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After her conversation with Xid being ultimately cut short and out of her hands there were few things Talija felt she could do.

Introducing herself to her fellow captives was an earnest idea, but there was a lot to consider from her perspective. Talija’s mind was busy like a nest of stirred mynocks and she doubted she could’ve concentrated on even the most simple of conversation without confronting her mind’s unease. The bunk assigned to her by her Sith captors felt isolated enough from the rest of the ongoing of the Jedi “chambers” on the prison ship and would serve well for the purpose of what she wanted to do— meditate. She was hoping if not for answers gained from her peace of mind that she would make sense of the emotions that she believed were implanted in her for the use of manipulation; an obtuse thought, but the Sith’s were masters of it and she would not fall to such a thing. She did not intend to allow them to trick her.

As she climbed up to her bunk and went into meditation form, she took a heavy calming breath.

“Remember the force, Talija.” She thought as she closed her eyes. Talija’s mind began to recollect and recite the Jedi Code— considering the situation she was in it seemed as good of a start as ever and given that she had not properly meditated since being captured and taken to such an accursed prison vessel it seemed as apt as any. The Sith had really tried to take her down since she arrived, as was their way, and she knew Xid was right when he mentioned about time not being a resource they could afford to lose. The Sith would only gain more malicious, cunning, and aggressive as the days would turn into weeks; and while Talija was no veteran of Sith torture she didn’t wish to become one.

She knew she was one of the newer “recruits” to these torturous trials and had likely seen little of their true ability to tap into the darkest pools of the force to perversely twist it into their weapon. A weapon that had been used on not only Xid but many others, and no matter the willpower of the other captured Jedi there was little reason for her to believe that they could endure it forever. Xid definitely had the right idea of using their wit to try to decipher a way to fight the Sith and effectively escape— but how many successful escape attempts had she heard or read about from other Jedi who had been ensnared by the Sith? Nothing was impossible, but… how were they going to persevere when they got closer and closer to Sith-controlled space? A nervous quiver left her as she thought of that prospect. If they didn’t escape they would die, or worse: turn. She refused to ever be brought to a fate worse than death.

Because at least in death there was peace in the force; but she wasn’t quite ready to become one with the force. There was much purpose where she could eventually be utilized for good.


She took a deep breath as she continued to think and meditate as the words of the Sith she had met from before, Lady Lansha, echoed in her mind; but while the words were Lansha’s the voice wasn’t— the voice was Talija's. As if the darkness could sense her doubt and indecision.


More taunting. Was she this burdened to be this susceptible to the dark side of the force’s taunts?

Talija tried to steady her emotions— her doubt, her indecision, her fear, her anger. She knew the taunts were Lansha’s and the force was just drawing from Talija’s emotions of the incident where she called Talija, one of the better lightsaber combatants of her generation, weak and pitiful. She didn’t know her—

Talija took another deep breath. She was buying into the darkness. ”Ignore it. Be at peace.”


How long would this go on?

Given the types of people that could commonly be found on these kinds of near-lawless, backwater planets, Fa had an idea of how she could blend in. Trying to be kind would either paint her as an off-worlder they might take advantage of, or just make the street urchins suspicious of her actual motives. In a place like Tatooine, everyone was working for their own benefit, so she just had to make it believable that the children could do something useful for her which would make it worthwhile for her to actually speak to them. She had to turn this encounter into a business transaction. Whether someone was in the badlands of Tatooine, or the heart of Coruscant, business was a force that anyone could recognize.

“My name is not important; nor is your attempted theft. Do not attempt to lie to me, because I do not care. If I did, you would already be missing a hand. No, you have something that I want: information. I know, because I can smell it on you.” Fa answered. She reached up to her hood and pulled it back slightly, so that her face was still mostly obscured, but her sizable snout was visible to them.

Reaching into her cloak, Fa grabbed one of her credit chips, though she did not yet reveal it to the urchins. “You carry a scent, and a fresh one at that. Her name is Jeik, a Twi’lek, green-skinned. She is known to frequent this place, along with a bar named Fel’kaw, and a certain pawn shop. You encountered her recently. Take me to her, and I will pay you. Twenty credits, no questions, no tricks. Once it is done, then we never saw each other. Is that a deal?”

