply performed his duty, and shackled all three of them, leading a chain through the foot shackle rings and joining them to the rest of the group. Outside the cell, the officer was heard ordering the specialists to form escort positions, causing them to be ushered out and towards the hatch. Kae'rena and Kory had accustomed themselves quite well by now to bearing their burden. Surprisingly, however, as they passed the officer, he ordered the group to halt. Immediately, the guards brought the group to a complete stop. Kae'rena looked over at Kory with uncertainty, fearing the officer was going to rid himself of the lame man, who was only slowing down the advance. One clean blaster shot to the head would have done the job. Instead, he moved up alongside Kory, and tilted his head over to her. Apparently, he wished to speak.
"Our friend is a good man," he began to whisper to her. "He chose years ago the hardship and sacrifice of military life to save you, but a soldier can only have one loyalty. He could not prevent this. Do not blame him for it." The officer stepped away from Kory. He looked over to the specialist at the head of the line, and ordered them to resume the march.
The line of prisoners began to move forward, passing through the hatchway and down the poorly lit corridor. With so many of them concentrated along the narrow walkway, the repetitive clanking noise from the metal gratings underfoot resounded with even greater intensity than before. Kae'rena, occasioning a glance at Kory, felt as though she were in a vomitorium except for that she was heading into a disaster rather than escaping one. The line moved slowly forward, while Kory deliberately kept her face hidden from Kae'rena's view as she struggled along. Eventually, they reached the antechamber to the corridor, which led to the detention block, and in accordance with human biology, the sudden switch from poor light to the opposite extreme presented a temporary blinding effect.
Kae'rena's eyes recovered more quickly this time, although it seemed it was taking Kory longer to adjust. Being at the tail of the column had its advantages on account of them always being able to rely on the guidance of the prisoner ahead of them. It was, however, not necessary for determining that they were not being led back out of the Command Bunker, but down a long service corridor, terminating in a huge, rectangular chasm in the wall. Although she was not the best judge of distances or dimensions, she guessed the aperture was about four metres across, three meters deep and three metres high and apparently the entry point for a gigantic access shaft to a higher level.
Ahead of them, Kae'rena saw the lead specialist toggle a red wall-panel, immediately adjacent to the empty space. A second later, a loud grinding sound could be heard, as gears and hydraulics roared to life. "Sounds like a lift is being called, Kae," Kory whispered, softly. Kae'rena was somewhat startled by her initiation of dialogue, as she hadn't said, nor seemed likely to say, anything since that officer had accosted her in the detention block.
"I think you are right Kory," Kae'rena replied, "and look, there seems to be light shining down the shaft."
"I see it," Kory confirmed. "This must be a service lift to the roof of the compound. Do you think . . .?"
"I do," she said. "We must be on our way to boarding some sort of transport."
By the time the two of them had finished conversing, the lift had come into view, and it was not long before it came to rest, slightly elevated from the floor. The guards began herding the group of slaves onto the platform. Mindful of the minor step ahead of them, Kae'rena and Kory looked at each other, and without words communicated their understanding of what was to be their next obstacle. Making themselves ready as they were drawn closer, they concentrated all their resolve and strength to lift the Professor high enough for him to clear the step onto the lift surface. Kae'rena was sure she heard tearing cloth, which was not implausible. Their tattered bodies could only take so much punishment for one day, and given the amount of tension that their weakening arms had been forced to sustain, they both were reaching their breaking point.
It was not long before the entire population of Detention Block B was loaded onto the service lift. The four specialists had continued their close escort, leaving their officer to toggle the control panel, sending life to the inner workings of the device. The low groan of mechanics at work filled the air once again, as the lift was sent slowly and steadily towards the roof.
Kory felt it first. The Professor had recovered sufficiently to start making such involuntary movements as one transcending sleep to reach consciousness. "Kae!" Kory said excitedly. "He's waking up."
"Perfect timing," Kae'rena sighed, for she considered the timing to be anything but perfect. Waking to the sight of being raised up towards a blinding light, where one's last memory was being thrashed within an inch of one's life, was very likely to induce metaphysical panic. By what means were they going to keep him calm sufficiently long enough to update him on current events was beyond her. Convincing him that they were not the enemy, until his own senses drew conclusions of their own, was their only option.
