2 Bounty Hunter Female Verita

It was the silence that woke her. Silence, true silence, had become something of a rarity for Verita. Back on Kalevala there was always the sound of people and animals, . On her ship, the humming of the engine had always lulled her to sleep. So this complete silence was unsettling, sending apprehension through her and waking her far more effectively than anything else could.

An uncomfortable feeling stirred in her gut, and Verita looked around her with confusion. The room she was in was small, brightly lit and sparse. There were no windows, and from the motion beneath her feet Verita instinctively knew she was on a ship, although it wasn't hers. Verita blinked, rubbing a hand on her forehead.

It was then that she realized her armor was gone. Panic flickered through her. Without her armor, she was weak, as vulnerable as if she'd lost a limb. But who had taken her? The last thing she remembered was talking to a woman who'd said she had known something of Jonak. Jonak. Before Verita could look further than the room around her, a woman stepped into view.

She was a Mirialan, with the typical black tattoos and green skin. But there was something familiar about the black markings stretching across her shoulder, the dark hair in careful cornrows. Verita knew the woman in front of her. Or, more accurately, she knew of the woman in front of her. Ezaye—bounty hunter and old acquaintance of her brother's. Jonak had introduced them once, many years ago. Verita had even gone to her after her brother's disappearance, asking for help in finding him. Ezaye had laughed at her request. Verita's lips parted, her eyes widening. Questions rose to the surface of her mind, but one in particular burned her throat.

"Where's my brother?"

Ezaye laughed, low and rough. Verita swallowed. She already knew the answer, but she had to hear it. "Even now, still searching for him. You didn't really think you were going to find him, did you?"

The tiny bubble of hope Verita had always held diminished and a crushing sense of disappointment filled her, eclipsing the fear. It was like she was a child again, and she had just found out that she wasn't getting the present she'd been promised.

"There was a woman. She said she had seen Jonak," she said hotly. He's alive. He has to be. The woman's words were proof of Jonak's existence.

Ezaye's features morphed into disdain, her eyes cold and distant. "An easy rumor to create. As I told you when you came to me, your brother is dead. Has been dead for years." She looked down at Verita, making Verita feel like a small child staring up at a giant. There was unhidden disgust in Ezaye's voice, and it made Verita's skin prickle with anger beneath the fear and uncertainty. Her hands curled into fists, her mind instantly rejecting the all too familiar words.

"No he's not. He's alive," she snarled.

"Then why haven't you found him yet?" Ezaye asked, her tone turning patronizing. "You're a bounty hunter; you find people for a living. And yet you can't even find your own brother."

Verita's lips curled into a snarl, baring her teeth. "I will find him." But the conviction normally so strong in her words had become an uncertainty.

Ezaye snorted, shaking her head. "No, you won't." Her lips pulled into a smile, and the sight sent something cold and foreboding down Verita's spine. "But there is someone else you might want to see." She snapped her fingers and another figure was escorted into the room.

Isaos.

All of the air in Verita's lungs seemed to freeze at the sight of him. He seemed unharmed, his skin unmarked with bruises or scars. But he was afraid. Of that, Verita was certain. It was there in the set of his shoulders, in the thin line of his lips.

"Isaos." He didn't answer, his large frame curling in on itself. His head turned towards her at the sound of his name, but there was something wrong in the way he looked at her. It reminded her all too much of when she'd first found him, afraid of everything and everyone. As if she were another slaver, rather than family. "Are you okay?"

"I am." The dull brokenness in the two words made Verita's heart break. Her eyes grew hot as her throat closed up, and she could only stare at Isaos. She had worked so long, so hard on making him realize he was no longer a slave, no longer subservient to anyone, especially her. Now it was as though all those years, all those conversations, had never happened.

"Isaos." The word was a broken whisper in the air.

Ezaye laughed again, the sound loud in the silence. "He's not very pretty, as far as slaves go, but he's very obedient." A cruel edge slipped into her voice. "Allow me to demonstrate." Pulling a blaster rifle from her side, Ezaye took a step away from Isaos, who was still hunched in front of Verita.

"Kneel," she commanded, and Isaos obeyed immediately. Verita's eyes flicked between Isaos and the blaster rifle in Ezaye's hand with growing horror as she realized what was about to happen. Ezaye held the rifle out to Isaos, a cruel smile decorating her lips as she said, "Take it." Isaos' hands were trembling as he took the weapon from her.

