Vette was fascinated by the Sith's explanation. She was obviously very cunning and strong at the same time. Vette had hoped that Zinna would prove to be a suitable apprentice for Badesh, but her fighting skills were unfortunately not good enough… Badesh wouldn't choose somebody who wasn't able to win against another acolyte.

Zinna seemed to have realised it too, she barely looked up when Badesh addressed her: "Why are you the weakest among all four of you?"

"I was weak because I focused on my studies instead of my fighting skills. Although I can read old transcripts and hence discover the secrets of the force I wasn't able to use this knowledge effectively in a fight."

Vette had always suspected that Zinna wasn't a fighter, but to hear her admit it and with it losing her hope of getting away from his horrible place… it hurt. And there was nothing she could do. There was no question that the pure-blooded woman was the best choice.

Badesh stepped to the last candidate. "Why did you kick the acolyte after the fight was obviously over?"

A cocky smile was visible on the pure-bloods face. "Because alien scum deserves to be kicked, my Lord."

Vette got angry at this response, but at the same time she felt a certain satisfaction that the acolyte had been stupid enough to insult not only Zinna but also herself – and Badesh wouldn't accept that.

"Care to repeat that to Sergeant Ce'na?" asked Badesh calmly and gestured towards Vette.

The acolyte now realised his mistake; the complacency vanished from his face as he visibly struggled to think up a solution for his blunder.

"I meant that useless alien scum deserves to be kicked, my Lord – it is obvious that the Sergeant is on another level than a weak acolyte," he finally said.

Badesh simply stared at him; the man grew visibly uncomfortable under his scrutiny. Without another word he stepped in front of the pure-blooded woman. "Name?"

"Azhikdae, my Lord," she replied quietly.

"You deserve to be my apprentice, Azhikdae. Pack your belongings and meet us at the shuttle in an hour – you are dismissed." He turned to the other acolytes. "You will stay."

Azhikdae bowed and strode calmly out of the room.

Vette tried to make eye contact with Zinna; she was undoubtedly scared what would happen now. She wanted to calm her down, Badesh had already announced to her and Quinn that he intended to discontinue the tradition of simply killing the contenders. But Zinna didn't look at her, she stared at Badesh; probably she wanted to show him that she wasn't afraid.

"Do you wish to kill the runner-ups yourself, my Lord?" inquired the overseer.

"That won't be necessary, as I stated before: all of them have potential. It would be a waste of resources to kill them. I will recommend them to lesser Sith Lords who are in need of an apprentice," replied Badesh.

"How novel," murmured the overseer but bowed nonetheless. "You should thank Darth Tenebra for sparing your life acolytes."

They bowed before him. Badesh turned on his heel and walked with Quinn and the overseer to his office. Vette stayed behind to talk to Zinna.

"Did Darth Tenebra mean it?" said Zinna before Vette could even greet her.

"Yes, in fact I hear that a Lord named Silthar who works closely with the Imperial Reclamation Service is on his way to Korriban to get an apprentice," Vette tried to smile in an encouraging way at her. "I could imagine that he wants somebody who can read old transcripts and is the scholarly type…"

Zinna frowned at her. "Really? Is this some kind of trick?"

"No, no of course not… I just feel an obligation to help you – after all it is our fault that you ended up here." Vette felt a small stab in her heart. Zinna hadn't only become distrustful, she also seemed harder than a year ago. There was a bitter trait written across her face that showed determination as well as anger.

Zinna blinked a few times. "I'm sorry, Vette… It's just the things I did to get here, to survive… It changes you. But perhaps it's better that way – I learn a lot here and if I make it I will be powerful enough to…"

Vette waited for her to continue, but after a few moments it became clear that Zinna had no intention to finish the sentence.

"I won't pretend that I know what you have been through. But hold out a little longer and you will get off this rock." Vette supressed her urge to touch Zinna; surely it wouldn't bode well should somebody watch them.

"I will," replied Zinna with a firm voice. "I have to go now, Vette. We will see each other again," a faint smile flickered across her lips before she bowed and strode out of the room.

ooOOoo

Vette met Quinn and Badesh as they stepped out of the overseer's office.

"I would like to talk to you before we return to the Fury," said Badesh.

"Of course, my Lord," replied Quinn smoothly.

Vette was still thinking about Zinna and merely nodded. She followed Badesh into a conference room which was decorated with ancient Sith masks and relics. Vette shuddered at the sight of them and the memory of her first time on Korriban.

As soon as the door had slid shut Badesh removed his mask. He looked at it shortly before clearing his throat and glancing at them. The way he averted his gaze led Vette to believe that he was to say something emotional.

"Well… Azhikdae will be joining us on our missions. We all knew that this time would come, every Sith has to have an apprentice, but I want to assure you that I will keep her under close surveillance. Should she even think of laying a finger on you… I would kill her without hesitation." Badesh stared to pace back and forth. "According to her file she is as intelligent as powerful, given her modus operandi she will downplay her abilities and try to gain your trust – but do not trust her. There is a high possibility that she will try to kill me in a few years and I suspect that she will try to dispose of you as well."

Vette put her hand on her hips. "But she could also stay loyal, right?"

Badesh smiled at her. "Of course, but I don't want to take this risk."

"I will keep her under surveillance as well," Quinn added stiffly.

"I know you will," replied Badesh and put his right hand on Quinn's shoulder. Then he grabbed Quinn's secondary utility belt which hung across his chest and pulled him in for a kiss. Vette felt how her heart started to pound. She loved them and seeing them together stirred something in her. Finally Quinn broke the kiss and smiled at Vette. She stepped closer and embraced him. Quinn kissed her with passion. When they had ended their caress they both breathed heavily. Vette turned and tip-toed to give Badesh a peck on his cheek.

"We should save it until we are on the Fury – although there is an certain appeal to doing it in the sacred halls of the Sith academy," Vette chuckled.

She saw how Quinn was about to say something – no doubt he wanted to express his indignation about her disrespectful comment, but he remained silent in the end. She kissed him again.

"You are so sweet when you get all imperial-and-proper, Mal!"

He kept his upper stiff lip. "I aim to please." (And suddenly, she realised that other things about him were already stiff as well. Maybe the idea of this desecration turned him on after all…)

ooOOoo

Azhikdae waited at the shuttle like commanded. She stood proud and tall, like Badesh she wore several golden piercings in her face, her eyes shone in a bright yellow. Vette assumed that she had stared too much since the apprentice returned her stare, Vette smiled at her. Azhikdae had a surprised look on her face but didn't smile back. Badesh stepped into the shuttle, followed by Azhikdae, Quinn and herself. Vette registered with dismay that the hierarchy was already clear. She and Quinn had to obey her. Unpleasant memories of Jaesa resurfaced and Vette felt suddenly insecure. Just as she was about to muse about her future role in their outfit she caught a glimpse of Azhikdae's face. She smiled at her and it wasn't a fucked-up crazy Sith-smile – it seemed genuine.

Maybe there was still hope for their little group.

The End

I hope you enjoyed my story :) I'm probably writing the third part of "Ryloth" as soon as the KotfE content is available. If you have any wishes, which aspects I should include in the next fic – just write/comment on it. I will try to work it in :3