The lift continued its assent, and the two friends found themselves fighting to maintain their grip on the Professor, who had escalated his resistance to a version of thrashing and struggling. Kae'rena had used the few precious seconds prior to rehearse what she ought to say, and was sufficiently prepared for explaining the events subsequent to the Professor's lashing. Before she could begin, though, Kory took the liberty to speak. "It's alright. You're with friends. We've got you," she assured him.
The Professor, most probably on account of Kory's maternal and caring delivery, decided to relax himself. This was a wise decision, Kae'rena thought, as his struggle would likely only lead to him exsanguinating. Although he had regained some control, he preferred to keep his eyes closed. It may have been on account of the light, but Kae'rena suspected from personal experience that it was just easier for the mind to focus on supressing pain, where any extraneous sensory processing was kept to a minimum.
Much to the relief of Professor's bearers, he finally found the ability to support some of his own weight. He had been significantly weakened from his ordeal, but Kory was thankful for even the slightest reduction in the physical demands placed upon her. She noted that her companion had coped far more easily than she had. Kae'rena, relatively speaking, was fairly strong for a slave, who had been overworked and underfed. Kory, on the other hand, immediately recognised the irony that, despite having received clandestine food and water rations from Marrkus in addition to less demanding labour assignments, her physical activities had not had quite the same side-effect.
At last the dejected group of individuals reached the end of their assent. Kory had been correct. They were now atop the Command Bunker. The string of prisoners, which had oriented itself in a serpentine arrangement, were immediately beckoned forward by the guard escort. As the column straightened, Kae'rena's field of vision was cleared of its obstacles either side of her, and so she immediately scanned her environment. She had passed the Command Bunker on a daily basis on her way back to the cages, although she had only ever been able to see what was at the very edge. That was about to change.
It made perfect sense, and would have only been unnoticed by the completely blind. "Typical Imperial efficiency," she thought to herself, "of course their military architects would design mobile outposts with the central command structure able to act as a landing pad."
It was never dark on Korriban. Relative to other worlds, it was always bright, but the light had diminished considerably since she had been dragged to the detention block. While parts of it were obscured, Kae'rena had sufficient imagination to identify a circular series of landing beams directly ahead. Energy was only lent to each section for a moment. Similar to the idea of the same drop of blood being pumped in an infinite loop around a circulatory system, the comparable movement of a single photon through the series of landing lights created a strange hypnotic effect. Her eyes autonomously followed the source of illumination, as it transitioned from point to point. Becoming entranced, her mind conjured the image of a wild animal guarding its dispatched prey, located at the very centre of the perimeter of its patrol path.
The entire sight accentuated magnificently the majesty of the engineering on which it forced all, approaching, to focus. At the centre of the landing circle, resting solidly on its landing gear, was an Imperial transport shuttle. Kae'rena new the design well. It was precisely the same class of vessel she had been shuttled around in whenever she had been re-assigned from one labour camp to another. She noted to herself her unexpected reaction, as she felt the familiarity ease her apprehension. Once more she took in the sight of the light grey durasteel hull, proudly presenting the Imperial emblem. The fuselage was about five meters high, ten metres across and, from what Kae'rena could tell, about seven metres deep. It was, however, not a simple right-angled, rectangular-looking box. This particular vessel had been optimised for functioning in an atmosphere, and as a result the engineers had considered factors such as wind shear, drag coefficients, kinetic friction, and all the other pertinent physics. The end result was a trapezoidal profile with a slight curvature, which was not visible from a distance but only apparent on close inspection. It merely appeared to be a flat surface, proceeding down and out at a roughly forty-five degree angle, terminating very near the surface of the platform.
On the dorsal section, there was a large cylindrical apparatus, which appeared to sink into a groove, out of view, as it terminated shortly passed the midpoint of the craft. From this fixture, two wings extended, saluting the dusty-orange sky. It housed the mechanics, which connected the wings to the fuselage, while at the same time guarding the power conduits, from which it drew power. For landing, these wings were rotated up, but Kae'rena recalled that during flight they would be rotated downwards to rest flush with the flanks of the ships.
The wings, themselves, were also trapezoidal in design. Unlike the grey hull, the only pictorial feature of which was the Imperial emblem, the wings had sections interspersed between the alloy frames consisting of angled metallic lattice structures. Although Kae'rena knew they would most likely be made of some variant of the commonplace durasteel compound, the effect of so many shadows concentrated in one space made the wing appear to have sections of black on grey to contrast the blandness of the remainder of the vessel. In all, it was simple, functional and efficient.