"Point it at your heart." As though a puppet were pulling his strings, Isaos' jerkily followed her instructions.

"No!" Verita jumped to her feet, hands mere inches from the rifle in Isaos' hands when a set of arms forcibly pulled her away. The man who had brought Isaos in now held her back, forcing her to watch. No matter how hard she tried, Verita remained trapped between his arms. Tears were now sliding down Verita's cheeks, eyes stinging as she shook her head violently. "Isaos, put the gun down!" For a single second, Verita thought he might obey. His hand wavered, only for Ezaye's next order to come.

"Shoot."

Isaos' body fell to the floor with a soft thump. The man who had been restraining Verita let go of her, and she rushed to kneel beside Isaos. Blood stained the thin fabric of his shirt, and wide, lifeless eyes stared up at her when she touched his face. He was dead. A sound raw with pain clawed its way out of Verita's mouth. No. No. Not you too. You can't be gone too. Sobs choked her until her eyes ran dry and she could no longer look at Isaos. She pushed herself away from him, standing on unsteady feet.

Barely had Verita moved away from Isaos when her surroundings shifted. The ceiling of the room rose higher and higher, as though trying to escape the ship. The small patch of floor Verita was on rose with it, leaving everything else behind. A tight ball of fear condensed in Verita's chest as the ground became further and further away. Fear choked her, her ears popping as she rose. Goosebumps littered her skin as air rushed past her at frightening speeds, her tearstained cheeks drying. Eventually the room stopped growing, coming to a standstill.

The wind continued though, sheets of air threatening her already precarious position. It left her on unstable ground, and each time Verita tipped forward, she could see the black below her. Don't look down, don't look down. Despite herself, Verita couldn't help glancing down. She was so high up that she couldn't even see Isaos' body anymore.

Her hands grew cold and clammy with sweat, heart beating so fast Verita thought it would give out. Her breaths came in short, wheezing puffs as she struggled to find her footing without falling. It was a useless attempt. A gust of wind slammed into her, knocking her off balance, her body falling forward as her feet slipped. Verita's mouth opened in a scream that was swallowed by the air as she fell to the ground, Isaos' body the last thing she saw before blackness overtook her.

4 Slaver Female Suljuuk Pornh

Sul-Juuk couldn't remember anything from the time she dozed off in the ship where Atron Zee had stowed her and Kiernan. She strained herself to remember, but anything she managed to think of was a blurred glance.

She sat in a dark holding cell with cold walls and a shelf for a place to lie. From what she could see from the slits in the door, she wasn't the only one trapped.

From the low hum that reverberated through the metal walls, she guessed she was on a starship... a large one.

She sighed and slicked back the hairs that had fallen into her face.

These thoughts – these distractions were not helping. Every thought led back to Kim-Ny. Knowing her daughter, she was putting up some sort of fight either through actions or words. But inside, Sul-Juuk knew she would be terrified.

Pat, pat, pat.

The sound of boots echoed off the starship hall, rhythmically marching closer.

Staring through the slits in more curiosity than expectancy, a dark pair of feet strode into view.

To her surprise they stopped in front of her cell and turned to the door.

The code panel chirped as the stranger unlocked the door. It slid open to reveal the familiar outline of a Zygerrian.

As he entered the room she snarled at him. She did not know this particular Zygerrian, but she knew his kind and their ruthful reputation for being slavers – slavers she worked for.

"I've guessed as much why I've been brought here. I will be no slave to the Emperor," Sul-Juuk hissed.

His downturned lips curled up slightly at her words, "You were a slave and you shall always be a slave. To whom, should not concern you." The Zygerrian turned and waved outside the cell.

Sul-Juuk was about to pounce on him like a wild cat until she saw the armor of a Clone walk into sight.

Arching her neck, she gazed around the Zygerrian to watch as the Clone opened the opposite facing cell. The Clone threateningly aimed his blaster inside and ordered them to come out.

Out came Kim-Ny.

Sul-Juuk's heart began to pound as she gripped the shelf she sat on.

Kim-Ny hissed at the Clone as she passed and stopped to glare at the Zygerrian.

He ushered her and the Clone inside Sul-Juuk's cell, smiling as if this was a fun game.

"Ama?" Kim-Ny said as her teal eyes swirled with fright.

"Kim..."

