The First Apprentice

by Korykr

Power. That is all that truly matters to the Sith. Power at any cost. It was a core tenant of the one known as Darth Sidious. To him, power is all that has meaning in the universe. He must now confront something he has yet to be challenged by. An honest and simple soul. But such things are nothing to a practitioner of the Dark Side. Because simple souls fall first.

9. Chapter 9

RWBY belongs to Rooster Teeth…

STAR WARS belongs to Lucasfilm.

---

Chapter 9: The Way of the Dark Side-Part 2

Ruby sat in the passenger seat of the mercenary's ship with a sense of excited trepidation animating her otherwise calm face. When she had planned to subdue the crew of this vessel, she had expected it to be harder when she first boarded. Mercenaries were hardier than the commonfolk of the galaxy and tended to be tricker to handle.

Or that's what she had been taught by Miluka when the Echani woman had regaled the girl with stories of her mentor's time as a mercenary herself. She had described her fellow mercenaries as capable and reliable when they were required to work together for a client. Of course, there was always the chance that their greed would prompt them to try and remove her from the equation. But none of them understood the capabilities of someone who had mastered the Echani Arts. Hence why Miluka saw such acts of treachery coming hours in advance, sometimes days, giving her the edge every time.

Compared to the fanciful tales of her combat instructor, the man in the driver's seat beside her was bitterly disappointing. The man known as Jignee, sat in the pilot's chair, tapping at the controls with mechanical efficiency and a blank stare across his face.

It had been some time since Ruby had orchestrated the deaths of Jignee's teammates. Two human's, one male and the other female, and a Devaronian. The woman was killed by Jignee, a blaster shot to the abdomen, severing her spinal collum and ruining her organs. It was an accident as Jignee was aiming for the man, the unofficial leader and apparently the woman's lover. While the shot was an accident, Ruby was still the architect behind it as she was the one who stoked the men's rage towards one another. The Devaronian and the human male died by her hand. She arranged that the Devaronian looked as if he had been poisoned when in truth Ruby was simply choking the life out of him and crushing his lungs.

As for the man, he was the last to fall and Ruby had made sure it hurt as she threw him into every bulkhead and panel she saw at that moment. But since she let her temper get the better of her for the moment, a rare thing, she was unsure if the man lived long enough to experience it properly. It did not matter, his suffering came from the sight of his friends, love and livelihood collapsing before his eyes.

Her Master had told her that such a thing was worse than almost any physical torture you could put someone through, and she believed him.

Ruby glanced at the man at her side, he was a mess. His outfit was covered in grime from lack of cleaning, and he was starting to stink from the lack of bathing throughout their journey to meet her instructor. It was not his fault; Ruby just didn't want to take the chance on him, suddenly getting a surge of willpower and breaking her control. She still needed a pilot for the ship and a patsy for when she landed.

Ruby had never used her Force powers to completely dominate the mind of anything other than wild animals before now. Only deigning to use it on the man when she discovered just how weak his mental resistance was to her. While she was new to it, she was not finding much difficulty in maintaining it. Not that it required a lot of focus to control a dullard like this. The mental shackles she had placed on her new servant would wear off if she did not tighten them regularly. Like refastening a leash on a faithful hound that needed to know its place.

The Sith Apprentice stared out into the swirling color of hyperspace and allowed her mind to wander for a bit. Mentally going through the many lessons that she had been taught over the five years of her apprenticeship. All the lessons on the philosophy of the Dark Side and its contradictory nature, to the many Force Powers it granted, to the lessons of Bane. How he brought the Sith Order back to life and prepared them for a galaxy where the Jedi held the upper hand. A galaxy made soft and vulnerable by their poor vigil.

The results of such a soft made her want to crush something.

Ruby glanced as Jignee; she had wanted to kill him back on the swamp planet. He seemed worthless and weak, wasting the gift of life. Not to mention the fact he wanted to tranquilize her poked her the wrong way.

In such moments, she recalled the words of her Master and the wisdom of Bane.

"Our mission is not to bring death to all those unfit to live, my apprentice. All we do must serve our true purpose-the preservation of our Order and the survival of the Sith. We must work to grow our power, and to accomplish that we must interact with individuals and many species across many worlds."

"Few in the galaxy ever get what they truly deserve," muttered the apprentice as she recited her master's response to her critique of this lesson.

It was true, out of all of the crew on this ship, Jignee was the one who deserved to die the most if she had overheard the confrontation between him and the leader correctly.

Now he was her servant, which was a silver lining. If his weakness could be excused, let it be in the service of the Sith. He had disabled the long-range communications system to keep anyone from calling in. Mercenaries had lots of friends and Miluka still knew more than a few.

Ruby had also used him to wipe the ships navigation logs. If anyone salvaged the data logs from what was left of this thing, there would be nothing to find.

This was the first time she had a genuine servant at her beck and call. The chambermaids in the Palpatine Estate were close to it as they waited on her hand and foot. But they treated Ruby like a younger sibling, and she had given them the proper courtesy in return. She was not a tyrant.

"Coming out of hyperspace," groaned Jignee as he prepped the ship to return to regular velocity.

A sudden jolt rocked the ship as the lights of hyperspace gave way to the darkness of space and the twinkle of the galaxy's stars. Out the main viewport was a world with four moons. The largest of which was so close Ruby was surprised that the two celestial bodies had not collided at this point.

Ruby turned to her servant, "Is this the right system?"

Jignee glanced at the navigation screen, his monotone expression making him look like a zombie.

"Yes, we have reached Onderon."

Ruby smiled and looked at the floating spheres that gradually grew as they soared towards them. She was about to ask another question when another console began to emit a beeping noise.

Ruby was no slouch when it came to her studies, and her understanding of mechanics was advanced for her age, but ships were something she struggled with. She did not fully understand the cockpit and all its sophisticated instruments for flying.

"What's that?"

Jignee looked at the beeping light, "Communications terminal. Someone is hailing us."

Ruby scrunched her eyebrows in sudden annoyance. Who could be hailing them? They had just reached the system and were barely out of hyperspace. Did the Onderon officials have some sort of high-grade detection system for scanning ships in the system? Were they being contacted by the authorities or did the other mercenary teams survive her master's little surprise with the beacons and come after her?

Either way, she had to choose to ignore the call or answer it. Both had their ups and downs, ignoring it would keep their faces hidden, but would make them suspicious to whomever had spotted them. While answering it would reveal their appearances but would give them a chance to see who was on the other side and find a work around.

In the end she decided to answer.

"Put it through," she ordered.

With the push of a button, Jignee brought the small holoprojector built into the floor to life. The ghostly blue light shimmered to life and displayed a most welcome face.

"Hello, little one," said Miluka through the holoprojector.

Ruby's face instantly brightened up at the sight of her mentor. It had been weeks since the last time they had seen each other. The apprentice missed seeing the stolid demeanor of the Echani.

"I see you made your way here at last," Miluka continued, "I was beginning to question if you would return before the Youth Excursion to Coruscant."

Ruby's smile brightened further at the small jab her teacher was known for. Miluka was not a pleasant teacher, but she wasn't cruel either. Yes, she would hit Ruby whenever she did something stupid and her teaching method was arduous, but the results were worth it.

Ruby had learned much more from Miluka than simple combat. The Echani really are an outstanding species.

"Like I would miss an opportunity like that, even father can't hope to do it without someone tailing him."

The ghostlike image of Miluka smirked for a moment before returning to her indifferent norm. Ruby had gotten a better understanding of her teacher over the years and had learned what made her smile and what did not. Miluka, funnily enough, gained joy from seeing her students surpass their respective mentors, herself included.

"You are approaching the planet, yes?"

"Yup," nodded Ruby, "On approach now. Where should I meet you?"

"I shall tell you once you reach the spaceport," the Echani said, "For now, simply focus on not drawing the eyes of the authorities."

Ruby narrowed her eyes for a moment in suspicion, while she trusted her teacher wholeheartedly, that did not mean she was naïve enough to simply accept her instructions blindly. Miluka was given instructions by her master and that meant that there was going to be some unseen complication involved.

"As Sith, we are marked for death by not only the Jedi, but many Dark Side organizations throughout the galaxy who claim to be our rivals. As such, we must be prepared to face them should they somehow divine our identities and strike while we are unawares. It is part of our core training that we should be ready for any obstacle that places itself in our way. Embrace the chaos of the universe and you shall find opportunity in abundance."

Ruby did not question, but her senses were ready for whatever new roadblock her master had planned for her. Whether that was some sort of additional bounty he locally set up or a plea to the authorities, she would be ready for the complications.

"Copy that, I'll hail you when I reach the surface."

Ruby pressed a switch and Miluka's hologram faded away. The apprentice fell into a contemplative mood as the ship soared towards the planet. As they passed into the stratosphere and reached the cloudbank of world, she drew forth all the knowledge she had been given on the world in question.

Onderon, a wild world in the Mid-Rim that leaned more towards the Core-Worlds than the Outer Rim. It was a key world for the Republic during some of its most trying times, after several periods of galactic war that left many planets almost barren. Onderon's flora was used to terraform them as most of its vegetation was known for being quite hearty.

As for Onderon, while it was of great aid to the Republic, it was more well known for having a reputation of infamy, due to the fact that it was home to one of the most dangerous inhabitable moons in the galaxy. The fauna of said moon were dangerous enough to rival Felucia in lethality.

Ruby shot the moon in question a glance as the ship descended further into the atmosphere. The sphere was the closest to Onderon; legends say that on occasion they drifted so close that their atmosphere's overlapped, allowing anything capable of flight to cross over from the moon to the planet or vis versa.

The sky was nothing special as it fit the commonality of all type 1 atmospheres. The surface was definitely more rugged than what she was expecting from all the stories she'd heard about the world. The trees were big, but not even close to those of its system neighbor, Kashyyyk.