For the first few moments after the troopers approached, Lea was certain that she would be discovered, but either the troopers had severely restricted vision, or Khan’s distraction truly made them blinder than usual. Whatever the reason, Lea hid in the shadows while they ran past, then made herself scarce afterwards. She could not worry about Khan. Either he would get away, or he would be captured. Which did not matter, for she had a task: finding Xid.

Though she could go randomly searching, there was no denying the truth in what she had told Khan earlier: whatever room the Sith used to access surveillance would be optimal for finding out where Xid was taken and by whom. There certainly wasn't any point in staying put.

With that thought in mind, Lea sneakily moved down the hallway, looking for the entrance to wherever that might be. It didn't take long, for the opulent red and black carpet showed the way. The large doorway on the left led into a vast chamber with an even larger carpet covering almost all of the floor. Woven into the center of the carpet was a huge version of the symbol of the Sith Empire. Though she did not favor such opulence, it was nonetheless awe-inspiring how much effort the Empire put into decorating their vessels.

The room was, thankfully, empty so far as people went, but there were numerous objects to be found there. Tables, chairs, computers, droid data ports and more. But it did not take a genius to figure out that there would be no way surveillance could be accessed from such public terminals. She would have to go deeper.

There were two doorways (exempting the one she had entered through). The one opposite her entrance appeared to lead to a corridor. The one on her right led to something else. She chose to go through that one. Creeping along the walls as best as she could, she stepped through the doorway. The corridor was straight, leading to a dead end with four doors on either side. Like down in Nyiss’ quarters, the doors were golden in color, a sharp contrast to the red and black theme elsewhere.

There was a faint feel to the air. One that was oddly comforting, yet also ominous. She had a feeling that at least one of the doors, probably most, led to the personal quarters of the Sith. Taking a gamble, Lea opened the door to the left. It split along the middle, revealing a rather nasty-looking set of serrated spikes. With the speed it opened, she had no doubts at all that she would not want to be caught in the middle of such a door when it closed. Some feeling made her suspect that it could easily cut a person in half when closing.

What met her eyes beyond the door was… nothing. Bare walls, bare floor, a flat ceiling. Not a single object, not even junk. She closed the door again and as she had expected, it slammed shut, cutting away any doubt she had had about its lethality. It appeared to be very well designed, for though it slammed shut, it hardly made any sound as it did. A finely tuned machine. Lea did not doubt that these doors could easily serve as bulkheads in the case of a hull breach.

Not having any better guess, Lea turned around and opened the door opposite the empty chamber. Unlike the first, this room was not empty. In fact, it contained numerous computers and scores of screens and holographic projectors. Images played out across all of them, showing various parts of the ship. Lea recognized many from the prison at a glance. Exactly what she had sought.

Closing the door behind herself, she walked over to one of the terminals, doing her best to figure out how to use it. Not difficult, it turned out. Though there were numerous feeds from the prison, most of which she made a mental note about, she realized that there were none showing Darth Nyiss’ quarters. Clearly the Darth did not trust that the Sith would not spy on her. A wise decision.

After several minutes of trial and error, Lea found the surveillance logs. There were holes. Large holes. Someone had wiped many of them from existence. Thankfully, she found the log where Xid was removed from the kolto tank. No Sith was present, only a squad of troopers and a medic.

Lea followed their path through the various logged feeds, seeing that they terminated at the turbolift on the starboard side. Since they did not come out into what the sparse schematics labeled as the deck above the one the one Lea currently was on, logic were dictated that they had gone to Nyiss’ quarters. Either that or some other deck, which would mean that he would be impossible to track down.

Thus it was blatant that the first place to look would be there. Maybe, if she was lucky, she could find out something about what Nyiss was doing to her. Her body felt off still. Though not as prominent as earlier, the unusual aches were still there. For her peace of mind, she would have to learn more. It was not that she thought Darth Nyiss wanted to harm her, but rather that she liked knowing. She needed to be certain what was happening.

After erasing the logs of her and Khan’s wandering, she left the surveillance chamber. Sadly she knew of no way to remove her future movements. She crept carefully out, closing the door behind herself and moved to the turbolift down to Nyiss’ quarters. It was not locked, nor was it hard to convince to take her down.

But what to do once she was down there, she had no idea. She knew only a fraction of the layout and she had no idea where Nyiss would be keeping Xid or the experiment records. Or for that matter if they would be accessible to her. She had neither an access code nor understanding of the Sith language.