"Quiet," the Zygerrian harshly shushed, "You will listen to me and only speak when asked a question. This is as all slaves should know."

"I am not a slave," Sul-Juuk hotly glared at him.

His face hardened as he became annoyed. "As a slaver, you had no freedom. Your employers paid you to retrieve slaves, but you knew that if you failed or refused, the chains would find their way back to the comfort of your ankles.

"No, Cathar-wench. You are here because you helped a slave escape."

Sul-Juuk clenched her jaw at the accusation. "I did no such thing."

The Zygerrian glanced down at Kim-Ny, "Oh I wouldn't be so sure. Did you know your daughter was recently the property of Zagru, one of your main employers?"

Sul-Juuk launched herself to her feet. "How!" She screamed in his face, place a hand on her empty blaster holster. She knew it was useless, but the stance was intimidating.

Apparently it was not intimidating enough for the scum that stood unflinching in the face of her rage.

"Your impudence. By having her on your ship, you stole property. And seeing how you have no intention of returning her or enslaving her... you've aided in illegal activities." The Zygerrian smiled cruelly, "Do you deny it?"

"She is my daughter under my guardianship and anyone who claims her is breaking the law. Not. Me." The burning in her heart swelled with her words, pushing tears into her eyes.

"Well... as I said... You were never truly free."

The Zygerrian walked past her and through the door. With a final smirk he nodded to the Clone, "Kill the child."

"Ama?" Kim-Ny's face was wrought in terror. She leapt into Sul-Juuk's arms as the Clone raised his blaster and fired.

Sul-Juuk gripped Kim-Ny's gray tunic, holding her breath as if there were any chance of hearing her voice. But her dead weight leaned against her shoulder as her hands hung limply over her mother's arms.

Sul-Juuk knelt to the ground as the Clone left with the Zygerrian, the door sliding shut with a hiss.

She pulled Kim-Ny closer, burying her face in her neck. Rocking her baby back and forth, the room was silent. She did not even breathe.

She felt nothing. She felt nothing at all.

Years of conditioning herself to never feel pain or tenderness had kept her from feeling everything.

She wanted it. She wanted to feel the ache in her soul. She wanted to scream and weep.

She could not.

So she did not breathe.

She let herself turn purple; the color of her cold heart. She squeezed her daughter closer so the air in her lungs would leave her.

She listened to her pulse as it quickened... and she listened long enough to hear it slow.

Falling to the ground, she felt her body pleading for air – begging for it.

If she could not feel, then she would not feel life.

Sul-Juuk closed her eyes and listened to her heart beat one last time.

6 Slave Female Zillah

Zillah sat in the center of her cell, glaring at the door as though it could make the door dissolve and offer her a path to freedom. Her chained hands sat in her lap as she sat there, anger boiling over inside at the fear she felt and at those who had put her into this predicament. She wondered, just for a moment, if Virith and Eira had made it safely away. Then there was Yuurei. She was also angry that she cared about what had happened to Yuurei at all. That confounded Sith Lord is the reason I'm here in the first place, she thought. A stab of guilt hit then. Well... Maybe not entirely... He did try to help. If he hadn't done something, I would've been executed. I suppose I ought to thank him. Everything after that was sort of my fault. It's not like he ever gave me a reason to run.

The door swung open quietly. How does such a big door open so quietly? Zillah wondered. Shouldn't it creak a little bit or something? Her attention to that was diverted by the man who stepped into the room.

At first, she only noticed him. Agruss... Then she noticed that Anarchy stood muzzled and on a chain by his side. The chain was probably a good idea considering the anooba's strength. Normally, Anarchy was something of a gentle giant. But when someone threatened her, the growing animal became vicious.

Funny how he always got along with Yuurei, Zillah thought suddenly. He never once snapped or attacked Yuurei no matter what. Maybe my pet knew better than I did. I should've stayed where I was safe. Or at least, where I was safer...

She glared at Agruss, who held the chain. "How did you find me? And why do you have my pet on a chain?"

"You're a slave," Agruss answered. "You don't own yourself, much less anything else. As to finding you... You ran away; I found you. You don't need to know anything else. I'm not in the habit of explaining myself to the things I own."

Her chin lifted as she stared him down. Standing up, she walked up to him and slapped him. The chains on her hands clanked against each other as she moved. "I don't belong to anyone. I'm a person just like you, and you have no right to me..."