From her view of the planet from orbit, this world had both lush jungles and barren deserts, but it appeared to mostly be jungles. Gliding over the treetops, Ruby spotted a series of structures in the distance.

With a flick of a switch, she brought up a holoscan of the area. There was a large settlement ahead of them with a name appearing above it in bold letters.

"Iziz," she muttered, realizing that they were closing in on the planetary capital.

Knowing that the spaceport would have at least standard security, Ruby decided now was the time to take some precautions.

"Set the ship to autopilot and take the bodies to their hiding places," she ordered, all sense of joy or childish excitement vanishing from her voice.

Jignee engaged the ships landing autopilot, an expensive precaution that had been installed in case of emergencies during missions and left without a word. Ruby was thankful she had picked such prepared mercenaries; most tend to rely on their killing ability and cunning rather than practicality, leaving them vulnerable to more mundane threats.

As Miluka put it, "Preparation is half the battle, even when it has nothing to do with battle itself."

The auto activated with a beep and her servant got up and walked out without a word.

The ship flew over the last of the trees, allowing the open space between the jungle and the city to be inspected to their fullest. High walls separated the settlement from the wild and its vicious beasts. Turbolaser cannons mounted atop wall towers tracked the ship with the slow and menacing rotation of their main axis and the slight rise of their barrels. A promise of a quick and undignified end if she showed any signs of hostility to the stability of the walls.

Beyond the walls were several levels of residence, support, industry, security, commerce, and military facilities. They were all displaced to provide close to even accessibility to the populace, or that was Ruby's assumption.

The ship's autopilot beeped, and an automated voice chimed. "Iziz spaceport has been identified, requesting permission to land. Permission granted; proceeding."

The ship veered hard to port, almost shaking Ruby out of her seat as the structure of Iziz's spaceport came into view, one of its many landing pads unfolded its armored shielding to greet them.

Ruby pressed on the communications console and sent out a hail to Miluka, a slight bit of nervousness made her hands clamp into her seat as the ship reduced its velocity into a hover.

The hologram of Miluka appeared in short order.

"Have you made planetfall yet?" she asked with her usual indifference.

"I am landing at the spaceport now," answered Ruby, casting her nervousness aside, she gave a confident smile.

"Is your distraction for the guards ready?"

Ruby nearly chuckled at the accuracy in the Echani's predictions of her actions. "All set, they won't even know I was here when they are done with the ship."

"Hmm, good. I expected nothing less from you."

Ruby basked in the praise of her mentor, it was not often she was praised for the extra steps she went through to ensure she was the best, it was even less common from her Master, but when it did come, she was jubilant.

"Where can I find you?"

Miluka's indifferent expression changed into that of an apologetic smile, "I am waiting for you on Dxun."

Ruby blinked as she registered the name the recognition made her features go wide and made her unprepared for the sudden jolt of the ships landing ramps hitting the surface that she was nearly thrown to the floor.

"Dxun? As in the moon, Dxun?"

"That's right."

Ruby clenched her teeth in indignation, "You couldn't have told me before I landed?"

Miluka's apologetic smile was accompanied with a shrug, "I am sorry, but this is the order of Lord Sidious, little one. He instructed me to come here and reveal my location only when you landed, I am in no position to disobey him."

Ruby fumed as she took in the simplicity of how her master had outsmarted her once again. She should have seen this coming, he loved to add these sorts of challenges to her trials. If she had been thinking properly, she would have reached out with the Force to locate the Echani before even bothering with the planet.

Ruby immediately tried to call to her servant to return so they could leave, but before she could get a syllable out, the shield for the landing pad began to close and she knew that it was too late to leave.

She could already see the security team coming through the door at the edge pad to inspect the new arrival.

Ruby bit her lip as she forced her anger down and turned to the projection of Miluka, "I'll see you on Dxun."

"Do not take too long, we need to leave soon if you wish to take part in the excursion."

The projector deactivated and Ruby called out to her servant. It was time to take off his leash.

---

The Onderonian security squad marched up the ramp of the ship they had identified as a mercenary vessel. They swept through the small ovoid passages with blasters at the ready and set to stun.

They could not be sure what to expect but this was not the first time their world had been used as a quick hideaway for the less respectable members of society. Many criminals had used their world as either a hide out or a meeting place and their current king was determined to change that reputation even if it took the entirety of his reign.

As they entered a lounge like area, the sent of death slammed into them, making most of their number filch and the least experienced fight the sudden reflex to vomit.

"Who died in here?" One of them asked as a joke to try and lighten the mood and failing as the lead officer took it very literally.

Without a word, he gave a hand signal for them to sweep the ship, the squad scattering to search for anything or anyone suspicious.

One unlucky man opened a supply closed that emitted a particularly strong odor and gave a surprised yelp when the body of a Devaronian slumped out, falling face first on the floor.

The squad gathered around the Devaronian and stared in shock at the state of it. The alien was dead, and its body was starting to rot, the flesh was hollow and sunken with a pallid complexion.

It was a corpse, they had found a corpse on the ship, their member with medical training had deduced that the cadaver had been like this for several days at the most. A recent kill and was moved right before landing according to the pose the limbs had frozen in due to rigor mortis.

"He was killed while on his back," said their medic, "Whoever did this must not have bothered to touch him until they reached the starport."

They all scowled, some with disgust at the state of the body and others with disdain for the one who did this.

The leader turned away and marched towards the cockpit of the ship to check the navigation records.

As he walked the passage with a pair of his squad mates behind him, he heard a voice. A chorus of disjointed gibberish was heard from the bridge. Talking his blaster out, he led the way with his subordinates in tow.

The stench of death had returned, and he steeled himself for what he would find.

The cockpit was packed, two bodies lay sprawled on the floor, both human, a man and a woman. One looked to have been shot by a blaster and the other looked to have been beaten to death. The poor man's arms and legs were bent in so many angles that whoever did it was either so brutal that it simply crushed the man, or it was done in piecemeal once the sod had been subdued.

Either way, it was an act of brutality that was unwelcome in polite society.

The muttering came from the pilot seat; someone was there, pressing his back against the seat repeatedly in a rocking motion, as if he were in a fetal position.

Signaling for his squad to stay at the entrance of the cockpit, he crept up on the man in the pilot seat alone with quiet steps. His blaster pistol was kept ready to stun the culprit behind these murders.

As he got closer to the gibbering man, he started to understand the words he was saying at high speed.

"I didn't do it. I didn't do it. I didn't do it. She made me. She made me. It's not my fault. It's not my fault. I didn't kill them. She did. She did!"

The man sounded completely insane, his voice displaying a level of hysteria that the officer had only seen in those who suffered watching their entire crew get eaten by the beasts of the jungles. Survivors guilt most likely, or perhaps he committed the crime in a fit of madness and fell further into such a state when he realized what he had done.

The man turned his head to look the officer in the eye and jumped to his feet like a startled drexl hatching, minus the claws, but his shriek was almost on point.

"Who are you!?" The man shouted, pointing a blaster pistol at the officer with trembling hands.

Taking in the sight in an instant, his years of experience guided him on what to do next. Slowly, he raised his own pistol to make sure the man could see it and slowly lowered it to his holster without clipping it shut.

"Easy now," said the officer in a level tine. "Easy. We don't want anyone else to die here now do we?"

He was taking a gamble, but the haunted look in the man's eyes told him that the one in front of him was genuinely remorseful and would think twice before deciding to pull the trigger. That moment of hesitation would be enough for his team to stun him, or for him to pull out the old quick draw that had saved his arse on numerous occasions.

The man just stared at him with those haunted eyes, seemingly caught between the choice to shoot and stand down.

Then the man blinked, and it looked like some of his sanity had returned to him.

Arms still trembling, he lowered the pistol.

"N-no," whispered the man, "I don't want to kill anyone."

"Good," said the officer, "I'm officer Walend of Onderon Security. Mind I ask who you are?"

The man shook his head, as if struggling to formulate his thoughts, perhaps he was on some kind of spice or maybe he just came off a deathstick binge. Walend threw that aside, he didn't look like an addict.

"Jignee," he answered quietly, almost sounding ashamed to say it.

Walend nodded, "Right, Jignee. Mind telling us what you're doing on Onderon?"

"Onderon?" Jignee asked, turning around, he looked out the viewport. "When did we…"

"Jignee," Walend called, startling the man and making him raise his blaster again.

Walend raised his hands to show he meant no harm and silently thanking his squad mates for not shooting the man yet.

"Jignee, what happened here?" Walend asked, gesturing to the two bodies on the floor. "Did you do this?"

Jignee looked at the corpses and turned pale, was the first time he had noticed the cadavers?

"N-no…" he mumbled, then shook his head violently, "No!"

Jignee then clutched at his skull as if a fierce migraine had suddenly taken hold of him as thrashed as if he were trying to throw off invisible chains.

"I didn't do it! I didn't do it! I didn't do it!"

"Woah, woah, woah, calm down. What didn't you do?"

"I didn't kill them!" Jignee roared with a sudden fury that only mania could provide, making Walend realize that he had accidentally triggered the man.

Understanding that words would not get through to the deranged person before him, he placed a hand behind his back to signal to his team to get ready to stun him.

"Okay, you didn't kill them," he said, trying to ease the man into a less agitated state. "But they are dead, so if it wasn't you, then who was it?"

Jignee snarled as he recalled something, "It was her! She did this!"

"Who?" Walend asked, getting ready to give the countdown.

"The kid!" Jignee cried, "I don't know how, but I know she did this! She made us kill each other and hnngh!"