Ven'ren slowly backed off, still ready but using non-aggressive bodylanguage. The other apprentice's predatory reaction made him instinctively act similarly. He had spent enough time semi-isolated in a ruined tomb to feel reverting back to being an animal was at least somewhat natural. The thought disappeared once the third apprentice came forward, and Ven'ren spoke again.

“Oh” Ven'ren said, hearing Zanna's explanation and tilting his head as she left “Well that explains it. One has to be always careful, yes. If one is not jumpy enough, one could easily fine oneself pinned to a wall suddenly. I won't try to kill you though. Unless you stab me, and you shouldn't.” He sounds almost completely normal when he then adds. “But if my presence unnerves you, I shall leave you be now.”

Nazca was laying on her bed, in her fresh sithy clothes, trying to figure out how she wasn’t going to get murdered. She was fed, clothed, and in slightly better shape than she had been before. However, she was now in a den full of predators. A prey in a predator’s cloak. Nazca smiled, sitting herself up and kicking her feet. “It’s not the first time I’ve been in this type of situation, and I sincerely hope it won’t be the last.” She muttered quietly to herself.

“Fuck. How am I going to explain this to the rest of them…”

Fortunately, or perhaps unfortunately, she was saved from her musings of how to talk to the other Jedi and explain things without getting stabbed, or accused, by her current Master showing up. I do go through them quickly don’t I? She smirked, before walking towards the Lady of the Sith. It wasn’t like she had much of a choice anyway.

“Lead the way, Lady Lansha.”

“Certainly, we must begin immediately. Your lack of knowledge in certain fields needed to survive on board this ship is something that must be addressed.” Vivithe replied as she exited the room, the newly turned Sith behind her. She was referring to several different ‘fields’, many Sith were ruthless and would try anything in an attempt to put themselves ahead, even attacking a newly turned apprentice.

“We will head up a level, there is an area best for us to properly train. Tell me Nazca, what is your experience with a lightsaber? Do you know any forms? How to even use the weapon without injuring yourself?” She asked the girl as they walked, her questioning would sound condescending, but they were necessary words to ask.

“I know you point the hole away from yourself, press a button and a laser of death pops out. And I know that it is incredibly light. Other than that, no.” Nazca replied, looking around as they walked. This was the first time she wasn’t injured or going to be injured when being dragged through the ship.

“Quick question, though I already know the answer to this I may be pleasantly surprised. Darth Nyiss experimented upon me while I was a prisoner. Does this mean I still have to be put under her experimentations? They were...painful to say the least.”

“Experimentation? Not unless it’s necessary. You have potential to become something, I shouldn’t need to experiment on you to help find that potential. I’m sure she did that to help turn you to our cause,” Vivithe replied, then glanced at the girl’s replacement hand then asked Nazca about it. She could sense the taint of the dark side on the machinery, like it had been bathed in it. “Is that how you ended up with that contraption?”

“From the way she talked, it was almost outright said that I would be visiting her again. “ Nazca replied, before looking at her hand. “Yes. And it hurt like a bitch too. I was screaming like a stuck mynock. Evidently, pain killers are a sign of weakness. Rather than, you know, a distinct disinterest in becoming a masochist.” Nazca sighed theatrically. “I suppose it’s just a habit with the Sith. ‘Blah, blah, do this fucked up thing to become stronger, blah blah.’ Am I right?.”

“Often times pain will make you stronger, what is that saying? ‘Pain is weakness leaving the body’? Many Sith subscribe to that line of thinking. I don’t disagree with it. When power is what you so righteously seek, you must be willing to do whatever is needed to make yourself more powerful.” Vivithe replied as she walked, her hands folded behind her, the training sabers tucked into her robe. She was surprised that the Darth herself had interacted with Nazca, perhaps she would question her more on that later, see what Nyiss’ methods were, how she acted.

“We are much more different from the Jedi, we’ll do things they would never consider. That is why they are so weak, they willingly hold themselves back, fear what they could become, fear the true power the Force can bring,” Lady Lansha added, her eyes had drifted towards the apprentice, locking with her’s momentarily. “I’m sure you will see the Darth again, her disposition towards you may be different now that you’ve chosen the righteous side.”

“Willing to do whatever is needed and actively seeking out unhelpful things, are two entirely separate things, Lady Lansha. I may be willing to undertake a beating so my crew can pull off a heist, it does not mean that I actively seek out such a beating. Especially when there is no need to.” Nazca replied, still looking around and taking in the sights. She’d have to wander around on her own time, later.