Agruss rolled his eyes. "Actually... The law says I do. That man who owns you currently has no right to you since you're an escaped slave. I was your last legal master, so I still hold claim."

Zillah swallowed back the fury and despair rising inside of her. She felt as though she were drowning suddenly. Her gut clenched, and her eyes stung with tears, which she held back as she faced her captor. "You're despicable, Agruss!" She spat.

Zillah felt her soul shatter as she saw her hope for freedom washing down the drain.

"Well, how fortunate for us that I don't care what your opinion is," Agruss said, laughing.

"Let Anarchy go!" Zillah clenched her fists, fully prepared to punch him this time.

"I don't think so. In fact, since you were so rude, I think you need a lesson to put you back into your place."

Zillah's eyes widened. "You wouldn't!"

"I would." Agruss pulled his Blas-Tech DL-44 from his belt.

She lunged, attempting to slap him again. He grabbed her chains, pulling her against him and holding her in his bruising grip as he turned the blaster on Anarchy again. His finger clenched on the trigger, and then there was a muted yelp from Anarchy as the blast hit him. The anooba crumpled to the floor without a sound.

Tears filled Zillah's eyes, and a muted wail clawed out of her. Anarchy... I... He... I j-just lost the only friend I h-had here. A-anarchy was the only creature I felt I could love w-wholeheartedly, knowing I'd be loved back. H-he just killed Anarchy.

As her heart shattered, she fragmented in front of Agruss. She hated herself for the weakness. She didn't want to break down in front of this man. I w-wish Y-yuurei were here. I never s-should've r-run.

He holstered the gun, grabbing her chained wrists. His lips hovered dangerously close to hers. Since she couldn't move, she just avoided his gaze. Agruss whispered to her softly, tightening his grip. "You know what happens when you disobey me, right?"

Please... Don't... She shook her head, suddenly mute. Words suddenly failed her. While she desperately wanted to say no, scream, or do anything to stop this nightmare from replaying now, she couldn't make herself move. It was like the first time she'd ever been in this position. She had frozen up then too. She'd regretted that ever since.

I... He... He's going to... I'm n-not... I c-can't cope with this... N-not a-anymore... Her breathing became sporadic and shallow as Agruss pushed her to the floor. She sat down hard on the chilly concrete, whimpering. Her senses returned just enough to let her move. She tried to scoot away from him, but his grip on her chains was too tight.

She shut her eyes tightly, trying to float to a happier place. The first thing that came to mind was the field where she'd often trained with Yuurei in the month or two before she ran away. Yuurei... Tears squeezed from her tightly shut eyes, dripping down her cheeks as Agruss's lips captured hers. He pulled away, tugging her into his lap.

"Open your eyes," he murmured. "I'm not punishing you... Yet..."

This isn't punishment? Her lower lip trembled. I can't take this anymore. I... I wish... She swallowed hard, opening her teary eyes to meet his cold gaze. A spark ignited into a small flame of determination as the look in those dark eyes wormed its way into her heart, destroying her bit by bit. I wish I were dead. She shifted, eyes darting down to the blaster on his belt.

I don't want to live anymore, she decided. This is useless... Her throat tightened as Agruss ran his fingers down her spine. It doesn't matter if I run, submit, or kill; there is no escape but death for me now. They have done what they swore they would. They've broken me to the point that I can no longer face my greatest fears. K always said my fears would be my downfall...

Like the coward I am, I will run one final time... I will flee instead of fighting for myself. And this time, there will be no way for them to follow me. Determined, she twisted, bringing a tightly clenched fist up under Agruss's chin when he let go of her hands to grab her chin. Amid his cursing and pitiful attempts to regain control of her, Zillah grabbed his blaster.

He stopped moving when the glint of the barrel caught his eye. "Zillah, give that back. You won't escape, and I know my second-in-command will do worse to you than I ever did."

"Worse than what you did? That doesn't exist..." Zillah's fingers trembled as she turned the blaster on herself. The metal was cold and smooth. Her tears dropped to the floor unheeded. "Well... My fear destroyed me after all."

"Don't you dare!" Agruss hissed.

She ignored him. "So it ends..." Zillah pulled the trigger, welcoming the cold, dark ending to her nightmarish tale.

8 Trader Female Arin Merrick

"Lau?" I whisper quietly. "Lau where are you?"