The man clutched his head again, "Then when I was the only one left, she… she… she got into my head somehow. Made me do things, I… I can't…"

Walend almost felt bad for the man, he must have taken something he shouldn't have on the way here. In fact, they all might have indulged in something they shouldn't have. Piss drunk or high and with credits on the brain, it was likely that the people on this ship were not keen on sharing their profits, whatever they were.

Then Jignee was beset by another mignraine and he looked like his head was going to explode.

"Raagh! She's still in my head! I can hear her laughing at me! It's your fault! It's your fault! Shut up!"

Jignee whipped up his blaster and fired at the ceiling, Walend made a fist and called for his team to open fire. With twin bursts of energy slamming into the man, he spasmed and fell to the floor.

Walend took in a breath as the tense situation had resolved. Turning to his squad, he gave his next instructions.

"Put this lunatic in cuffs and throw him in solitary until we can get someone to examine him. Search the ship for any more bodies and get them out of here and to be given proper burials. Mercenaries or not, they didn't deserve to go out this way. We aren't Outer Rim savages."

---

Ruby ran into the alleyways of Onderon's streets as she left the spaceport behind her. It was pointless to stay there now that she had put security on alert. It wasn't hard to slip through the port unnoticed, all she had to do was wait for the security team to board and slip out once they found the Devaronian's corpse.

It was like a speeder bike crash, people say they hate it, but they just can't look away. Not to mention the scene that fool in the cockpit likely gave them while she made her little getaway.

The Sith apprentice was thankful to be so small, it let her sneak past the many security points without being seen while she used the Force and her education in technology to hack any locks that got in her way. She understood why Ugnaughts were so good at being mechanics, their size gives them so much more room to move.

However, she would appreciate not staying this small for her whole life. How was she supposed to become a Sith Lord if she remained tiny?

Ruby stopped for a moment in the back alley where no one was looking. She needed quiet to plan her next move. The mercenaries had expended their usefulness, and her servant would make a great cover to hide her arrival. But now she was on her own and that meant she needed to put more thought into what came next.

Looking into the sky, she saw her destination. The moon of Dxun.

Dxun; one of the most dangerous and infamous moons in the galaxy. A world steeped in the power of the Dark Side. Its infamy ran so deep that the Jedi had convinced the Senate to ban anyone from visiting Onderon's closest satellite for fear of the Dark Side corrupting them as it allegedly did to many other prominent Jedi in history.

Ruby smiled as she gazed at the massive sphere in the sky. It was one of the places that she had wanted to visit, or to be more precise, the tomb that was on its surface.

Somehow, she knew her master was doing this as some sort of lesson. Not only in getting to the moon, but there was something else he wanted her to learn. Her master had taught her to seek the answers for herself and she would be a poor student if she did not figure out what the answer to this riddle was.

But first, she needed to find a new shuttle to get her off world, searching the spaceport was out of the question and trying to steal one from the local military was not an option either. Both had too much security and likely had inbuilt recording devices.

Luckily for her, there were always more options other than the legal ones. There was bound to be some rich local who had his own shuttle for her to steal, she just needed to find one. The problem was that she would need someone to pilot the thing. Ruby had learned many things but piloting a ship was not something she had mastered yet.

Turning around, she made her way back to the streets, doing her best to stay in the shady parts to avoid getting the wrong kind of attention. She was only twelve after all, if she suddenly started using the Force to kill someone it would get everyone's attention very quickly, and that could lead to all kinds of issues.

As she navigated the stony buildings of Iziz, she veiled herself in an aura of insignificance, making herself appear less important than she would normally seem. People who caught sight of her would simply gloss over her, their senses and natural concern for a child not registering the wandering little girl in their midst.

As she traveled, she made her way to the local market where she planned on eavesdropping a little before moving on. The people here were friendly with one another, creating plenty of conversation for her to listen in on.

After spending close to an hour watching the crowd, it became clear that this was a tight nit community. Most people appeared to know each other and there was a sense of mutual trust in the air.

For some odd reason, this brought a warm feeling to Ruby's chest that she did not recognize. She knew the heat of anger and the roaring inferno of hate, but this was something unfamiliar. This feeling nearly brought an unconscious smile to her face until she shook her head in denial. It disturbed her, so she quashed the strange feeling before she became distracted.

A guttural shout came from further down the road, drawing her attention, along with that of the wandering crowds.

Further down the packed street, a man at a stall was in the middle of an altercation with an alien customer who was being difficult.

The human was in the middle of a shouting match with a Trandoshan who pointed at the man with clawed fingers.

Ruby scowled at the sight of the alien, who's kind angered her so. Her hostility for their kind reigniting the fire in her furnace heart and burning away the strange feeling she had felt before.

Then she paused, realizing that she was on the brink of allowing her anger to spill out again. This was a weakness, according to her master. Her anger needed to be nurtured and restrained so that it could be unleashed when such was required and would be most effective.

Now was not such a time.

She meant to turn away but something interesting caught her attention. A Rodian child rushed by, deliberately bumping into the Trandoshan, snatching the reptilian alien's money pouch in the process.

Such a thing was common among the pick pockets of the galaxy and while such a thing would dupe normal beings, those like Ruby saw right through such simple misdirection's.

Evidently, the Trandoshan was also of sharp enough wit to see through such a tactic, as its clawed hand shot out to grab the poor Rodian. While Ruby did not care much for the fate of the weak, she almost felt bad for what was about to happen to the child who looked to be the same age as her.

She wanted to sigh as the sight only reinforced the beliefs that her master and mentor both had taught her. There was no mercy for the weak in the galaxy. You were either among the strong and thriving, or you were the weak and you suffered in ignominy.

As the Trandoshan hissed a threat at the Rodian who begged for mercy in his native tongue, another young alien rushed onto the scene. It was a Duros who looked slightly older than Ruby.

He rushed in from the Trandoshan's blind spot and kicked the back of the reptile's leg, forcing the Trandoshan to stumble, releasing the Rodian in the process.

Ruby watched with renewed interest as the scuffle unfolded.

The Trandoshan's reflexes were sharper than Ruby had recalled seeing during the few times she had witnessed the species in action on Tatooine or any of the other scum ridden worlds in the Outer Rim.

It struck out with a claw, nearly catching the Duros over his bald head, but the blue skinned alien was quicker, dodging the swipe and grabbing a handful of dirt. He twisted away to avoid a second swipe and hurled the dirt into the face of his attacker.

The Trandoshan hissed as it tried to quickly wipe the dirt off its face, failing due to the hard scales that covered both its hands and face, and lacking some form of cloth to make up for it.

The Duros stepped over to the Rodian, offering a hand while wearing an annoyed expression that was more shown his facial muscles rather than his completely red eyes.

Ruby saw the Trandoshan reaching for a blaster pistol at its belt, and she decided that this Duros and his friend would be getting a little assistance.

Grabbing a large stone, Ruby empowered herself with the Force and gave a strong pitch towards the reptilian alien. The stone flew with such force behind it that when landing of the skull of the Trandoshan, it drew blood.

The impact threw the Trandoshan down, leaving it to writhe in pain.

She was almost disappointed that her strike did not kill the thing, but then she recalled how their kind had evolved to have thick hides, so a Force enhanced stone throw would not be enough to put one down. The fact it was bleeding was victory enough.

What surprised her was that the Duros was looking straight at her. He had somehow tracked the trajectory of her throw, which should not have been possible. That shot packed the same punch as a minor slug thrower pistol. If it were a blaster shot then it would be understandable, but a solid object moving at that speed should be invisible to the naked eye.

Then he saw the gathering crowd and urged for his Rodian friend to follow him as they made their escape down a nearby alleyway.

Curious, Ruby decided that perhaps this brave Duros could prove useful.

So, she made her way around the crowd, making all due haste to tail the pair.

---

Cad let out a gasp of air as he vaulted over a stone wall that barred him and his friend from the adjacent street.

The green skinned Rodain named Hopp hopped the fence, running after Cad.

"I told you to wait for me," hissed the Duros as he rounded another corner, "We were supposed to go in together. Now we've got the entire plaza on the lookout."

"I'm sorry," pleaded Hopp, "He looked like a free mark with how angry he was."

Cad shook his head in annoyance as the Rodian nearly fell over a garbage bin.

Growling anger, he could not hold his words back. "I should have left you with Brebb. You aren't good enough for this."

"Hey, it was one messup," Hopp protested, "I can pinch credits just as good as you."

"No, you can't!" snapped Cad, his frustration at Hopp's need to prove himself. "And that one messup is going to cost us food for the next week if Brebb can't come up with a new plan."

That appeared to shut Hopp up as they ran through the back alleys of Iziz. Which was good because if they continued to argue, Cad was not sure if he could stop himself from decking the Rodian.

Cad was angry, more angry than usual. He had always been angry ever since he had been stranded on this dirtball of a planet with nothing but his half competent friends for support. But their recent string of bad luck had him in an even worse mood. He would stand with his friends until the end, but it flared his nerves to have to be the sole dependable member of their group when so much relied on them doing their part.

Hopp's desire to do more than be their organizer has put them in one too many binds recently and Cad was not sure if he could handle another week of simply scraping by because of the Rodian's fragile pride.

Coming to a stop by an oversized plank of wood placed against the rear wall of one of the many buildings in the lower district of Iziz, Cad pushed it aside, revealing a large door leading to a small abandoned store room that he and his friends had been using as a base for the majority of their lives.

Shooting Hopp another angry glare, he gestured to the door. "You first, I'm not going to be the one to cover your sorry haunches this time."

The Rodian lowered his head in shame as he trudged through the doorway. Cad made to follow, but he suddenly got the feeling that he was being watched. Turning swiftly, he looked back into the alley and thought he saw something there, only for it to disappear.

Staring down, he waited to see if his paranoia was just getting the better of him again, then he shrugged and walked inside.

