Ever since their arrival, her interactions with Dash had been few and far between. The only reason they saw each other at all was because Dash was able to sneak around and find Mahree during her schedule. And the classes? Mahree cared less for those. It was punishment she received when she did not attend, but the younger girl refused to simply fall into the new lifestyle she had been forced into.

She did not want to conform, she did not want to behave. She hardly wanted to live. What life was she to live now? One of obedience and hatred? Was she to forget everything she had known before this moment; her family, her friends, her old life?

Sitting in the small chamber that was supposedly a room, Mahree was curled up in the corner, her head in her hands, knees pulled up to her chest. Her head moved ever so slightly every few moments, the shock collar that was locked around her neck was anything short of comfortable to wear.

Dashara ducked in and out of shadows, avoiding any light possible. Her eyes strained looking down one end of the corridor then the other. Darkness greeted her, but nothing more. A breath of relief expelled from her lung while she cautiously continued down the winding hallways. Red carpets baring the black Empire symbols became wrapped nightmarish visions at night. Each step echoed across the air, threatening to summon the nightly patrolling Overseers and their sadistic punishments. The thought caused Dash to touch her bruised eye then flinched, withdrawing her fingers. A consequence when she crossed the wrong Overseer’s path during her escape yesterday.

She knew it would happen again. It always did and would continue until she perished.

When the hybrid stopped at Mahree’s door, she paused. The tension caused her to stop, her breath held in her chest, and she listened once more. Nothing echoed throughout the hallways allowing Dash to breathe. She hunched as she worked on slicing the lock. Her force rotated the screws off and dropped them into her pocket. With determined and limited skill, she began to work through the numerous wiring. Several heart pounding hours ticked by until the lock clicked. With a silent, but quick movement, Dash opened the door and shot inside. It hissed close leaving her standing across from a huddled Mahree.

“That was fun.” Dash said in clear sarcasm.

As Dash worked hard in those hours to splice the wires and gain access to Mahree’s room, the girl could sense her friend nearby. It must’ve been the Force that enabled her to do that, or so Mahree figured. Her suspicions were proven correct as she heard the door open. Looking up to see a small figure slip through into the dimly-lit room, Mahree stood slowly.

“Dash?” She mumbled quietly after hearing her friend’s voice. The fear that sat in Mahree’s heart receded for a moment, and feelings of being calm and hopeful resurfaced. Mahree ran up to her friend, wrapping her arms around Dash in a tight hug as light tears ran down her cheeks.

Dashara winced as she thumped against the door, her own arms returning the hugs.

Mahree was scared, there was no denying that. The girl had no one in this world but Dash, and it seemed the Overseers had figured that out and separated them, on purpose. Dash was her rock, the only one she cared about and probably the only being who cared for her in return. Without her friend, Mahree was constantly fighting hopelessness and fear as dark thoughts fought their way into her head during every waking moment. Without Dash’s fearlessness and determination, Mahree was slowly becoming lost in a sea of fear and self-doubt.

Dash sighed then slowly wobbled both herself and the younger girl toward the bed. She gently pried off the arms to breathe. Her eyes looked in the frightened expression causing her to sigh again.

"Easy with man-handling me. I'm still a bit sore." She half joked. The latter obviously clear from the small limp and healing bruises on her body.

A finger brushed away a strand of Mahree's hair as she continued.

"So rumor is that you stopped leaving your room. What did we did talk about back in the ship?" Dash's voice became firmer.

At Dash's stern question, Mahree took a few steps back to sit on the small bed. One hand moved up, fingers tracing the thin contraption around her neck. It had only been activated once, and that's all Mahree remembered. She knew it hurt, she knew why they had forced her to wear it and why it had gone off; because of the friends standing right in front of her.

Eyes looked down at the floor, fingers running across the collar, thoughts racing here and there as the fear swirled in her heart.

"Why does it matter?" Mahree asked, head turned down and away from Dash as her voice wavered.