The darkness presses in on me, smothering me, blocking out any light from my vision. My breaths are quick pants, and I can't seem to slow my racing heart. The fear of the unknown keeps me pressed down, unable to stand up. Whatever lies in the darkness is hidden from me.

Suddenly, my hope is restored as the darkness is lifted.

I find my body not in the crouched position I had started in, but instead chained to a dark metal wall. Thick cuffs connect my arms to a link of chains hanging from the ceiling, and they are too stiff to move. The room I am in is small, and complete metal except for a mechanical door at the front of the room. I huff in annoyance.

Almost on cue, the metal door at the front of the cell opens. I tense, readying myself for a sudden attack. Darth Vader enters the room, his evil aura I'd only heard about filling the room as two troopers step in behind him.

"Vader," I growl at him, my glare murderous.

"Rebel scum," the Sith lord growls, "you're not in the best position to be offensive."

"Thanks, Captain Obvious," I roll my eyes, "what do you want with me? Lau and I have to make a shipment down to Corescant by midday."

"I don't think any shipments will be made now."

My breath catches in my throat. What in force name does he mean by that? My brain quickly goes to solve this puzzling situation, and Vader stares at me blankly.

"Bring in the droid," he instructs a trooper behind him, and my eyes widen.

"Droid?" I ask in surprise. "What droid?"

He ignores me, but the troopers rush off to fulfill his task, leaving behind a tense silence. My eyes narrow as footsteps start down the hallway again. Something is not right here, and even a bantha could tell that at this point.

The two men clad in white armor enter the cell again, and trailing behind them is a large circular droid. I stifle a scream. It's an Imperial interrogator droid, one of their worst torture mechanisms I've heard of so far. I inch backwards as far as I can go with the chains still clamped onto my wrists.

"You better not do anything to me with that," I tell him nervously.

He ignores me, though, and I watch as the droid slowly floats into the room. Another man who had been almost hiding behind Vader appears in the doorway and walks into the room. His skin is pale white, and black markings line his face and cross under his silver eyes. He wears a midnight black cloak with a hood draped over his bald head.

"Don't worry, girl," Vader says with a smug sounding voice, "you're not going to be in that much pain..."

"I wouldn't sugar coat it, Vader," the hooded man laughs, "you won't get a good reaction out of her like that. Make sure we use the strongest one we have."

"You idiots! Let me go already!" I shout at them.

"Shut up, girl!"

"I don't think she will," Vader growls.

"Kriff right, I won't!" I scream at them.

"Shut up!" he spins towards me, his silver eyes flashing angrily.

"You best let me go!" I shout angrily at him. "If you're a real man, then kriffing fight me! Give me a weapon or something, and we'll go at it! Unless you're too cowardly to do anything like all the other idiotic imperials!"

"Men," Vader spins around and starts exiting the cell, "inject her."

"No! Don't inject me!"

But it's too late. Vader is already out of the cell, and I see the last of his black cape swish out of the room.

"Make sure not to damage her," the man in the hood says with a slight tinge of nervousness, "the emperor wouldn't be pleased if his tribute was ruined."

"Of course," one of the troopers says, as he fills up a syringe with a clear liquid that he emptied out of the droid, "she will be perfectly fine."

The trooper finishes filling up the syringe, and the hooded man nods at him. I glare at the armored man as he walks up to me, lifting up my thin sleeve and exposing the sleeve underneath.

"Don't. You. Kriffing. Dare," I snarl.

He plunges the needle into my arm.

I scream in pain as the liquid inside the small vial is emptied into my veins. The pain that comes with it is excruciating, the burning fire traveling through my blood stream filling my heart with a wild instinct to run and hide. My vision starts fading away, along with my screams as the pain intensifies. I find myself slowly blacking out, my mind quickly protecting itself against the poison they had just injected me with.

The darkness I'd started out with returns, but this time it is more thick. I can't see anything, and it feels like I'm drowning in deep water. The pain from the syringe is doubled, almost tripled now, and I scream in agony as I am tortured in the cavern that is my mind.

It is all cut off suddenly, and the darkness is once again lifted. The man in the hood still stands in his same position, a smirk evident on his face.

"You piece of bantha dung," I growl.

"Oh," his smile grows wider, "don't worry. We're not done with you yet."

"What more could you possibly do to me?" I cry.