“Lovely,” Sarcasm was dripping from her voice, “I always wanted to go see the Red Skinned Jendoslu again! Especially with her knife in her hand, because I somehow doubt she’s going to just stop experimenting on me. Especially when she can choose anyone on this ship to experiment on and they can’t do anything about it. Even you, Lady Lansha.”

“That is technically correct, she could chose to experiment on me but there is no reason to do so. I’m fully committed to the Sith cause and have embraced the Force entirely. I’d sooner run myself through my own lightsaber than reach the point where the Darth feels she needs to experiment on me. Her experiments were to turn you to our side, now you’re on it, you’ll only receive more if you resist your teachings.” Vivithe replied, her cockiness coming out as she spoke. She was the pinnacle of the Sith way.

“It is imperative to show great respect to the Darth, even if she doesn’t give you any. Call her the proper titles, follow any commands, answer any questions she has.” Vivithe added, she didn’t tell the girl to answer questions truthfully, that would be for her to decide if the scenario played out as well as how good a liar she could be.

“You claim a lot for someone who has no idea what the Darth is going to do other than her reputation.” Nazca observed, watching Lansha idly. “You’ve barely even talked to the Darth, or if you have she hasn’t been open about anything. I got the strong impression the experiments had nothing to do with converting me.” She shrugged. “But as you wish. I’ll be respectful and obedient.”

Lady Lansha had scowled underneath her hood, her pretty face showing a twinge of dislike at the foolish girl actually questioning her knowledge. She briefly considered scolding her for doing such a thing, but for now she would let it slide. The Sith just hoped the apprentice would actually follow thru with her words and show the Darth the proper respect. She might not even need to be the one to punish her if she didn’t do so.

“I sincerely hope that you will keep you word on that. For your own sake.” Vivithe said as the duo approached a lift, the doors coming open automatically as they both entered into it. She folded her arms over each other as they were both sealed inside, then the elevator rose upwards towards their destination on the upper deck.

“There is a training area in the floor above, that will be the perfect place to begin your teachings so that you might aboard this vessel.” She stated, the words had come out of her mouth in a not exactly positive way, she wasn’t confident in the girl’s chances anyway, but she doubted the other Sith would kill her right off the bat. Doing such a thing would upset a Sith lord and probably the Darth herself.

“Keep my mouth shut around people more powerful than I am, who could kill me in an instant. Then be taught by you how to last longer than .3 seconds in an actual fight against said people. Shouldn’t be too hard.” Nazca replied, with a false cheerfulness.

“Precisely, thought If you’re really smart you’ll avoid actual fights.” Vivithe said back as the lift came to a stop and the doors opened. The Lord stepped out into the hallway, the apprentice behind her. She sensed something, others strong in the Force nearby. They had to be other Sith but she wasn’t sure who exactly, this could be an interesting sequence of events.

They walked a ways down the halls, the Sith following the other’s presence within the Force, allowing that to lead her towards them. She was unsure if her apprentice even knew why they were taking such a path, Vivithe would be interested to see how the newly minted Sith reacted to more seasoned Sith. Vivithe turned a corner with hNazca in tow to find Jayda and another apprentice.

When Zanna’s presence finally left, Jayda’s hand retracted back to her side and she took a cautious step back. Her figure retreated to a more comfort distance but she was still prejudice of the lurker before her. Purple eyes shifted up and down, absorbing details like his masked face to barely any revealed skin, making it difficult to visually tell if he was man or alien. Her nostrils flared for a moment. The man’s scent wafted in deeply causing her to shift through the factors given to her and identify those associated with human, and forcing herself to ignore the darkness of the ship approaching their position.

Soothing her bundling nerves trying to choke her, Jayda pulled her hand back to her side. The uninjured one lingered near her lightsaber where the sensation of it being close gave her comfort. His body language was submissive and withdrawn causing her to force herself to relax, her noting his voice was muffled through the mask he wore when he spoke.

“Oh,” Ven’ren started, his head bobbing like some bird sizing up a predator, seemingly unaware of Zanna’s departure. “Well that explains it. One has to be always careful, yes. If one is not jumpy enough, one could easily fine oneself pinned to a wall suddenly. I won’t try to kill you through. Unless you stab me, and you shouldn’t.”

His words were odd despite the normalcy and tone they were spoken in when he added. “But if my presence unnerves you, I shall leave you be now.”