The only feature, of which Kae'rena was always intuitively weary, was the pilot section. Attributing it to her always being reminded of a the head and beak of a shyrack, a large reptilian-like bird native to Korriban, she once again could not escape finding this final component of the craft to have an incisive, vicious quality. This was only amplified by the viewports at the very front of the craft. On account of the extreme brightness of the planet's suns, these had been constructed of an extremely dark transparent material, and made the craft appear to have shut ophthalmic apertures. In her experience, one could often determine the nature of a person or beast by the look in their eyes, and reflected that her inability to know the character of this great metal bird, owing to its refusal to share its gaze with her, was a probable source of her disquiet. Her contemplations on the matter were permanently interrupted, however, as Kory exclaimed to both her and the Professor, "I can't do this anymore."
"What?" Kae'rena asked, the desperation in Kory's voice having caused her to refocus her attention rapidly away from the great machine.
"Kae, I can't carry him anymore. I am going to collapse, and then who's going to carry me?"
"We are nearly on board, Kory," Kae'rena replied, encouraging her to hold on a little longer. It was for unnecessary in the end, as the Professor communicated his pardon.
"Think. Manage," he coughed out, moving his head back and forth in apparent confidence of his own ability. "One help. Still weak," he ended to Kae'rena.
"Rest Kory," Kae'rena concluded, "I'll help him until we board."
She helped the Professor as best she could, who was able to support significantly more of his own weight when he took it one step at a time. Kae'rena was in agreement that he needed a facilitator, and noticing that he only would open his eyes intermittently, believed she ought to add navigator to her list of assumed responsibilities. Fortunately for them both, it was not too great a distance from the lift shaft to where the shuttle was docked, and the final leg of the journey was completed without any irretrievable breakdown.
Two of the specialists had now taken up rear guard positions immediately behind Kae'rena and her two companions, while the group stood in close proximity to the aft section the aircraft. One specialist remained on guard at the head of the column, while Kory pointed out to her that the fourth had moved to the far side, appearing to be speaking into his wrist-bound device.
A few moments passed before everyone's attention was drawn specifically to the shuttle. A ramp was being extended horizontally from its housing, allowing the increasing torque created by its extension to bring the one end to rest on the landing platform. Shortly thereafter a hatch was opened, and a woman dressed in a black flight suit appeared. Neither Kory nor Kae'rena could see her face, as she also wore headgear with a visor covering the upper half, save for her nose. The only significant part of her which was visible was her mouth.
About halfway down the ramp she looked to the specialist standing apart from the group as he went diligently about his duty, and smiled at him. "Well, at least something's going my way," she said. She sounded genuinely happy. The specialist, who was not expecting anything more than a polished professional courtesy, looked up at the pilot. He clearly recognised the voice, as he smiled back at her.
"Rylee," he responded, with a tone suggesting he had now dispensed with all military propriety, and was addressing a friend rather than a colleague. "What bad luck saw you pull transport duty?"
"I won a bet," she said, wearing an alluring smile. Kae'rena was struggling to understand her. She could hear her speak well enough, however she seemed to be omitting the ends of some words, and eliding several others into one. Whilst to her it was a substantially incomprehensible variation of Galactic Basic, the specialist had no trouble in taking her meaning.
"You won a bet?" he questioned, emphasising the outcome, which apparently did not make sense to him.
"Yeah," Rylee said. "We have a bunch new pilots in from Kaas, and Misha bet me I wouldn't floor the next flyboy who suggested we share a bunk for the night."
The specialist had begun laughing, "Mish, the old boy. We always said those good looks of yours were nothing but trouble."
"Well, my C.O. certainly thinks so. She busted me down to this gig for two duty cycles," she said. "Apparently, the new upstarts need time to 'settle down'. This way I am off base, and not raising any pulses, she says."
"C.O.s just don't like competition from their junior officers," the specialist larked, trying to raise her spirits.
"You're terrible," Rylee laughed. The specialist's light-heartedness had had the desired effect. "So, this lot ready to go?"