The small bunker Cad called home was not a mess, but neither was it a place one of the middle class of Iziz would deem proper. There were loose bits of tin stacked into the corner at Bubb's insistence, stating that he could find a use for the metal eventually. There were wooden crated thrown haphazardly across the room. They were too large for even the three of them combined to move; each being at least double their height or more. So, they moved the smaller crates and created makeshift stairs to use these larger crates as beds. It was better than sleeping on the floor where the rodents could gnaw on them.

On each crate was a small pile of wool and fabric that they used as mattresses as even if you had the scales of the Trandoshan they just ran from, sleeping on wooden planks would always be uncomfortable.

Over in the corner was a small storage space they had organized for anything that could be kept for later. Such as a spare blaster pistol that Cad had managed to swipe awhile back along with the holster and a charge pack for spare ammunition.

Cad never told Hopp or Brebb, but he was still practicing with the thing, even though he wasn't supposed to. It was a waste of ammo. However, Cad had gotten into the habit of swiping spare ammunition whenever he spied one that would fit. He had developed a keen eye for it, as he did for most things that proved useful. The two numbskulls he called friends could say otherwise, but knowing how to fire a blaster faster than your opponent was very, very useful.

He tapped his pocket to check if the spare he took from the Trandoshan was still there. Sure enough, it was.

Over to the side was a small workshop where they drew up plans for their small heists and their annual market thievery.

Standing at the desk with the flickering lamp was Brebb.

"We're back," Cad called out from behind Hopp.

Brebb turned and eyes them up, "So soon? I hope we got a good haul this time."

Brebb was a Sullustan who was slightly older than Cad and that often kept him in their little hideout at it would make the best use of his species' natural talents for whenever the trio got their hands on new information. Brebb was smart, but the same could be said about Cad, the reason Brebb stayed was because Cad was better suited for the more physically demanding tasks that they needed in order to survive.

If their roles were switched, Cad was confident he would be just fine; the same would not be said about Brebb, despite him being the oldest of the three of them.

Cad saw Hopp look to the floor in shame and Cad gave him a soft nudge. Hopp looked at Cad and the Duros gave him a sympathetic look, just to show that there were no hard feelings. It was a job and they screwed up. Now it was time to fess up.

Satisfied with this gesture, Hopp turned to Brebb.

"I… ugh…" Hopp rubbed the back of his head, "I got caught."

Brebb stared at Hopp for a moment, then he looked to Cad who gave a conceited shrug.

"Ugh," groaned the Sullustan, turning away from the pair and slamming his hands on the makeshift table. "Kriffing again Hopp. This is the third time in a row."

"He-hey, I'm sorry. That Trandoshan was quicker than I thought," squeaked Hopp in a moment of panic.

Brebb sighed while not turning back, "It don't matter if you're sorry. We need this, Hopp. I've explained this a hundred times to you and Cad has done the same. The end goal is to get off this speciesist rock and we can't do that if we're too busy scrounging around for food."

Brebb turned to the Rodian and raised a hand to the many weathered sheets of paper they pinned to a wooden board by the table, "The market is the one place we can reliably pinch people's credits and not risk them following us. Not only does that get us food, but we can build up a stack for when we get off this ball of poodo. And every time you get caught, we have to wait a week before we can head back there, wasting time we could be using to find a way to get into the king's hanger."

Not to mention wasting the credits I worked so hard to steal, Cad thought, but he kept that to himself.

Cad heard the subtle knock of wood on stone and turned to the door. He tuned out Brebb chewing Hopp a new one, he needed to listen for what was going on outside.

Walking slowly up to the door, he leaned towards the corner, planning to take a peek outside. There were times when people came close to finding their hideout. Those were some sleepless nights. If someone found them, then it would not be long before security came knocking to throw them in jail.

Cad refused to spend his life in some prison to fade away like some nobody. He was meant for more than this miserable rat's life, he knew it, and that certainty drove him to work harder than the other two behind him.

Cad was about to turn the corner when a head popped out in front of him as if knowing he was there.

"Boo!" shouted the newcomer, sending Cad scrambling back and putting Hopp and Brebb on alert.

Recovering from the near heart attack, Cad balled his hands into fists and took a sloppy fighting stance. He was not good at stand-up fights but that was why he was practicing with the blaster.

The newcomer laughed and Cad heard a high-pitched female voice coming from the door. He meant to shout a warning to be intimidating, but considering he was a fresh teen, he doubted he would be scaring anyone. Not to mention he never got the chance to speak before their visitor walked inside.

She was a human woman, no, a human girl, with slightly pale skin, black hair that ended in a red tinge, and had silver eyes that shone with a mischievous light. She wore a black tube top and shorts and nothing else. Not even shoes.

The girl looked around their home as she stepped inside with such casual ease that you would think the place now belonged to her.

"Who are you?" Brebb asked, then shaking his head he added, "We are not in the mood to take in strays. Get out."

Cad looked closer at the girl and then his eyes widened in recognition. This was the girl who saved him from the Trandoshan's blaster. The Duros immediately tenses his body in preparation for a fight. The kid in front of him looked small, but he saw the killer throw she made earlier and had no doubt that she could do the same here.

Cad learned early on after their crash on this planet to never underestimate anyone. Even a wamp rat can kill under the right circumstances.

The girl glanced at Brebb, her smile not dropping as she giggled, "Sounds to me like you're the strays here. If what I heard was right."

"And what does that make you?" Cad asked, buying time for his friends to try and circle her.

"A tourist who needs to leave soon," she said in a bored manner, as Hopp slowly walked around her.

Cad took slow steps around the other side while Brebb took his spot in front of her. The Sullustan began his distraction.

"Leave? You have a way off this planet?"

"Nope," said the girl, "But I think you do. You said something about a hanger."

"Your ears must not be working, girlie," sneered Brebb, "I didn't say squat."

Cad saw the girl's smile widen as if she had expected that, "And here I was hoping we could help each other. Since we both want the same thing."

Hopp snickered at her, "Yeah, like you know what we want. You're human. You don't care about us."

The girl glanced back at Hopp from over her shoulder, her playful smile vanishing for a moment before returning, "Did I say that I cared? I said we want the same thing. Isn't that enough of a reason to work together."

"And just what do you think we want?" Cad asked, sparing Brebb the effort and getting to the point. He hated it when Brebb tried to act all tough, it wasted time that could be saved by being direct.

The girl looked to Cad, the smile somehow looking more genuine now, "To get off Onderon, what else?"

"You want to leave Onderon?" Brebb asked, to which the girl nodded. "Why?"

The girl gave him a dead stare for a moment, "Does my reason matter that much?"

Cad cut Brebb off again, "It does when you offer to work with us. So far, not many humans have been so generous."

Shrugging her shoulders, the girl complied, "Fine, my transport is unusable now and I need to get to Dxun."

Hopp nearly gagged at the mention of the name while Brebb and Cad balked at the mere idea of heading to that deathtrap.

Brebb shook his head in disappointment, "You must have a screw loose if you want to go there, girlie. Why in the name of the Force would you ever want to go to that nightmare moon?"

The girl looked at her hand as if she had a broken nail, "Someone is expecting to meet me up there and I don't want to keep her waiting."

"Too bad!" Yelled Hopp as he made to lunge for the girl.

Cad's sharp eyes saw the signs right before they happened. The girl looked calm, but she was ready for the Rodian, almost like she knew what he was going to do.

"Hopp, wait!"

The girl quickly bent her legs and sprang into the air, leaping higher than any of them though possible for a human. Hopp landed on the ground with a face full of dirt while the girl landed on one of their bed crates with almost playful ease.

Brebb meant to chase her, but Cad ran in front of him and held out a hand.

"Wait," Cad said.

"What are you doing?" Brebb quired.

"We agreed that you let me take charge when things get dangerous," Cad said glancing at the girl who was now looking down on them in a literal and he suspected in a metaphorical sense too.

"Are you serious? I know what she just did was crazy, but she's still just a human kid. Nothing we can't handle. It be like wrestling Hopp."

Cad gave the girl a long stare, there was something off about her. Something that put Cad in edge. She strolled into their home with the confidence of a queen in her own manor, and despite being the least physically imposing, she looked like she was the one in charge, even if she was outnumbered.

"You didn't see what she did earlier. Nearly killed a Trandoshan with a stone," Cad explained.

"Are you for real?"

Cad gave a nod while not looking away from the girl, "She's dangerous. I don't know how, but she is."

Brebb looked at the girl who now sat on the edge of the crate with her legs crossed. Creasing his brow, the Sullustan muttered, "Fine, you do the talking."

"You two done chatting?" the girl asked with her chin resting in the palm of her hand.

"Mind if I get a name, little lady?" Cad requested, trying to sound polite.

She just looked amused as she replied, "Only if you give me yours first."

"Name's Cad," said the Duros, turning to the Sullustan, he continued, "This is Bebb."

Cad then pointed behind him with a thumb, "And that mudcrutch dusting himself off is Hopp."

The girl giggled, "I'm Rose."

"A pleasure," Cad said with no shortage of sarcasm. "Now, why are you bothering us? We're just a bunch of rats trying to get by."

Rose giggled again, "You can't fool me. I can see from this little hideout that you three aren't just some poppers looking for your next dumpster dived meal."

She narrowed her eyes but kept her grin, "You want to get out of here, judging by how organized you are and by the little shouting match the Sullustan had with the Rodian, you want it badly."

Cad looked to Bebb who was starting to see the wisdom in letting Cad do the talking.

"And if we are? What's it to you? It's not like we can help you."

"Oh, I'm not too sure about that, you've been here longer than me and I'm willing to bet that you already know who has a working shuttle lying around outside those at the spaceport and the military base."

Rose jumped down from the crate and walked up to Cad, while she had to look up at him, the Duros could not help but feel like he was the one in danger. Menace just oozed off of her with that almost feral smile.