Dash instantly stiffened. Her expression melted from shock into anger, her eyes hardened at the question. She gritted her teeth enough to stop the fury from speaking for her. Seconds ticked by in silence while Dash closed her eyes and collected her patience. She crossed her arms before she let her words rip it a part.

“Really, is that your excuse to simply roll over and die? Cause it doesn’t matter? That’s a weak one to me.” Dash snapped while she still glared at the girl.

"You've seen what happens to others like me, Dash. I don't know how to fight, I don't know anything about the Force or alchemy or anything."

“But you can try to learn, can’t you? You’re not stupid! These bruises on me aren’t because I rolled over and accepted my fate! I learn, adapt and keep trying.” Dash bluntly countered, her figure still standing.

"And if we don't accept our fate? Then what? We are supposed to become Sith, what happens if we keep fighting?"

“At least you can die on your feet than die in the way they want you to. Like an animal that isn’t worth giving a damn about.”

"They don't give a damn about us anyway," Mahree countered, her eyes still focused down and away from Dash, "We're just their pawns in a game. We have no meaning except to be turned into a fighting machine. I don't want that fate. I just want it to end."

“You are not the only one that’s had a miserable life and you won’t be the last. I lost my parents at ten, nearly got killed by a bounty hunter, and treated like an object until about a year ago.” Dashara leaned over, fighting the pain flooding her system, as she put her hand under Mahree’s chin. She pulled the girl up to face her.

“Do you think I survived that by acting your way? No. It’s not easy, but it’s possible to beat the system. You’re just too sucked into your own depression to see it.”

"And what about this?" Mahree began, fingers running along the device around her neck. "If I fight back, if we fight back, this comes on, right? I've stayed in my room and it hasn't bothered me."

Mahree grew quiet, pulling her chin from Dash's fingers finally as tears welled in her eyes. "I thought I was going to die. It hurt so much… I don't want that pain again."

“I don’t like getting hurt either, but while you’re alive, there’s always that risk. There’s always going to be people out there to hurt you, emotionally or physically. Shutting down resolves nothing and gives them the win.” Dash’s eyes seemed distracted as she turned away from Mahree, unable to retain eye contact now.

“The reason you got the shock collar was to keep me from escaping. It seems our ‘host’ realized I had gotten attached to you and Overseer Genbit is using you to keep me in line.”

Mahree listened to Dash's words as she explained why she had received the collar in the first place. Fingers still lightly traced the device as her eyes moved to her friend.

"If you find a way out… you'll come back for me, right?" Mahree suddenly asked, shifting where she sat so she could face Dash more. Her friend had already tried to escape once, did that mean she had a plan in case Mahree couldn't be with her next time?

If Mahree fought to stay alive, she wanted to be alive with her friend. They had to leave together, neither one would leave the other behind, or so the girl hoped.

“Right now, I’m testing the boundaries. If I can find a weak point, we can make a plan to get out. However, while we’re doing that… I figured we can learn other skills. As I said, I’ve been in this situation before and those skills are useful.”

Dash smiled at seeing the small spark of life in Mahree.

Mahree stood from the bedside to face her friend. Eyes still watery, but with a weak smile on her face.
"I'll try… for you, Dash." The girl said, her tone wavering as eyes closed and her arms wrapped lightly around her friend in another hug. Her head rested on Dash's shoulder as her heart and mind came to terms with what the older girl had said.

“Don’t try for me, try for yourself. I can’t help you if you can’t find motivation to go on. Something might happen to me and I don’t want my last thoughts being worried about you living on. Promise me, you’ll find a reason to keep fighting.” Dash pulled herself from the hug after a few moments as she looked at Mahree.

“Promise me.”

Wiping tears from her eyes, Mahree nodded her head to Dash, indicating she understood.

A few moments of peaceful silence filled the air. Mahree took a deep breath to calm herself as she dried her wet eyes with the sleeve of her shirt.