“No need.” Jayda said then started to move toward Zanna’s wake. She held her injured palm pressed tightly against her robes and moved carefully, still wary of Ven’ren, until she nearly reached the doors.

Originally, she was hoping to make to the turbolift without additional further incident but it seemed the day had other plans. Upon just about to round the corner and escape from Ven’ren’s presence, the dark concentration of dark side force came into view and blocked her way. Vivithe was leading along an ex-Jedi, her robes seemingly altered to the Sith attire for an acolyte, who Jayda immediately realized was Nazca. Among the last individuals she expected to betray the prisoners she fought so hard to protect. A wave of disappoint rose up like a snake in her heart then struck before she mentally stamped it down, her figure paused, side stepped and made a slight bow to the Sith lord waiting for her to pass by.

Mentally, Jayda was hoping to escape from this situation without being roped into anything else, mentally debating on what to do if the Lord didn’t walk. Sish would’ve been able to deny anything she asked with little consequence, the few perks a Sith Lord held in their rank when the individual was of equal or less one, through for once he was nowhere to be seen. The one time she wouldn’t have rebelled against his commands, he was likely drooling and fast asleep in his quarters. A place she should’ve been a long time ago.

Ven'ren is about to leave as well, nothing much likely gained by trying to talk to the other apprentice, who was heading off anyway, trying to hide her injuries. He turned back around again as he noticed the Lord and what had recently been a Jedi prisoner come towards them. He stopped, bowed and said “Good evening, my Lord.” He did not directly look at the Jedi, mostly as not to be rude to the Sith Lord, but still noticed himself trying to get a sense of who she was.

Vivithe smirked at Jayda, wondering if the girl had gone through with her plan that she had discussed with the Sith lord before. She was interested to hear how it went down if she did indeed do it. She hadn't met the other apprentice alongside her, though she assumed that he was Jewel's follower. She almost pitied the boy, that woman was almost as mean spirited as Sish.

"Greetings the both of you, I have not met you yet, young one. You may call me Lady Lansha." She said as her eyes shifted to Ven'ren who she acknowledged with her words. Vivithe wondered if this apprentice was doing something with Jayda, of course she assumed that red bitch wasn't too far away. The other apprentice who had Jayda in her claws, their partnership an interesting case.

"I was just taking Nazca here for some training, she has just recently converted to our cause after seeing the error in her Jedi ways. Her potential in the dark side of the Force is a beautiful thing. If either of you would like to join us in a training session then you are welcome to do so." Vivithe stated, it was not an order, she did not want to anger the other Sith Lords yet. She was curious to see if either of these apprentices would do as she said.

"Who knows, maybe you'll learn something." She added with a grin.

"But you don't have to if you have other business to attend to. Don't let me get in the way of dealings with your own masters." She said, then started to walk away from the duo of apprentices. If they wished to join her then they'd follow along.

Jayda’s middle became heavy and thick, a familiar illness it seemed from being upon this ship, had started to spread from her gut. She was uneased and like any nervous animal, her body couldn’t help showing it though she had managed to keep it minimal as possible. Inwardly, she was thankful the Echani padawan wasn’t here. He would’ve caught it easily and his actions might’ve made them both targets of the Sith attentions, a fact she wanted little as possible to do with. Being on the ship was like balancing act and one she was struggling with daily causing her nerves to be stressed to their limit and still tugged along, her mind wondering faintly where the snapping point was. And what she would do after she hit it.

“Greetings the both of you, I have not met you yet, young one. You may call me Lady Lansha.” The Sith lord’s voice had airs of superior and a false attempt to be friendly, a tone that was tried on Jayda before. The Zabrak's purple eyes flickered toward Ven’ren, spotting his reaction, on her rise upright again. It wasn’t hard to see Vivithe studying him like a predator noting a unaware bird chirping in her path, renewing the discomfort of earlier again, a feeling that she was disturbingly getting use to while traveling on this ship.

Jayda, vaguely, wondered if the woman was looking for Zanna or would note her absence. The first few times they had met the Red Sith apprentice had been around and gently blocking the Lord’s roundabout information collecting.

“I was just taking Nazca here for some training, she has just recently converted to our cause after seeing the error in her Jedi ways,” Vivithe’s words appeared to brag about the ex-youngling causing Jayda’s eyes to look at the odd Jedi. A bit of judgment and disappointment in them at seeing another most likely discover the woman’s one true weakness, still listening carefully, though she was doubtful of the conversion being complete. “Her potential in the dark side of the Force is a beautiful thing. If either of you would like to join us in a training session then you are welcome to do so.”