"All ready," the specialist confirmed, gesturing to his unit to proceed with the embarkation of the prisoners. "Any idea what this is all about? This must be the third consignment of slaves we've rounded up and sent off." Kae'rena grabbed Kory in excitement. The first piece of the puzzle was potentially within their grasp, and she wanted Kory to listen as well, lest she, herself, miss something. They could piece it all together once aboard.
"No idea, Aedan. I really don't," Rylee replied. Kae'rena's heart sank with disappointment, but continued to listen with a dying hope for something pertinent. The column began to draw forward as the three junior specialists ushered the slaves into the shuttle. Kory, ahead of her, was already on the ramp. They were running out of time. If any useful information was to be learnt, it would need to be in the next ten seconds at most.
"All I know is I've been shuttling around a pureblood for the last ten days all over Korriban," Rylee continued. Kae'rena felt the chain pull her onto the Professor. She had been ignoring the progress of the group, and it had now finally caught up with her. She delayed her ascent onto the ramp until the very last second, greedy to hear more of what Aedan and Rylee were saying. A further delay, however, would result in her collapsing onto the Professor and landing them both on the surface of the ramp. She did not want to aggravate his injuries or fall into disfavour with any of the guards, and was forced to make the bitter choice to abandon her espionage. She did hear the pilot say to Aedan that her passenger had not been very communicative, but it was the last thing before she climbed the ramp and boarded the shuttle to begin commiserating with her comrades.
The interior of the craft was divided into two halves. Extending from the bulkhead on either side, a long piece of solid metal protruded. It was a bench for passengers, and was where the slaves were to be seated. As they were all still chained up, the head of the column had been led along the left side, and, only upon reaching the forward section, was directed back down the right. There was sufficient capacity in the shuttle for twice the current complement of prisoners, and so the group only came to rest once Kae'rena, the final slave in the chain of slaves, cleared enough distance to cover herself at the aft end of the left bench. Shortly thereafter, the remainder of the prisoners took their positions with a cacophony of clinking metal chains.
In front of her, Kae'rena could see a row of removable metal gratings, underneath which, she expected, was storage space for gear and supplies, and possibly passenger baggage. In their case, they were all that was being transported, and as such the grating had remained closed.
The guards had disembarked, and left the group waiting. It had been a fair amount of time before the pilot came on board to recall the ramp and reseal the hatch. "What more had she and the specialist had to say," Kae'rena wondered. Immediately after Rylee had passed her and the Professor, in an act so typically inadvisably bold of her, Kory unreservedly enquired,
"Rylee, can you tell us where we are going?"
Rylee turned around to the source of the sound and found Kory's eyes, apparently not bothered in the slightest at being addressed by a complete stranger. "Right now, we are heading to the Korriban Headquarters of the Imperial Reclamation Service," she said, smiling at Kory, without any sign of derision, sadism or hostility.
"Thank you," Kory answered. "And by the way, you are definitely competition." Rylee smiled warmly back at her, and chuckled to herself, before beginning to walk to the cockpit. Kae'rena waited until the pilot had gone off out of sight, before turning to her left and leaning slightly out to look past the Professor at Kory.
"What was that?!" she demanded, with a hint of irritation in her voice.
"Don't be jealous, Kae," Kory replied, lacing her true opinion with an innocent measure of satire. "You're pretty, too. Mysteriously blonde, atypically tall, superbly muscular, penetrating pale-blue eyes. You'd definitely get a second look. And if by some miracle we gain an ablution facility to clear the dirt from your hair and face, maybe even a third." Kae'rena had already formulated her response, but before she could voice her words, the pilot came in over the intercom.
"Prepare for transit. Flight time, ten minutes thirty eight seconds. Mark." Within a split second, the engines were put to full power to overcome gravitational inertia. They surged to life with an awesome growl, before softening as they reached cruising altitude. The broadcast from Rylee and the roar of the engine had been sufficiently short for Kae'rena not to lose her train of thought.
"Your legendary 'honeyed words', Little One," Kae'rena replied in kind. "Don't be ridiculous, Kory. I'm not jealous, but at some point you being so personal with our masters is not going to end well for either of us. At some point, bravery is not bravery, it is foolishness."
"Kae, simply because the imperials wear a uniform does not change that they are people on the inside," Kory began to say in her defence. "The non-human species you probably can't take for granted, but everyone enjoys having something good said about them, and, speaking as a woman, especially a woman." Although the Professor was still barely able to keep his eyes open, resting in his preferred seated position had allowed him to regain sufficient strength to venture his opinion.