"Brebb mentioned a hanger earlier, so I think you already have a target in mind. Care to share?"

Cad carefully considered his words, then decided to just say it. Not like it would change anything.

"It's the king's personal shuttle," confessed Cad to the dismay of his friends, "We managed to catch another gang of thieves and steal their map for the palace at the top of the city. Other than the Senator's private shuttle in the military base, his majesty's shuttle is the only one with a working hyperdrive. And funny enough, the most lightly guarded."

Rose looked thoughtful for a moment and Cad wondered if he could sock her in the face and end this nonsense, but something told him not to. His sense for opportunity told him not to end this. This kid was a freak, but that provided something he had not had for months.

Hope that he could finally get off this world.

Was she the missing piece they needed to finally reach the king's shuttle?

"What's stopping you from taking the shuttle now?"

"We can't get past the doors that lead to the landing bay," Cad admitted, annoyed that he, despite all his practice at the art of slicing into a mainframe, he lacked the tools to get through the palace's systems.

Rose smiled slyly, "I can do that."

"You can?" asked Hopp, who received a hard nudge from Brebb.

Rose nodded, "Getting through security doors is as easy as flicking a switch for me. And even if there is no door panel, I have other ways."

Cad narrowed his eyes as he glimpsed something sinister in that smile.

"So, you want to help us steal the king's shuttle?"

"That's what I'm offering and in exchange I need someone to fly me to Dxun."

"Can't you just steal a normal shuttle? You don't need to get something with a hyperdrive to reach that far," Cad said, seeing her face scrunched up in frustration.

"I can do lots of things, but piloting a ship isn't one of them. And not to mention, no ships are allowed to land on Dxun. So, asking some random person won't work. I need someone who doesn't mind breaking the rules."

Rose smiled again, "Since you're planning to steal the shuttle, I'm assuming at least one of you knows how to fly?"

The Duros nodded, "I can."

"Cad!" Brebb exclaimed.

"Shut it!" Cad snapped, not willing to let this rare opportunity slide.

"So, Cad," Rose said, with a maturity that someone of her age should not possess. She had a smile that made her look like a poisonous flower, pretty but deadly. "How about we make a deal?"

"I'm listening."

"I help you and your friends steal the shuttle. In exchange, I want you to take me to Dxun and drop me off wherever I decide."

Cad narrowed his eyes, "And after that? What about the ship?"

"You can have it; I won't be needing it once I'm up there." Rose said with a casual disinterest that made it hard for him to tell if she was lying. "I'll even do you one better, I have the coordinates memorized for Nar Shaddaa. Take me to Dxun and it's yours. Do we have a deal?"

Cad hummed to himself and looked back to his companions who both wore skeptical looks. Turning to the strange girl, he said, "Give us a minute to think on it."

Rose shrugged, as if she had expected that too, "Don't take too long."

Cad turned away from the girl, not too quickly, just in case she planned to backstab them now that she knew what they were planning to do.

The trio moved away from the strange girl and stood together at the planning desk where drawings of the city were scattered haphazardly across its surface.

Brebb leaned over to Cad, "What are you thinking?! We don't know her, and you just spill our only plan for getting off Onderon?"

"I did what I had to do to get her to back off," countered the Duros, "She followed us here and heard you talking. No way she was going to leave without answers."

"Then lie," hissed Hopp. "Isn't that what you always tell me?"

Cad thought carefully before speaking again, once more mulling over his own argument, weighing whether or not it would be worth admitting his secret hope.

After a moment's thought, he chose.

"I think she can help us get the job done," Cad said with no hint of uncertainly left in him.

"What?" Brebb croaked, "Are you mental? She barges in here acting all cocky and you think she can get us into a building that's locked the three of us out for close to three years?"

Cad glanced at the girl who was just watching them with a bored stare, it was like she was treating them like a passing show rather than people trying to survive.

Just who the heck raised this devil?

"Maybe I have gone insane," Cad conceded, "But I will admit that it sounds better than stealing every gadget we can find, hoping one of them can hack the doors for us."

Cad gestured to the desk, "Do you really think any of these random trinkets will get the job done?"

Pinned to the wall were sketches of equipment they theorized could get them through the sealed doors inside the king's palace. Cad didn't know what any of them were called much less what they were supposed to do. Brebb thought he was being clever by looking at every strange piece of tech he could spy while Cad and Hopp were out, but the truth was that he was just throwing darts in the dark and hoping to get a bullseye.

"One of them will get us inside," insisted Brebb, "I know we'll find something."

Judging by the passionate look in the Sullustan's eye, Cad could not help but think that Brebb was trying harder to convince himself than he was for his friends.

"The more you say that…" Cad said, suspecting he might regret finishing his thought. "The less I believe you."

Before Brebb could muster another half-hearted counter, Cad shook his head. "And even if we do find something, how long do you think that is going to take? Just for one to show up might be months. Not to mention we have to steal the thing. And who would we be stealing from if they had that kind of tech? What if they are worse than security? And what if we get no opportunity to steal anything? We would have to wait months for another shot at least. I don't like being the pessimist but doing this your way could take us years."

In a sudden fit out outrage towards the realization of his situation, Cad slammed an open palm on the table and exclaimed, "I do not want to waste my life scurrying around like a rat!"

The outburst left both Hopp and Brebb staring at Cad, unused to seeing him lose his cool like this. Cad had always been the calm and collected one, granted he did throw out the scathing comment whenever Hopp messed up or Brebb was clearly in the wrong, but he never let it get to him until now.

Cad was not sure why, but he felt like something was nudging him forward. Like his anger was just high enough for him to let it slip. Maybe the girl was putting him on edge or something, whatever, if it helped him get his point across all the better.

After a second, Brebb found his voice, "Even if that is true, we don't know whether or not she is bluffing. I mean, she's just a kid."

Cad grumbled, "And?"

Brebb blinked in surprise, "What do you mean and? You really think she can do what we've been trying since we got here?"

"Why not?" Cad countered, "We know our way around a hydrospanner… well, most of us."

"Hey!" Hopp snapped, "I figured it out first."

Ignoring the Rodian, Cad had realized he was starting to want this so bad that he was willing to risk it all just so it could finally end. All the hiding, skulking, stealing, waiting, eating food that was half chewed and sometimes barely suitable for consumption. He was tired of risking getting sick every night from either the intense shifts in temperature from the seasons or just the food he was forced to consume.

One way or another, he just wanted it to end, and that gave him the courage to take this chance, even if it were false hope.

"Not to mention, she is not that much younger than us and she's obviously not from here. Maybe she is from some gang who raised her for this sort of thing. Maybe Black Sun or the Hutts."

"You sound like you've been run over by a Rhihorn," sighed Hopp, turning to Brebb. "Even if she can do what she says she can, I don't trust her. This is a bad idea."

Brebb seemed lost for words.

Seeing that his friend was conflicted, Cad decided to hammer his views in, "Aren't you guys tired of this life? All this running, hiding, stealing and worrying about getting our next meal? I know I am. When our families traveled together, I knew there was more out there and when we crashed, I knew we would get off."

The Duros let out a long sigh, "Every day that certainty has been dying little by little and I don't know how long I can hold it. I am afraid, afraid that I'll become accustomed to this life."

Cad saw the rising doubt on his friends' faces, Bredd turned to the table, trying to find comfort in his notes and sketches, but Cad knew all he would find were vague promises that he made up to keep hope alive.

Hopp just looked to the floor, dejected. It was not hard for the Rodian to become discouraged, and Cad was not glad he had to put Hopp in such a state.

After a minute of silence, Brebb turned to Cad.

"And how is this any different from my idea? How do you know this won't just backfire and leave us worse off?"

Cad glanced at the girl; she likely heard everything they were saying, but her expression had not changed. That small face was nothing but pure confidence, and Cad knew that if he was ever going to get a chance to get offworld, then he had to start taking risks. Big risks.

"If we fail, at least we won't be stuck here. I heard that the prison has regulated temperatures at least."

Brebb blew air from his lips causing his jowls to shudder, "Alright then."

Brebb grabbed the map of the palace and slapped it down at the edge of the table, his mouslike eyes gleaming as he looked at Cad with a sudden flare he had not displayed for close to a year. "If we're doing this, then we need to go all in."

Cad wanted to smile, but held his firm expression for when they convinced their last member to join in.

"Hopp?" Cad said, not needing to say more for the Rodian to understand.

The Rodian gave no reply, not even bothering to look up.

"Hopp, come on," insisted Cad, "You know we can't do this without you, and we won't try unless you're in."

Cad knew this would soften him up; Hopp was always a sucker for flattery thanks to his overprotective parents.

As Cad predicted, Hopp looked up, "I still don't like this, but if this is our only chance to get out of here then I'm in."

With that, Cad turned and walked to Rose, who still had not moved a muscle other than to lean against the crate. It was then that he noticed that despite her small frame, she was fit for someone so young. This made Cad happy that he didn't opt to try and get rid of her.

"Is the debate over?" she asked politely.

"We are willing to give it a go," Cad said, stepping closer, "So long as you aren't bluffing, we might be able to get out of here. Any chance you can give us some proof that you know how to open cyberlocked doors?"

Rose's smile grew wider before settling back down, "Nope, I'm afraid you'll have to trust me. Besides, if that's not enough for you I can always go and bring security here and you'd be going to prison anyway, so why not take the risk to win big."

Cad narrowed his eyes at her, realizing that she had a trump card up her sleeve from the start if they refused. Even if Cad could take her in a fight, the odds of him catching such a freakishly agile girl were not in his favor.

Clever girl, he thought. While he disliked being forced into a bind, he had to admit there was something exciting about what he was about to attempt, and besides, she was right, better to risk it and win big rather than sit here and waste years trying the safer way.