She grinned, that same deceive manner, and added. “Who knows, maybe you’ll learn something.”

Not waiting long for an answer, she finished off her statement with a simple discarding comment. “But you don’t have to if you have other business to attend to. Don’t let me get in the way of dealing with your own master.”

She began to walk past toward the Sith practice chambers, her boots echoing and started to fade the farther she got. The Zabrak apprentice watched her suspiciously until she was relieved to see her heading away. She had noted the tone wasn’t threatening or had hidden hints that declining would have serious consequences, through it was hard to know with a Sith Lord. Thankfully, and unknowingly, Vivithe had left a way out for her and one she aimed to take. “As much as I would rather avoid Sish’s presence,Lady Lansha, he has given me a task earlier. One which I have to report about the result to before the end of the night. I think being able to walk and fight another day would be naturally preferred.”

With that, she departed.



Koren’s plan might work, but Navi didn’t have full faith in the man’s methods or his ability to make things work. It wasn’t personal or even based on jealousy. It was cold, hard logic that a single person’ odds in making a plan work for other individuals that didn’t see fit to help themselves would fail. Koren was the backbone and unofficial leader who kept the Jedi together, a matter difficult for him since his experiences gave him no rest. It didn’t take an organic to see that much. Even with the laid back personality, Koren, much like Xid, was haunted by those small effects from war and they still continued to plague the knight to this day. The only difference, Koren was well practiced and able to hide the effects on the outside.

Navi turned a sharp left toward the prisoner complex. His feet soft and quick over the metal, making loud enough sounds that he barely registered something had shuffles in the vents ahead. Immediately he ground to a stop then flickered up his visional scanners to scan the area before him. He was the end of a T shaped vent, the right being his needed destination and lead right back to the shortest route toward the Jedi. However, something was there. With his feet silenced, Navi could hear the soft scratching in the vents. Scritch...Scratch… like something crawling around in his path. Cautiously, Navi edged forward with his laser raised and out.

About a quarter of the way there, smoke abruptly appeared. It billowed into the vent like a living thing and rolled over the vent flooring, edging closer. Navi recognized the creature as the one that killed the apprentice back in the Sith quarters. Without hesitating, the little droid scrambled about then shot down the vent quickly as he could. His legs moving the fastest they could and trying to put distance between him and the thing now intent on smothering him. All this time in the vents, he had never falling out of it once. Percentage wise, it was almost impossible. The only thing that was strange, fate or luck never believed in such factors. So, by pure chance or whatever divine force’s will, the vent grate right over Khan was loose. So loose that when Navi stepped onto it, the little bot fell through and landed right in front of the boy.

Of course, it being unexpected, Navi didn’t have the reflexes of a feline. He landed on his hard, vibration resistant outer shell causing a slight crack to appear on his surface. The impact was enough to daze him and force a minor pause in order to repair his operation system and collect himself. Shaking like a small canine, Navi turned toward Khan making several panicked beeps, clicks and whistles while trying to tug the boy along. It would be obvious he was spooked and wanted to get away, and now!

The smoke had started to peer over the edge of the opening that Navi came through, seeming to debate on exiting or not. Finally having made up its mind, the smoke started to file down toward the pair.

As she laid the arm down on the crate, Miasa smiled to herself. It had not been a quick or easy project, but it was well worth it. The arm gleamed slightly as it lay there. Though it was entirely mechanical, its outer surface looked just like the arm of a trandoshan, aside from the black coating and the crimson lights. She might have an ulterior motive with the insurance policy, but that did not mean she would do anything but the best for the rest of it.

She could only look forward to seeing it in action. Nothing would please her more than to see it serve Lord Sish well. If her understanding of him was correct, he would not delay in having it tested in the field. Carefully disconnecting the final diagnostic cables, Miasa activated a comlink, opening a channel to Lord Sish.

“Lord Sish. Your new arm is done. It will serve you well, I can assure that.” Her words were clear, faintly tinged with a slight sibilant hissing due to her species nature.