There was a split second as a small, red indicator light illuminated on the device around Mahree's neck. It wasn't another second later before blue currents of electricity started winding their way sporadically around the device. Mahree screamed suddenly, as the voltage was forced into her body through the shock collar. Her fingers grasped at the device as she stumbled backwards, hitting the wall opposite her room door and sliding to the ground. Her breathing was quickened as the voltage ceased, her fingers just barely grasping the device as she sat there, her body trying to cope with what she had just endured.

The door to Mahree's room opened, and through it stepped Sith Overseer Kilian Haryss. A tall, slender yet finely built figure with messy blonde hair that fell to his shoulders. His black armor reflected the red overhead lights as he stepped through the door, followed by two younger apprentices.

"My my… what have we here? Young Horizon outside of her room past curfew? And with young Mais-ede, nonetheless?" Taking a few more steps inside, he moved closer to Dash, his eyes scanning the room and finding the younger Mahree not far away on the opposite side, trying to recover from the shock he had just administered.

"Tell me something, anything. I'd love to hear your excuse for being here, and putting young Mahree through a world of hurt."

Dashara took a regretful look toward Mahree then faced Overseer Haryss. Her eyes closed to rein in her anger and actions, pushing her fury to the back of her mind. She opened them to lock looks with the Overseer while biting her tongue.

“I couldn’t sleep so I needed to clear my head. I heard rumors and thought I check in on how truthful they were.” She mixed in truth and lies, her words filled with care in their presentation. Neither threatening or cock in tone.

Kilian glanced at Mahree, then to Dash.

"Rumors huh?" He scoffed, smirking as his hands moved to meet each other. One moved and pressed a small button on his left gauntlet, and Mahree was forced to undergo another few moments of agonizing torture. He stopped again, watching the girl writhe for a moment, "Sounds reasonable."

Dash tensed again. Her head turned away so not to see Mahree in pain. Instead, her glare remained fixed on the Overseer and she strained to hold herself back from reacting toward him.

“It’s the truth. It’s your choice to believe it or not, but I got nothing else to explain my actions.” Her fingers tightened into fists at her side as she stated each word.

"I can feel that anger, that hate. Don't hate me for what your friend has to go through. It's your own actions that caused your friends pain."

“Last I checked… I didn’t press the button.” Dashara countered, failing to bite her tongue fast enough.

The look on Kilian's face darkened at Dash's words. His head tilted back at her small challenge. His head tilted towards the two apprentices at his side. "Little girl wants to challenge, I'll give you a challenge."

Kilian turned and stepped out of the room, just outside of the door before he looked back. The apprentices both moved in, each one grabbing either of Dash's arms before the moved to walk her out of the room.

Dash looked over her shoulder, a concerned glance flashed at Mahree. She struggled a bit against the two apprentices’ grip before letting them march her outside the room.

Slumped against the wall, Mahree's head raised ever so slightly to see Dash being pulled out of the room. A tired gaze watched her friend, her heart and mind fighting back the fear that wanted to flood back.

As the two apprentices led Dash down the hallway towards the combative area, Kilian turned and held up his hand and wrist again, in pain view, for Dash to see. He said nothing, a smirk still held in his features as a finger went down on the same small button again. A faint blue glow could be seen coming from Mahree's room, followed by screams as her body was flooded with electricity.

Dashara jerked and pulled again, the apprentices ready for her resistance this time. Her expression curled into a pissed one.

“Fucking bastard.” She cursed at him.

The apprentices paid no mind to the screams or Dash’s struggles. They merely tightened their grip while they hauled her around the corner and into the combat room. Feeling them release, she took a seat as they waited for Overseer Haryss to arrive.

Ten minutes is not very much time to many. But for Mahree, ten minutes felt like an eternity as she endured Kilian’s punishment through the use of the shock collar. He was strategic in how he worked. Ten minutes gave Dashara enough time to think over what had happened, and what could be happening to her poor friend while she waited for Kilian to arrive.