Cad smirked and grabbed the invisible cowboy he had pretended to wear since he lost the one his father got him. Tipping his head forward, he gave a gesture of acknowledgement.

"You got me there, we have ourselves a deal, little miss. Oh, and don't forget about those coordinates you promised when this is all said and done."

Rose giggled as she gave a mock bow of her own, "Don't worry. I plan on giving you everything you want. Now, let's get started."

---

Ruby stood tall at the top of the palace tower, the wind whipping through her hair with a desperate urgency, almost as if the air of Onderon itself was trying to stop her. This only made her stand taller in defiance of this, silently she dared the wind to try harder, only to receive no response.

The city of Iziz lay before her, she could see it all from her vantage point, and she had to admit it was not too bad looking. It could certainly stand up to a siege; a result of the beast wars that had raged in ages past due to the beast clans turning against the local government. The walls that marked the perimeter of the city stretched high to cover all possible angles of approach.

Ruby turned away from it all, she was here to complete her mission, not site see.

Looking over the edge of the building, she watched the little gang she met climb up to her position. Seeing that the three of them were ordinary beings, she had to admit she was impressed. They were all in her age range and were not doing too bad, climbing this high on a sheer vertical cliff was something to be commended, even the Rodian, although he was getting a little shaky.

As if spurred on by her thoughts, Hopp lost his grip and began the process of tumbling to his demise. Luckily for him, Cad was beside him and managed to force the Rodian against the wall, allowing Hopp to regain his grip.

Ruby narrowed her eyes at the small gesture of friendship that passed between them. Cad giving Hopp a gentle pat on the shoulder before they both continued their climb. It was obvious that the Rodian was the least useful member of the team; that was something she had seen from the start.

Normally she would try to conspire to get rid of such a liability as she did to many a nuisance at the Naboo Royal House of Learning, but doing so here would be counterproductive. These three were attracted to one another in a way that made it impossible to even plant the ideas in their minds about betraying one another.

In short, they needed each other for fear of being alone.

Did Ruby hate them for such a thing? No, a bond forged through hardship was something she fully understood, she even sympathized. That did not mean it would work in their favor if one of them screwed up.

She glanced up at the moon of Dxun as it hovered in the sky, waiting for her to come. It would not be long.

Brebb, the Sullustan was the first to reach the top, as he pulled himself over the edge, he took long breaths, gulping down air like a parched Bantha at an oasis after crossing the Dune Sea. He fell flat on his butt, resting his tired limbs.

A minute later, Cad and Hopp joined them, both just as exhausted as the first. Ruby said nothing as the three took a moment to regain some of the strength they had spent scaling this building.

The three exchanged smiles at the progress they made, and Ruby just watched the city below. The palace was more shaped like a cathedral than a display of power. That made sense when you knew who the mind behind its foundation was.

The thought made her smile, the galaxy's history was the history of the Sith and their many silent victories against the Jedi. Now it was her turn to change a silent victory into a resounding one alongside her master.

After a few minutes, the trio had recovered enough that they felt confident in continuing their mission.

Brebb led the way, guiding them along the rooftop as if he had been here before, despite openly admitting to never having been here before. Ruby did not doubt him because of this, Sullustans come from a volcanic world that is webbed with subterranean tunnels. Millenia of being forced to navigate such an environment forced their species to develop near perfect memory. One look at a map and they could walk through any environment as if it were their own home, so long as the map was accurate.

They walked along the roof until they came to a concealed air vent grate hidden beneath the gap between the stone floor and the stone segment that leads to the apex of the structure.

Brebb grabbed the grate and shook it, seeing it refuse to budge, he gestured for Cad to step forward, "Blowtorch."

Fishing through the large pouch he brought with him, Cad pulled out a makeshift blowtorch held together with tape. It was simply a small gas canaster with a release valve and using a blaster pistol silencer as the nozzle for the gas.

Taking the possibly hazardous tool in hand, Brebb brought out a clear lighter with only a quarter of fluid left in it. Ruby half expected the thing to explode, however when she sensed no danger coming from the thing, she decided not to show her hesitation. The confidence she showed was key to their faith in her.

Fearlessness is often seen as superior to actual logic and facts to the ignorant or half-educated.

Brebb turned the valve and the hiss of releasing gas reached Ruby's ears. With a flick of the lighter, the gas ignited creating a spike of light which he brought to the edge of the grate after adjusting the intensity of the flow with the valve.

Ruby watched the light as it tore into the metal, leaving behind those bright orange burns that reminded her so much of one of the things she desired most in the galaxy.

How she longed to wield the symbol of her order against those who would stand against her. Seeing her master wield his own saber so artfully only made her more determined to create one of her own.

Unfortunately, she lacked the knowledge and the necessary materials to construct one, and she didn't feel like taking one from a Jedi. That just felt lazy.

The grate came loose and fell to the stone with a clang. Brebb handed the device back to Cad before crawling in to lead them to the exit closest to the shuttle bay.

Ruby went in second to last followed by Cad; honestly, she would have gone first as a gesture of good will if the Sullustan was not here with them. Trickery and deception may be her tools of trade, but she prided herself on at least trying to keep her word when she meant it. If she couldn't keep good on her promises, then how was she supposed to help her master run the galaxy?

As they traversed the vent on all fours, she could feel the Duros watching her. He was waiting for an excuse to use that pistol he had in the holster strapped to his hip. This among other things made her give him some respect. He may have been her means to convince the other two, but she had done nothing but offer him what he already wanted. Not to mention, he displayed skills that were usual for someone his age, such as assembling that blowtorch that had no right to work. This was made even more interesting by the fact that he did not have the Force.

While Ruby did not experience Force Visions, she did not need them to know that if Cad grew up, he would become something to be either feared or admired. It was natural for all who held their abilities in a league above the rest.

Ruby just hoped that the other two do not drag him down before reaching his potential.

"Stop," said Brebb in a soft whisper that bounced across the vent.

None of them spoke at a collection of synchronized footsteps thundered below them. Palace guards on patrol no doubt.

The sound of footsteps softened and became distant. Within a minute of them stopping, it was silent again and they moved on. They made slow progress, they had to keep the noise down as the guards were likely aware of the vents.

Ruby noted that if she ever had a fortress of her own, she would need to install a failsafe for the vents as they tended to be a regular weakness, even for something as big as a battle station.

The night her master rescued her of Coruscant was just further proof of this.

As they moved further into the building, Ruby stretched out with her senses, feeling the lifeforce of every guard within reach to stop them. There were quite a few, but so long as they didn't make any noise or catch one when they left the vent, they should be fine.

Brebb stopped them in front of another grate, examining it and looking through to make sure his near perfect memory was still near perfect. Turning to them with a satisfactory smile, he motioned for Cad to hand over the torch.

"Wait," Ruby whispered, making Cad pause and the other two look at her suspiciously.

Ruby did not put on a coy smile this time, opting instead to put a finger to her lips. She knew what they were asking in their minds and their answer came with another series of footfalls, this one much faster than the last time.

The quartet waited in silence for this one to pass as well.

Ruby closed her eyes and stretched out with the Force, and to her relief she found that the guards were moving down a level. She felt their distress and annoyance, apparently, they were late for drills with their commanding officer if their surface thoughts were telling the truth.

Giving her companions a nod to proceed, Brebb began to cut into the grate, once he was over halfway done, he called Hopp to help him hold the metal bars so that they could not fall to the floor and alert any wandering guard.

After the metal plating had been cut loose, Hopp pulled it free and Brebb began to climb out. The four of them emerged into a hallway that was styled after the old ways. It looked more like a stone temple rather than a luxurious palace, but that was to be expected when Ruby knew who the architect was.

He purposefully designed the palace to be open to change and so more modern technology could be incorporated over the millennia since its construction.

"How far are we from the shuttle bay?" Cad asked, warily glancing between the corridors and Ruby. "I don't think we have long before find us."

Brebb looked around, cross-referencing the map he memorized with what he saw, then he gave a nod. "Not too far, should only be about three corridors down this way."

The next few moments were filled with a tense silence as they moved from corridor to corridor, checking over and over again to make sure they were not being followed or tailed.

Ruby noted the security cameras placed at high points on the stone ceiling. Instead of informing Cad so he could shoot them, she fell back on her own abilities. With the Force, she reached into each camera she saw, looking into the very circuitry and electron flow within and giving it a little snip.

The red light within the eye lenses of every camera died before the group was spotted. It would not be long before someone notices and comes to check, but there was a chance they would see it as a malfunction or a virus rather than an intruder. In the end it was still better than if they were seen.

"Were here," Brebb said, stopping by a large metal door, which stretched all the way to the ceiling.

Ruby gave the thing a cursory once over; it was big and wide enough for a small crowd to get through. Not surprising, as this was the place the royal family and those close to them would evacuate in the event of either an uprising or failure to halt an invasion.

The three then turned to her and with no shortage of skepticism, Cad said, "Here we are then, you're up Rosy. Time to show your stuff."

Ruby was tempted to roll her eyes at them, and she gave no response to the nickname Cad had been using to try and provoke her. Over the years of her training, she had been forced to put people in far worse situations than this, and they had called her far worse things than a childish nickname.

Like a bodyguard detail Mr. Damask hired for her on her master's request. They were send to Gamor where she had to steal a prized family heirloom from their current monarch. She succeeded but in order to get away, she had to trap some of them with the Gamorreans to stall them as the piggish brutes could not resist a good fight. They hurled so many insults and curses in so many languages at her that she couldn't even register them all.

Ruby gave a sigh as she turned her attention to the control console beside the large doors. It was a classic number lock system. However, she was not too familiar with Onderonian script and was unsure if the numbers had separate meanings compared to galactic norms. And not to mention she'd never guess the number sequence.

