"Master Shaak-ti! I've been looking all over for you. Where were you," Winter ran hurriedly to catch up to the Trogrutan as she shuffled further away.

"Wait, please wait! I can't keep up," the Padawan pleaded in between breaths.

"No, Winter. This time you cannot follow me. You have to be strong and trust in the Force alone to guide you now," Shaak-ti retorted, never once slowing down in her pace.

"You are strong and the Force is strong in you. I know you're going to make it. You will survive this."

--

Zzzzing-TICK! Zzzzing-TICK! Sparks erupted into the air as the medical droids worked, their many tools and parts being used in a dizzying tornado of progress. How long had it been now? A couple days, a couple weeks? They really didn't pay attention to anything other than completing their assigned protocols and duties as efficiently as possible. They had to work moreso with efficiency in mind than speed; the specimen was a delicate one. General Grievous himself was overseeing the project and had made it very clear that they were not to cut corners or exhibit laziness; she was to be perfect. A Jedi Padawan was a hot commodity and demanded the utmost care.

"Progress report," Grievous' voice coughed over the comm link.

The droids paused, just as they were about to align the synapses with the chip.

"Experiment has reached 99.9% completion. No complications thus far. Specimen has proven resilient. Integrity has been maintained," they buzzed back in reply.

Now they were in the endgame. They had only but to install the inhibitor chip into her right temporal lobe and close her up.

"Excellent. I want to be notified the moment you finish and place her into recovery," the general demanded with gleeful anticipation.

His Master would indeed be pleased. Only but a couple weeks had passed since they arrived at his fortress on Vassek but General Grievous had wasted not a moment; Winter Vance was prepped immediately for surgery upon their arrival. He relished the work ahead. Count Dooku had already made plans, prior to the Padawan's capture, to acquire a worthy specimen for this particular experiment. It was all too perfect that this naive, young, and healthy Zeltron female had availed herself to their need so eagerly. He leaned forward into his iron, high-back chair, which had been constructed exactly to his specifications, and chuckled within himself.

Poetic, indeed...