Chatting quietly to themselves while watching over the new Neophyte. As the electronic door to the combatives room opened, both straightened themselves as Overseer Haryss entered. He looked to the apprentices, then to Dash where she sat.

“Worried about your… friend?” He mocked, eyes moving from Dashara to the apprentices.

Dashara didn’t say a word. She merely tightened her jaw and kept silent, watching him carefully. She had picked a corner to ensure neither of Haryss’ dogs could surprise her. Not that they appeared to think without their ‘master’s’ commands.

Kilian chuckled at Dash’s silence. He was a little surprised at the restraint she showed, even after being pulled away from her friend and having no choice but to leave her in his hands.

“You’re not even going to ask if she’s still alive?” He asked, turning to one of his apprentices and handing them his lightsaber. He also removed the control gauntlet on his wrist, handing it over as well.
“It would be very simple, really. I could just press that little button down and leave it. She’d be dead after a few minutes of that constant stream of electricity. And you wouldn’t even know.”

“Then you lose any possible reason for me to hold back from trying to escape.” Dashara’s voice held an edge to it when she responded. She kept sitting as to show how little his taunting mattered to her.

“You can keep thinking that.” Kilian began, running a hand through his dirty blonde hair and turning to face Dash. He took a few steps towards her, his shoulders broad and squared off as he approached her. “She was weak. A means to an end you could say.” he taunted, stopping a few feet in front of Dash.
“Weak, spineless, dependent and oh so innocent. Does that sound like your friend? I just call it a waste of space.”

Kilian kept pushing, verbally, mentally. He wanted to find that tick, to see just what Mahree’s meaning was to Dash and how far she would go to defend her weaker friend. Just how much of a puppet could Mahree be used as, and when would Kilian have to push farther and try a different tactic?

Dash’s lips tightened into a line. Her anger rose in her throat before she shoved it down, pushing it back into the bottom of her stomach. Cautiously she stood upright onto her feet.

“She’s stronger than you think. If she is dead, I guess you lose your leverage.” Her eyes looked to the door then back to Kilian, studying his reaction to her obvious thoughts.

“You don’t believe me? You seem a little less worried than I would’ve thought.” He began, catching her glimpse as her eyes momentarily moved to look at the door.

Ah, yes. The exit, the way out. Just how far would she get? Would she go back for her friend?
“No matter. The weak ones always die in the first couple of days. Overseer Genbit might not be too pleased, but I’ve saved him the effort he’d have to put forth later.”

Kilian went silent for a few moments, judging Dash’s body language, her gaze, her aura. He stepped closer to the girl, testing, gauging her response. As he did this, Dash’s head snapped into his direction while she circled around and closer to the door. Kilian reach out suddenly, past her telekinetic defense, which was weakened and poorly protected, and forced her to remain still right where she was.

Quickly, Kilian moved toward Dashara, stepping right up in front of the girl. He felt an overwhelming sense of fear and anger as he approached her. He scoffed held a hand out, “It’s a pity, really. Your friend tortured and writhing, begging for mercy. Just one less pretty face around here.”

As he spoke, Kilian could feel the girl fighting back. One hand remained out, holding her in place, as the other lifted to her face. Oddly gently, smooth fingers ran themselves along her jawline and underneath her chin, fingers forcing her head up just a little more so he could see her gaze fully. “Shall we begin?”

Dash fought the trembling rippling throughout her. Her skin crawled from his touch as she continued to glare at him, still trying to fight the force holding her in place. She pressed her lips together before she voiced her thoughts of him.

“Get your fucking hand off me.” Her hand twitched causing a few deactivated training droids to rush at the Overseer’s head.

The hand along Dash’s cheek moved quickly, reaching out towards one of the apprentices. His lightsaber was pulled from their loose grasp, through the air and into his hand. He ignited it quickly, turning and slicing his blade through the three training droids in two quick, precise movements. He deactivated the lightsaber in the next moment, his head turning back to look at Dashara.