It could be four digits, five, eights or twelve for all she knew. But then she smiled as the words of her master came to her.

"Remember, everything is of the Force, and nothing is beyond it. Through it, nothing shall stand in your way, all it requires is the right knowledge and the proper application of effort. Do not allow fear or self-doubt to halt you for even a moment. Hesitation leads to failure and worse, death."

"Sure thing," Ruby said with her confidence unhampered by the looks she was getting.

"Are you going to hack it or something?" Hopp questioned as Ruby walked to the control panel.

Ruby grinned and said, "Can't tell, it's a secret. Now get ready."

Cad put a hand on his pistol and turned to look down the corridor they had just come from. "I don't care how you do it, just get that door open so we can leave this poodo hole."

Hopp took Cad's pouch and took out a strange slingshot device. Handing it to Brebb, Hopp continued to dig inside the bag for more items just in case they were found out.

Brebb continued to take aim, while Cad stood in a position that Ruby recognized as a quickdraw stance. His legs were spaced evenly for quick reactions and his hand was close enough to the gun handle so that he could draw it without any wasted movements.

They were fully prepared to bring down a guard before they could call for backup. Which made Ruby grin wider. At least they weren't soft hearted moralists.

With their backs secure, she began her portion of the mission. Reaching into the mechanism before her she scoured the system to find a way to trigger the sequence to unlock the door. It was a simple thing. The correct order of numbers was not what unlocked the door. It was the response to the sequence that did such a thing and Ruby could see the receiver for that sequence. All had to do was give it a little push.

To her satisfaction, the door began to move, slowly lifting up at a gradual pace.

The three outcasts looked at it in astonishment and she did not blame them. She had not moved a muscle and she felt their annoyance bubbling up right before the door started opening.

"How did you do that?" Hopp asked.

Ruby gave him another sly smile, "I already told you, it's a secret."

When the door reached halfway, Ruby smiled as she saw the large open space of a shuttle bay leading out into the orange hues of Onderon's twilight sky. In it were shuttles a plenty and all they needed was one to get off this world.

"And here we are," Brebb said he took a step towards the threshold.

Then the door suddenly reversed course and slammed into the floor with a resounding crash, almost crushing the Sullustan. Brebb was thrown on his back, his heart beating so fast he could hear it. The four were so stunned by this sudden upending of their plans that they almost didn't notice the alarm echoing throughout the hall.

"What!?" Cad shouted as Hopp ran to Brebb, checking to see if he was not hurt.

"The alarm?" Ruby questioned, "But I didn't trigger it."

Cad wanted to argue but he opted to look around instead, and he raised his blaster to fire at the ceiling. Ruby followed the shot and discovered that they were being watched by a security camera that was now a scorched ruin.

"They know we're here!" Cad growled as he checked the blaster in preparation for it to be used a lot more now.

She gritted her teeth in frustration, she was so focused on the door she had forgotten to check for more surveillance deceives. Now the guards were probably rushing to stop them.

"Can you open it again?" Hopp asked in a bit of a panic over his stunned friend, he must have hit his head during the fall.

"I'll try," Ruby said as she reached out once again, only to be met with dead machinery, devoid of energy. She tried to reconnect the circuit to restart the system, but it seems that the connection was fine, the severance came from further in the facility. Ruby growled, as the means to open this door covertly were now out of her reach.

"What's wrong? Why isn't it moving?" Cad asked as the sound of footsteps could be heard.

"They cut off the power," said the apprentice, making the Duros hiss in anger.

"Then we're done!" Hopp cried, "We're finished!"

"Shut it!" Cad snapped, "Get Brebb on his feet! We're not going down like this."

The Duros turned to the apprentice and asked, "Is there any way to open it?"

Ruby knew he was just checking to see if running was their only option, luckily for him, she didn't need power to open blast doors.

"I can, but it will take longer," she said, not bothering with any swagger this time.

"Get on it, we'll keep the guards busy. Hopp! Grab the sling!"

The Rodian took the slingshot from Brebb and took up a stance beside Cad while shaking in his boots; Ruby would have been disgusted by that if she weren't so focused on her own task.

Then the guards arrived; the first of the soldiers rounded the corner, upon seeing the group of children, he shouted down the passage behind him. Cad wasted no time and drew his pistol, sending a red bolt of energy down the hall and into the man's chest. He didn't even bother to dodge as he saw them as children and not intruders.

Seeing the man's body slump to the floor would convince the rest of them to be more careful.

A pair came running down, their weapons leveled and ready to fire, but Hopp, in his panic, fired wildly at first sight of them, sending yellow balls of energy all across the passage. They weren't powerful enough to cause real damage, but they stunned the two humans long enough for Cad to use his remarkable gunman skills to put them down.

More guards came, firing blue cones of energy at the quartet. They too were none lethal, but they would overload a creature's nervous system on contact. Cad, managed to avoid them while Hopps was hit.

He let out a stunned gasp as the electrical overload knocked him out. Cad would have helped but he had to dedicate himself to outgunning fully trained soldiers.

Ruby on the other hand was busy with the door. Since she could not open it through the system, that left the direct route.

Taking a deep breath, she reached out with the Force and took hold of the massive metal frame and began to push. The door was thicker than she expected, but slowly it began to move, sending the shriek of metal echoing through the halls.

The door was barely a tenth of a meter off the ground when Ruby heard the Rodian go down and she knew time was running out.

"I can't keep this up by myself! Hurry up!" Cad shouted as he continued to fire rapidly into the oncoming soldiers.

Ruby did not respond, instead, she fell in on herself. She dug deep, drawing out all the pain and misery she had experienced throughout her short life. The scorn of the Dantooine villagers, the sorrow of Verdina's death, the rage towards Ronhar Kim for failing to protect his father, the Dugs who ensured Miluka would never have her real legs ever again. She brought it all to the fore, all the pain she was subjected to at the hands of her master.

The pain and fear were at the forefront of her mind, and as she confronted it all, she turned it into red hot anger.

Ruby felt the raw power of the Dark Side flowing through her like a roaring inferno and she used it to force the door up with a howl of warping metal. The noise was so loud that some of the soldiers flinched from it.

Cad turned back to see that the door had indeed been pushed out of the way, it was now halfway up to the ceiling and looked like bent plasteel with its multiple folds.

"Come on!" yelled Ruby as she ran through the open threshold.

"Wait!" cried Cad as he continued to fire at the soldiers, who were now taking cover by the small pillar supports on the walls. Cad was trying to do the same, by the rain of fire coming his way would soon force him to abandon his position.

Cad looked to his friends, both of which were down. Brebb was hit shortly after Hopp, and both of them were finished.

He didn't want to leave, he wanted to drag them out with him, but now there was a wall of blaster fire separating them.

Cursing in his native tongue, he broke cover and ran into the shuttle bay where Ruby was standing. She looked to be concentrating on something.

Ruby grabbed the warped door and now pulled in the opposite direction, ripping it from the stone encasing it and the metal frame above that. This brought both the door and the ceiling down on the doorway, sealing it shut.

Ruby let out a breath, as her muscles relaxed. "That should keep them out long enough for us to get out of here."

Cad said nothing as he did his best to cope with the loss of his only friends in the galaxy.

Ruby felt the Duros' rising despair through the Force and walked up to him. She then delivered a hard slap to his face, shocking him out of his depression.

"Focus!" she hissed, "We need to get out of here before they get though or shut the bay doors. Grieve for them when we're free."

She marched away from the shocked Duros, leaving him to nurse the sting in his cheek. Ruby examined the shuttle bay, looking for the ship that would most likely belong to the royal family. It did not take her long to find it.

"That's the one," she said confidently while pointing to a silver ship that was shaped like an arrowhead with an oval shaped cockpit window.

Cad looked at the ship with an unsure expression, "How do you know?"

Ruby smiled at the Duros, and this time it was genuine, "It's a Rugess Nome design. Only the stupidly wealthy can afford one these and he was known for selling them to planetary dignitaries to boost his reputation."

Both of them ran towards the ship, not bothering to waste time, "They are also known for being some of the best ships built in the galaxy. Even if it's not the king's, it's going to have a hyperdrive."

The two reached the shining ship and lowered the boarding ramp. The sound of an explosion brought their attention to the collapsed door.

The two of them looked to one another and quickly boarded the ship. Running into the cockpit and strapping himself in the slightly oversized seat, Cad began the startup sequence. Ruby noted that he was not doing this the conventional way, he was trying to jumpstart the ship without the proper access codes. However he learned to fly, it wasn't from school that's for sure.

The control panels came to life with a flush of red lights and Ruby felt the engines roaring behind them. Cad took the yoke and Ruby felt the vibrations of the ship lifting off the ground.

She had to admit it was a sloppy thing, the ship swished from left to right near constantly, but they were in the air.

Ruby's eyes went wide as the shuttle bay doors began to close, and she shouted at Cad to move. He didn't hesitate to comply, having given up his friends for this opportunity, he was not about to let it slip away from him now.

Ruby was forced back in her seat as they shot out of the hanger, and into the open sky. Before either of them could marvel at the sight, Ruby felt the danger coming their way through the Force. The cannons at the city perimeter had turned around to target them.

Ruby yelled at her pilot to rise and rise as quickly as possible, to which he complied, and Ruby would remember this flight as the most uncomfortable one she would ever experience.

They turned completely vertical as the cannons shot into the air, their turbolasers blasts missing them by several meters, and in terms of arial combat that equated to inches.

But as they soared higher and higher, the flak lessened until it ceased altogether. After that, they continued to rise until they were in the vacuum of space between Onderon and its moon, Dxun.

Ruby stared at the moon, her objective in sight. Looking to her pilot, she saw that he was in tears. He was trying to hold back the rush of emotions caused by the loss of his friends.