"Women only care about the potential to inspire praise," he pontificated. Kory glared at him for a moment, appearing to be considering some sarcastic reply.
"Only as soon as I understand exactly what you just said, I'm sure I'll be impressed by your feminine insight, Professor." Whether it was a euphemised version or not was indeterminate. Irrespective, Kae'rena wanted to avoid at all costs the resumed tension between these two strong-minded individuals.
"Kory, don't start with him again, please," she implored.
"Fine." Kory relented. "But it doesn't matter. 'Honeyed Words' don't lose us anything. She answered me once, and when the time soon comes we need her to answer again, you'll thank me." Kae'rena perceived a subtly in Kory's expressed belief, but was unable to extrapolate her meaning entirely.
"What are you trying to say, Kory?"
"Kae, didn't you hear what Rylee said to me?" Kory shot back.
"We're being taken to the Imperial Reclamation Service," Kae'rena replied. Kory was enormously surprised at her friend, who had not noticed perhaps an even greater revelation. It was now her turn to play the role of the teacher, speaking slowly and deliberately.
"Yes, Kae'rena, but what else did she say? Think again."
"Kory?!" Kae'rena exclaimed, frustrated by what she perceived as a condescending attitude, "Just tell –"
"She means the 'right now' part," an intensely impatient voice chimed.
"Very good, Professor," Kory praised.
"Why do you keep calling me that?" he demanded.
"Search me. It wouldn't have been my choice," she said, intending a dual interpretation. Kae'rena turned to the Professor, seeing no harm in admitting the truth of it.
"Well, we didn't know what your name is, and we had to call you something. 'Professor' seemed a good opt–." Kae'rena was not able to complete her thought. She felt preposterous trying to explain how her mind had leapt to such an alternative, and so resigned any attempt. "I suppose it does not matter anymore. What is your name, friend?" she asked.
"Niloc," was the response.
"Niloc," she repeated. "I'm Kae'rena, and she is Kory."
"I think he's figured that out for himself by now, Kae," Kory pointed out. "What is important right now is that while we may be on our way to an Imperial base, we still have no idea where we are ultimately headed."
"I take the point, Kory," Kae'rena assured her, "But I did overhear Rylee telling the Aedan, the guard, that she had been transporting a 'pureblood' all over the planet. Does that mean anything to either of you?"
Niloc kept silent. Kory appeared to be recalling some reference, mouthing the word to herself silently and searching for the answer in the space in front of her. Finally, she gave an indication of triumph. "Yes!" she began. "When Marrkus and I were still on Nar Shaddaa, the Imperial-Hutt Treaty was the hot topic, so we spoke often about the Empire. I remember him telling me about the Sith, who were the original species inhabiting Korriban. According to ancient Imperial History, a sect of Force-users from the Coreworlds Region had questioned their order's canons, and rebelled. They exiled themselves and journeyed into deep space, eventually settling on Korriban."
"That really happened?" Niloc cut in. "I heard stories told that a group calling themselves the Dark Jedi colonised Korriban, and where the ones who originally built all these ruined monuments and tombs. Personally, I never cared about who built them, only about who was being made to dig them up."
"Well, whatever they called themselves, the story goes they encountered the Sith, and were enamoured with their societal construct, which was principled on the fulfilment of wants and desires through the attainment of individual strength and power, rather than a system of law regulating interaction. They easily subjugated them. They learnt their secrets, exactly how to manipulate them, and ruled over them for centuries, calling themselves the Sith Lords."
Kae'rena had become so enthralled by Kory's recorded history of the purebloods that any latent anger at the temporary aggression in their dialogue had evaporated. Hoping that showing an active interest in the subject matter would encourage its further discussion, Kae'rena interjected, "But that was centuries ago. What happened to them? I've seen several alien species on Korriban, but none that were referred to as sith purebloods."
Before Niloc or Kory could venture an answer, the moan of the shuttle engines intensified, and they felt the effect of the descent. A voice came over the intercom. "Prepare for landing. Countdown, ninety seconds. Mark."
Kae'rena felt a sense of appreciation for this pilot, who saw fit to treat imperial slaves with the courtesy of human dignity. Kory's assertion regarding military officers found its way again into her thoughts, but the finer points of that discussion would need to wait. By her estimation, they had another brief minute to speak freely among themselves, before being overrun with military personnel once more.