She bolted for the door. Her figure slipped around his back and the apprentices, leaving them behind her. It wouldn't stop them for long. The first one reached her in moments. His gloved hand snagged her tunic back causing Dash to stop and fling her elbow back. A sound crack indicated she scored a hit followed by a yelp. Her lips curled into a smirk while she turned back to slam her hand on the panel, the door hissing open easily.

The second apprentice pushed in to land a strike on her cheek. Dash raised an arm and redirected with the back, pushing it behind her. Her other fist shoved into the unprotected ribs. She finally kicked into the knee, bring him down to a kneeling position.

Leaving the two to nurse their wounds, she rushed out. Her hand hit the panel to prevent any of them from following her.

Kilian moved to his apprentices, watching the ordeal unfold. The door closed just as the man stepped up to it. He stood still for a moment, glancing at the younger Sith nursing their wounds. Eyes rolled slightly as he got the door open and stepped out into the hallway. All was quiet, the girl moved fast. Perfect.

Kilian took a deep breath, the chase had begun. As a Sith Assassin and now an Overseer, Kilian enjoyed a good chase.

Dash managed to slip around the corner. She jerked to a stop and pressed herself against the wall, attempting to be as small as possible. Her chest heaved up and down. Each gulp of air burned while she listened for any heavy approaching steps. When silence reaffirmed no one followed her, Dash's eyes adjusted to the darkness. She began to make her way to the surveillance room.

It took a few long hours as she tried to slice into the door's panel. Several times she got sparked causing her to jerk back, her fingers singed by the failure. Feeling the effort becoming futile, she broke away from the attempt. Sounds of feet approaching caused her to dart away to hide around a corner.

A technician leaned down to examine the damage. His hand pressed a comlink and muttered into it. He clicked it off then began to work on repairing the panel.



“Apprentice Meva, move towards Mais-Ede’s room. Stay there until further orders.” Through his comlink, Kilian moved his apprentices, strategically, slowly, giving him time to think out this chase to the last detail. He’d just received word that one of the security room control panels had been tampered with. It was his charge, Dashara, no doubt. Kilian himself remained on his path, making his rounds, giving the little rat time to think through what she wanted to do.

The security room; it could reveal to her pathways through the Academy, and a way out if she knew where to look. But that’s not what she wanted access for. Was she taking such a big chance just to check up on her friend? That’s a detail Kilian wanted to find out for himself, for he could still use that bond to his advantage.



Meanwhile, Dash peered around the corner. Her eyes scanned the technician occupied with the panel. With a debilitate movement, she crept toward the distracted man. Her hand reached out then gestured for a tool to snap into hand as she rushed to slam it into the side of his face. The man crumbled into a heap.

Wasting little time, she began to search his body until she found a key card. She slid it in and the door granted her access. Her eyes glanced to the evidence she needed to get rid of then sighed.

A half an hour of pulling and tugging him inside, she managed to shut the door. On the outside everything appeared untouched to avoid suspicion. With the spare cords, Dash managed to tie up the Technician to a chair and shoved him in a corner.

Her attention turned to the multiple screens facing her now. She clicked one or two buttons, causing a few holocams to flip between different areas. She caught sight of one of the apprentices standing guard at the hallway nearest Mahree. That stuck her as odd. If Mahree was dead, they would've been more busy to ensure she didn't leave rather than guard a corpse. She bit the side of her cheek before deciding something. With a bit more fiddling, her screen showed her Overseer Haryss.

The apprentice and him appeared to be in conversation. A few moments passed before the prior took off down another hallway. Dash debated on something then with tool in hand, she stabbed the panel and sabotage it. Stepping back from the sparking lock, she walked back to the technician. After a bit more picking in the pockets, she managed to find a small map covering his duties, his tool belt and the card key to the beast pens. Her smirk renewed when an idea flicked into her head.