Did Ruby care? Not really. Those two were useful but Cad was the only one she really needed. All she needed was a pilot. They were weak, especially that useless Rodian. They were victims, victims of their own weakness."

"The weak will always be victims. That is the way of the universe. Only the strong survive because only the strong deserve to. So said Darth Bane," she muttered to herself.

"Bane? Who's that?" Cad asked, not bothering to look at her.

Ruby felt her heart skip as she realized she was talking out loud to herself again. With a quick thought she remedied this.

"Just someone I read about. He's long dead but I take a lot of inspiration from him."

Cad grunted, "Hmm, he sounds smart. What you said certainly applies to Hopp."

Ruby noted how detached he sounded, Like, he was trying to spare himself from the pain by hiding it away. Ruby didn't like that; pain and fear were not something that should be buried. You need to face them; only then can you turn it into strength.

But she didn't mention it as he continued to talk. "Brebb wanted to leave just as badly as I did, but he wasn't as desperate for it thanks to Hopps. Taking care of him made Brebb comfortable."

"Comfort leads to complacency and complacency leads to weakness," said Ruby, while in her mind, she was running through the first line of the Sith Code. Peace is a lie, there is only passion.

"I guess…" Cad mumbled as they zeroed in on Dxun. The moon's lush verdant jungles becoming clear as they adjusted their angle of decent so they would not be caught in a nosedive.

His hands shook as he held the yoke, he was doing his best to remain steady while the maelstrom was being repressed inside him.

"Brebb was always too comfortable, that was why he almost got himself crushed back there. At least he's not dead."

"I suppose you're thinking this is my fault for getting you into this?" Ruby asked, knowing how easy it would be for him to resent her. Without her they never would have attempted this in the first place.

"No," he said, as they passed through the atmosphere and began to glide over the trees. "I was the one who convinced them. You were just doing what you could. I forgot that they might not have been up to the challenge."

Ruby gave a small smile as she began to sense a familiar presence in the jungle below.

"Turn that way," she said, pointing off to the right.

Cad complied, and Ruby decided to keep the conversation going. "Speaking of up to the challenge, you were holding your own against those guards pretty well."

Cad scoffed bashfully. "I practiced a lot. Nothing more."

"Still, you're pretty quick on the draw."

That drew a smile to the Duros' face. A look of reminiscence crossing his features. Perhaps he was recalling some fond memory.

"This Bane guy you mentioned, was he tough?" asked Cad, as he followed the directions Ruby kept giving him.

"Yup," she said proudly, "Tough as nails."

Cad then turned his smile into a grin, "Maybe I should use the name then eyy, Rosy?"

Ruby blinked as she registered what the Duros just said, "What?"

"Cad Bane. I like the sound of that. I think I'll keep it," he said sounding cocky, but Ruby could tell he was using this to keep the hurt down.

At first, she wanted to choke him for such disrespect, but instead, she smiled. It was a common enough name in the galaxy and without the Darth title, it didn't mean anything.

"Cad Bane," she said as if tasting a new type of food. "Cad Bane. Yes, I think it suits you. Rolls right of the tongue."

Both of them laughed and while they both knew it was to offset the stress of what they had just experience, neither cared. They were okay with having a laugh just so they didn't need to feel like they nearly died.

Cad looked over the forest canopy and squinted his red eyes, "I see something over there. A building I think."

Ruby's eyes brightened as she realized where Miluka had landed. It was by the temple of Freedon Nadd, the first king of Onderon and Dark Lord of the Sith.

---

Miluka tapped her robotic heels against the stone she sat on, she had been waiting patiently for close to a full cycle after she had given her student the order to come here.

The Temple of Freedon Nadd loomed over her, it was a scourge upon the land. The very stones gave off a malicious aura that let her teeth on edge. The plant life of Dxun, often famed for being so dangerous that all recorded attempts to colonize the moon ended in complete failure. Both due to the plants wreaking havoc on any structure that was built here and the animals that were so dangerous that many of the underworld bosses used them for combat arenas, at a very hefty fee for the trouble.

However, this temple appeared to be the exception. All life around it simply refused to approach it, as if the all the animals and even the very forest itself refused to approach it.

This was not the first such sight she had laid her eyes on, but it was the most profound so far. The place exuded a sense of malice and danger. However, that sense of danger also gave off a sense of excitement and spoke to the desires that lay within her.

When she went to sleep inside her ship, she dreamed of standing with her student as she threw down Lord Sidious and the child rising to take his place, giving Miluka the chance to become one of the greatest Echani instructors in history.

Her years of dedicated self-discipline had taught her to recognize what was happening. The dreams continued, each playing on a separate desire. One where she was seen as the child's mother, another where they left together to forge their own path in the galaxy, and another where she returned to Echan to rain vengeance on the council and her rivals.

It became all too clear that the place was tempting her. Playing on her desires to draw her in. However, she was not blind to what this truly meant. She was not like her student or Lord Sidious. She was an ordinary being and so whatever this place could promise her held no meaning other than a promise of self-destruction.

However, it had its benefits. It kept the animals of the jungle away from both her and the ship. Perhaps that was why Lord Sidious chose this as the spot for her to land.

This made her ponder on how young Ruby would react upon seeing the temple. Miluka knew the child would be excited and even eager to see the inside, but as for this aura of temptation in the air, she wondered how her young one would respond.

She was not worried for she knew just how capable the small human child had become over the years even though she was on the verge of adolescence.

Miluka had made it a policy to try and stay detached from her students over her years teaching on Echan, but after her exile, she became somewhat lonely. It was smothered by the comradery she shared with other mercenaries, but deep down she longed to teach once again.

When young Ruby came into the picture, Miluka was aware that this human child might be the last student she ever taught despite the fact that Magister Damask had promised her a private dojo.

In that vein, she allowed herself to become attached to the girl, fully realizing that it might have been a mistake considering who she was bound to serve now. However, she still did not mind, it made all these years of training feel more worth it than all those nameless nobles on Echan.

And the child was proving to be the greatest student she would ever teach, even the prodigies from her old dojo and even those of her rivals would not have squared up to her. Her progress was simply astonishing.

Miluka could only think of one reason why the child was so proficient. Ruby had dedicated her heart and soul to what she learned from her teacher.

She was an instructor's dream, and Miluka was grateful to have it.

Her musings ended when the whine of engine thrust could be heard and the avian and reptavian creatures of the jungle took flight.

The Echani stood up as a sleek arrow shaped starship soared above and began to descend upon the clearing. Her keen eyes saw that the shuttle was coming in with a wobble, then suddenly jerking from left to right in a sloppy effort to keep itself stable.

Miluka wondered if Ruby herself was flying that thing because it was a very sloppy job. The landing studs only came down a mere ten seconds before hitting the ground and it was obvious that whomever was controlling that thing had very little experience.

The landing ramp opened, but no one came down for a full minute and Miluka wondered if she had to go inside to see what was wrong.

Then she came through, Ruby hopped out of the shuttle, and landed on the rough dirt with her bare feet. The moment she saw the Echani, she sprinted towards her. Miluka went to one knee and held her arms wide.

The two met in a tight embrace, and Miluka felt the malice of the temple fade for a time.

"Hello, little one," Miluka said warmly, "I am happy you made it in time."

Ruby just chuckled and squeezed tight. When they parted, Ruby turned to the ship and waved as it began to take off.

"Mind telling me who you got to be your pilot this time?"

"Just some nobody who can use a blaster," Ruby answered simply.

Miluka narrowed her eyes, "And they didn't see you use your gifts?"

"He did," Ruby confessed, but her smile didn't drop. "But no one will believe the word if a gutter rat."

Miluka nodded at the logic, however even a well-respected pilot would have a hard time convincing anyone short of a Jedi about a child with such abilities. Still, it was better to be safe than sorry. She looked up, taking in the design of the ship, and recognizing the design. "And how did a gutter rat get a hold of a Rugess Nome classic?"

"We stole it."

"And you are not afraid of being followed?"

Ruby gave her mentor a cheeky smile, "Why do you think I gave him coordinates for Nar Shadaa? I doubt the people in Iziz will bother to land here when they see him leaving the system."

Miluka chuckled, "I see your reasoning, still, we'd better not tarry too long in case you are wrong."

Ruby then pouted, "Aww, but I want to see the temple."

Miluka's face turned serious, it was the face she used during their many lessons together. "Lord Sidious gave me strict orders to get you back to Naboo as soon as you get here, so you are not late for the Excursion with the other children."

Ruby looked downtrodden and Miluka understood why. The history of the Sith and knowledge of the Force was a true passion for the child. That and her interest in combat along with her insight into weaponry.

Miluka then gave a smile of her own. "That is why you have no more than one standard hour."

The girl's eyes went wide and then they began to sparkle with the childlike wonder that used to be so common during their early training together.

And so, they walked into the shadow of the temple together.

An hour later, they emerged with Miluka carrying something of interest. A bejeweled lockbox that the child had discovered. It was black with golden inlay. Miluka could tell that it was an ancient piece of art.

When they boarded the Nubian starship, Ruby held onto the thing like a child holding their prized toy. As they rose into the atmosphere of Dxun, Miluka noticed on the ships scanners that several ships were launching into hyperspace at the system's edge all in the same direction.

She managed to catch the signature of the last ship to leave. It was of the Onderonian guard. They were likely chasing after that Cad fellow who had helped Ruby.

Seeing that they were now in the clear, Miluka engaged the hyperdrive, and began their journey back to Naboo.

---

I know the ending is a little strange because a Sith temple deserves a bit more time, but I shall dedicate that to the next chapter as there is some more traveling to do.

Also, I am sorry for taking so long to get this moving along, and I am not going to bore any of you with excuses. Just know that I am trying, and I am not planning on letting this story fade away.

If you have any criticisms toss them my way. I deserve it for making you all wait.