"Kory," she continued, "what happened to the purebloods?"
"Marrkus was not entirely sure how or why," she replied, "But the fact is they died out over the centuries since the first arrival of the Dark Jedi. While ages ago their population were abundant, he said that in the modern Empire, purebloods have surrounding them a grand aura of notoriety and mystique."
Kory's final comment regarding the purebloods had a most remarkable effect on Kae'rena's mental state. She felt a wrench at her soul, coming deep from within. It was an emotion, an intuition, an instinct, and they were all screaming a truth to her, which her conscious mind had not yet concluded through rational discourse. "Mystique," she introspected, deciding to trust her feelings. "Mystique. Mystery. The Sith. Korriban. Monuments on Korriban. Ruin excavation. Mysterious people." Kae'rena paused for a moment, as her instincts once again took hold and directed her to examine her latest consideration closely. "Mysterious people? Mysterious person? Mysterious person! Could that be the answer to all this?"
"Niloc," Kae'rena gasped, drawing the unwanted attention of the other occupants of the shuttle.
"Yes?" he replied.
"Think carefully. Think back to the ruin excavation sites. Did you ever sense a presence, or feel as though someone or something was watching over you? Inspecting you, but saying nothing? It would have been recently, sometime during the last ten days?"
"Not that I can recall," Niloc replied.
"Think, Niloc. Are you sure?!" Kae'rena insisted. Unexpectedly, an answer came from across the divide, as one of the other prisoners addressed her.
"Yes. A visitation. Three days ago. Made me feel uneasy. Could hear it behind me, but it said nothing and did nothing." Kory had at this point lost the logical progression of the conversation.
"Kae, what are you all going on about?" she begged. Kae'rena was now absolutely sure of it. Some of the pieces fit together too perfectly to be mere coincidence.
"Kory," Kae'rena said, "Rylee told Aedan she has been transporting a pureblood to excavation sites all over Korriban, and the specialist said we are the third group of prisoners to be rounded up. I had a mysterious, unexplained encounter with someone earlier today, and he was not military. Now there's someone else who recalls a similar incident. That mysterious person must be this pureblood, and everyone, besides you, is being rounded up for some greater purpose involving him, or his masters."
"What you mean besides me?" Kory asked, almost as if she had been offended by her exclusion.
"You are not here because you are a slave. You were joined to this group because Marrkus' superiors consider you a threat to the integrity of his duties as a military officer, and wanted you out the way."
"You're insane. Marrkus would never do anything to hurt me."
"Never intentionally, no," Kae'rena conceded, "But his loyalty to you over his loyalty to the military is the cause of you being here. That is what the officer in the Detention Block was trying to tell you. He's the reason, but it is not his fault this that you are here with us."
Kae'rena's explanation of Kory's circumstances seemed to have extracted all the life from her. She sat perfectly still, furiously searching for ways to refute the argument placed before her. Shortly after silence had reclaimed its rule inside the shuttle, everyone was rocked from one side to another as the craft touched down on the landing pad, presumably at the Imperial Reclamation Service Headquarters. The engine noise began to subside, but was replaced by the light chortling of the prisoner, with whom Kae'rena had been talking. It struck her as being intended to mock her, and demanded to know the cause of his amusement.
"You are so easily manipulated by what you want the truth to be that you'll believe the most farfetched tale imaginable. And I find that highly comic."
"Damn this fool," Kae'rena cursed to herself, but let the incident pass on account of her inability to act, and unwillingness to dignify his psychological barrage with any ostensible discomfort.
As much as she wished the reality to be far from what she expected, every fibre of her being was telling her this was not her usual paranoia. If not even so cruel a mind game could sow a seed of doubt, she was determined to justify the faith she had placed in herself. The pilot had not yet withdrawn from the pilot section, but Kory drew Kae'rena's attention to the sound of the aft ramp being extended and the shuttle hatch being opened. She was one step closer to evaluating the accuracy of her intuition, but whether or not it was the final step was not possible to establish. She remained fearfully expectant as Rylee remained in the cockpit and did not show any signs of returning. Quite possibly, Kory would not have the opportunity again to speak to her, which led Kae'rena to a singular conclusion. Someone else was coming on board.