She tightened the belt about her waist as she looked around. When Dash found the vent cover, she unbolted the fastenings and crawled in. A few marks had been made on the map to note Overseer's Haryss', his apprentices' and the beast pens' locations. All she had to do was follow it.

With an agile and practiced movement, Dash lowered herself down. She dropped soundlessly onto the floor. She ensured herself a hallway ahead of Haryss' patrolling path and nearest the beast pens. Carefully her eyes peeked around the corner to monitor his location.

“You know, young one, Despite all this trickery, I still sense that fear from you. This is not a place to make mistakes.” Kilian warned. He halted his feet, feeling Dash’s aura behind him. That anger, the hate. Not all of it created here, but Kilian knew her past may have played a role in those feelings as well.

“What else have you got planned, little rodent?” Kilian called out, turning around and facing the corner in which Dash was hiding behind.

"Why don't you try to catch me and find out? Or has your position at the Academy made you a fat and lazy Nexu?" Dash retorted as she jerked back, once more hiding herself from sight.

Kilian’s eyes narrowed as he huffed in disapproval of her comment. He said nothing further though, instead moving quickly towards the corner, towards Dash.

The moment she heard footsteps coming into her direction, she rushed away from them. Her body moved with force speed and fear, increasing her speed. As she turned on a datastik, she shot into the area of the beast pens. She swiped the keycard on the lock causing it to open. Without stopping, she shoved her way through and into the lower area. Dash stopped long enough to slam the button causing the door to hiss shut behind her. Without the keycard, it would take some time to get inside.

Stopping at the door to the lower area, Kilian nearly pulled out his lightsaber to cut the damn thing open. This chase was his idea, so he couldn’t be overly upset at the young girl’s attempt to outwit him. He opened up his complink and called for one of his apprentices to come to his position.

A few minutes went by before the door opened slightly. Kilian put both hands on either side and forced it open, stepping through and ordering his apprentice to remain at the door. He followed the stairway down into the pens, his eyes scanning the dark corridor with the cages lined on either side, bright red energy shields keeping the animals within at bay.

“You know, so far your little scheme hasn’t gone so well, has it? I mean, you told poor little Mahree you would both leave together, isn’t that what I heard? And now she’s dead, and here you are playing my little game.” Kilian called out, hearing his voice echoed through the chamber.

Dash hunched down and moved through the cages. The red floor lights and shielding illuminating her figure faintly. Just enough to see by, but only barely. Creatures began to stir from her presence causing them to growl or roar in irritation. She found the nastiest looking predator. With a slam into the control panel, she jabbed it with the slicer tool. The shielding fizzed then shut down immediately.

About the size of a cow, the serpentine body it brought its front body to raise upright. Large hulk-like arms hung down long enough to nearly drag its knuckles across the metal floor. Cracks in the platted spine glowed with red as it lowered its head in her direction. It sniffed twice before retracting back.

Dash noticed it couldn't see as she stood completely still. Its six digit hand reached only to stop short and tug across her tunic. Her held breath burned in her chest while she didn't move.

When Kilian's voice echoed in the large room, its head whipped to that direction. A rattling, quiet hiss rumbled through its throat. It slithered off on its four other legs into the raptures then vanished into the shadows.

His footfalls were near silent as Kilian made his way through the chamber, passing by cage after cage, aggravating the creatures within. A deep, rattling noise filled his head as he walked. He had a mere moment to look up before a large, six-legged, raptor-like creature dropped from the pipe and metal makings of the ceiling above. Kilian drew his saber quickly, diving to the side to avoid a strike from one of its large claws.

Bringing up his wrist to his mouth, Kilian attempted to get a message out through the comlink. The man tried to sidestep quickly as he did so, but took a hit from the large creature which threw him back before he landed on the ground.