“I’m on my way.” Sish replied, heading towards the other Sith’s workshop. He moved quickly, arriving at Miasa’s in short order. As he entered the room he scanned it quickly, to make sure nothing nasty was awaiting him, before examining the arm itself. “Impressive. I assume that whatever assurance you added to it to give you some power over me or prevent me from killing you is cleverly hidden. For our sake, I hope it is. Because if I find it I’ll demand it removed, for I have no desire or reason to kill you and such threats are insulting, but you’ll refuse and I’ll have to try and kill you. At which point you’ll activate it and one or both of us will die.” Sish looked expectantly at Miasa. “Shall I sit down, or shall you just attach it with me standing?”

Miasa did not deign to answer his words about her insurance policy. It was more than sufficiently hidden. “You need not sit down. You only stand about two meters tall, after all.” With that, she slithered closer, picking up the arm as she did. Coiling her rear half underneath herself, she stretched her body higher so that her shoulders were slightly higher up than his. Holding the arm out, she turned it the right directions, then slid it into the slot in her framework she had surgically implanted the Sith Lord with.

After that, she used the force to lift the spiked pauldron up from the crate it rested on, sliding that onto his shoulder, where it too clicked into place. Unlike the framework and like the arm, it was imbued with alchemy to make it resistant to lightsabers.

“You will find that the arm shall serve you well, Lord Sish. It is the exact same size as your other arm and it is far more durable. You will find that it is quite resistant to lightsabers, but I do not suggest you use it as a shield even so. Nothing is indestructible.”

Miasa pressed a button on the small remote attached to her wrist and there was a faint whirring from within the shoulder, followed by an audible click. The lights brightened and the mechanical pseudo-muscles vibrated slightly. “The arm is now operational, Lord Sish. You may wish to test it out.” As she said this, Miasa drew back to take in the sight of the Sith Lord. It was quite impressive.

“Thank you, Miasa. You’ve done phenomenal work. ” Sish meant it too. It was an arm that served both form and function. Something to terrify his enemies and tear through them if need be. Sish grinned as he rotated his and put his new arm through its paces. Everything seemed in working order, and he couldn’t detect any problems with it. “Before I go test it, and by test I mean find some prisoners, what are its capabilities aside from what you’ve already said? I assume I can’t shoot rockets and flames from it.” There was only a slight tinge of disappointment in his voice.

“It is an arm. There are no tools beyond the fingers and claws built into it. How much you can lift with it depends on the rest of your body, and as with all prosthetic limbs, it cannot be used to channel the Force in the more awe-inspiring ways. You will have to find new ways to inspire that in your victims if you seek to use that arm for it. But you are a Sith Lord, so I assume you will figure something out.”

“Very well. Last question.” Sish turned to regard her, cybernetic eye shining red. “Your safety or blackmail policy. It can only be accessed by you, correct? Don’t try to pretend you didn’t add one. You’re a Sith, and you were just given considerable power over me. You put something in my arm to ensure your safety. I don’t care what it is, as long as I don’t find it, and you’re the only one who can access it. I have no desire for politics, or to make any more enemies than I already have. You’ll never need to use it. I just want to make sure someone else won’t in an attempt to kill me.”

“Someone else will always try to kill you. The question is whether they succeed. If I were to have taken the time to build in something like that, it would not have been easily triggered. But I don’t like building things only to have them destroyed shortly afterwards, for that means my work and time has been wasted. I do in fact take pride in my work. This particular arm won’t fit anyone other than you, Lord Sish. Should you misuse it and have it end up damaged, which would take a lot of work, I am the only one who can repair it properly. That alone should keep you from killing me.” Miasa paused for a few seconds then continued, “As for politics: they’re usually not worth it.”

“Of course someone will always try to kill me. I just want it to be in a way that I can fight back. Having my arm self destruct or poison me isn’t something I can fight against.” He grinned at her. “However, that’s as good as a ‘It won’t go off unless I make it.’ I won’t kill you, Miasa, and I’ll even make sure you stay alive, even if I find whatever you put in my arm. Every Sith needs allies, and ours can be mutually beneficial.” He turned to leave the room, still grinning. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to go try my arm out on one of the prisoners.”

“Please do the testing in a public place. Its one thing to know its capabilities, its quite another to see it in action.” Miasa asked the Sith Lord as he moved towards the door. He was rather distrustful, so there was no point in trying to convince him that the insurance policy did not exist. He wouldn’t find it without triggering it, by which time the discovery would not benefit him, but she did not feel it was worth lying over. Leaving facts out was perfectly fine, but even to a fellow Sith, she preferred not to lie.