The gauntlet on his left wrist was knocked off by the impact, his lightsaber also thrown away from him as he landed. Kilian turned quickly as the creature charged him, hand reaching out and using the Force to call his lightsaber back into his grip.

Dashara quietly made her way toward the sound of conflict. Slow and steady, she managed not to attract the beast’s attention during her trip back to the entrance. In the gloom she managed to spot the gauntlet fall off and slid against the nearest cage. Her hand stretched out to force pull it toward her.

Kilian saw the gauntlet move slightly where it lay. Looking back towards the stairway to the door, Kilian noticed Dash's dimly-lit figure. He scowled before his attention turned back to the creature attacking him. Saber back in his hand and ignited, one swing and the creature lost a clawed hand. He dove to the side to avoid another strike before the creature charged him once more, forcing Kilian to fall back to reposition himself.

Dash rushed out of the door, now empty of the apprentice. She kept moving down the opposite side from the quarters to find another vent. Careful to avoid attention or encountering additional trouble, she managed to unbolt and crawl into another shaft. She fixed the cover up and pulled out the map. With haste, she began to navigate her way back to Mahree’s quarters. Just a few feet away, Dashara exited the nearby vent.

Her hands flicked two wires together causing Mahree’s quarters to open. She quickly stepped in and shut it behind her. Dash’s eyes fell to the crumbled girl’s form. Regret and fear filled her heart causing her to find closure. She fell onto her knees then tested her friend’s pulse. After several seconds, the faint thump pressed against Dash’s fingers. Tension emotions released as she realized Overseer Haryss had lied.

A brief glance at the gauntlet told the Zeltron hybrid what she had to do and once more she rose to her feet. She peeked out through the door. Seeing the coast clear, she rushed down the hallway back to the combat room earlier. It was the last place he would assume she would revisit.

Once more in the room, she scanned for anything to help her break the gauntlet. Nothing appeared useful causing her to frown. Her hand dropped the offensive technology as her foot stomped down hard on it. A loud crack draw some peace of mind. A few more stomps later, the device was beyond repair. Nothing more than a shattered mess. Breathing hard, Dash turned on heel and went to leave.

As Dash moved to exit the door, it opened quickly. She was stopped however as a telekinetic Force wrapped itself around her throat. Walking through the door was Kilian, followed now by four other apprentices. Haryss face held a dark and dangerous expression, his eyes reflecting the fury and anger he felt towards Dash. Across the left side of his jawbone was a deep, dark cut that had been hastily cleaned of blood, but continued to bleed slightly. One other was carved into the breastplate across his chest, and no doubt would have been fatal had his armor not held.

Lifting Dash into the air slightly, he let her struggle as the group behind him followed into the room. He saw the gauntlet on the floor, smashed to pieces, destroyed. A smirk found its way to his lips as he looked back to Dash.

Dashara continued to claw at her throat as she noticed her feet dangling above the floor. Her lungs burned and threatened to explode when the helplessness set in. The anger wavered in favor of fear. Gradually the numbness started to settle in as the fight in her drained. Her panicked filled eyes began to droop.

"You will learn, quickly, who is the master, and who is the rat." Kilian started, his grip wanting to tighten, but the man knew he had to restrain himself. He suddenly released the hold he had on Dashara, letting her fall to the ground.

When Dash’s legs landed, they crumbled underneath her. She hit knees first and curled forward. The moment air hit her lungs, it felt like she was inhaling glass with each breath. Dash coughed and sputtered until the pain began to subside.

He walked up next to her then, kneeling down and putting a hand around her neck this time. He pushed her, forcing her back onto the ground so that she was looking directly up at him. He was not pushing hard, but enough to show he would take hold of her again, easily.

"You are mine. We're going to play my little game now. One where you listen, you obey, and you follow my orders like your life depends on it- because it does."

Kilian stood then, glaring down at Dash before he turned towards the door.

"Take her to her quarters," he said to the apprentices, stopping at the door and glancing back at Dashara, "Welcome to Korriban, little rat."