His eyes crinkle evilly. He signals with his hand, a motion I know all too well. The troopers exit the room quickly, and I sit there, tears still rolling down my cheeks as I wait for what's next. The troopers return... but with somebody chained up in between them.

"Lau!" I scream pathetically, but stop when I see the hooded man reach for something on his belt.

My heart catches in my throat, and a fresh wave of tears finds its way out of my eyes. The hooded man raises the silver tube off his belt, and activates the colorful double beam of light.

He thrusts the saber through Lau's chest.

"No!" I shout, watching the kid I'd grown up with sag to the ground, his eyes pleading with me to help him, his hands partially outstretched.

His normally bright blue eyes glaze over, leaving an empty shell of what he once was. His skin almost instantly fades into a light grey shade, and his breathing stops. Tears pour down my cheeks as I mourn for my lost friend. The hooded man deactivates his saber, and the troopers haul Lau's small corpse out of the room, and I take one last look at the poor kid.

"I'm so sorry, Lau," I think to myself, guilt washing over me, "I'm so sorry I couldn't save you."

"Now's not the time for pity," the hooded man's eyes gleam with murderous light, "now's the time to run."

"I can't run!" I growl at him. "Because you cowards tied me up!"

"Cowards?" he smirks. "I don't think we're cowards... want to see how aggressive I can be?"

I'm in too much shock to contemplate his words, and barely even notice him activate his lightsaber again. He raises the sword above my head, almost taking one last look at my face... before he flicks his wrist and the sword collides with my head.

Everything goes black.

10 Smuggler Female Sarilea Valkir

There was light. There was darkness. There was the faintest feeling of blue among the stars. The blue tied them all together like a string, bringing them closer and closer.

Suddenly there was only lights. Two, to be exact. And they were bright.

Sarilea Valkir was staring right into them as she woke up. She tried to raise her hand and block the light, only to find her hands were tied behind her back.

In the deepest part of her mind she remembered why she was tied up and lying on a metal ledge, but she couldn't recall at the moment. There was only the two lights shining into her eyes and down her soul.

Suddenly, she knew why she was there.

"How's the engine?" asked Marc, her cousin.

Sari scanned the computers, frowning. "Not great. It's using too much fuel, we might need it to get checked out soon."

"Alright. First the drop-off then we'll get to the engine."

Sari felt their ship lurch as Marc steered them towards the planet. It'd be a quick drop off of weapons, ones that she had never felt obligated to ask about. She hadn't liked the sound of the buyers when they called, but everyone they worked with sounded untrustable and she thought nothing of it.

If only she had thought something about it.

If only.

When they had landed the ship on the dock, it was quick. Sari was always the one to unload the cargo and she walked down the entrance ramp towards the three people in black cloaks.

They'd dealt with sketchier customers. She thought nothing of it.

"Hello?" she called out as she stepped off of the ship for the last time.

Within seconds, red lightsabers had been taken out and she had two at her neck. She couldn't move without one cutting her head right off of her shoulders.

"Sarilea Valkir?" a cloaked man asked. His voice was deep and foreboding, like the infinite universe that surrounded them.

"I am."

Sari was looking around, hoping for Marc to come out of their ship with a gun in each hand and shooting at her captors.

He didn't come.

The Sith put a blindfold over her eyes and knocked her out with the hilt of a lightsaber, but not before Sari could see the ship -her ship - taking off in the distance as Marc left her.

Gone.

The thought of his betrayal sparked a fire inside of Sari. She tore at the ropes that bound her, wanting freedom only so she could find him and kill him.

How dare he, after everything! They were captains of their ship, and he had the audacity to leave her behind!

She could feel the flames of anger coursing through her body, lighting every part of her with an urge to escape and make Marc suffer.

What a coward. She would have never left him like he had to her, and now she was stuck who knows where with the Sith.

She'd kill him. If she ever saw Marc again, she'd make sure he was dead.

The wall in front of her slid open, a shadowy figure standing in the doorway.

"Hello, Sarilea Valkir. I'm Ezaye. It's a pleasure to see you're finally awake."

The figure walked into the dim light of the room, showing a Mirialan girl that couldn't have been much older than Sari. She had a smile on her face but it was a smile of a person who rarely smiled, one that when they did you should be afraid.

"Hello," said Sari.

"Bring him in," said the Mirialan.

Two droids walked in holding a slumped over man. He had mousy brown hair, an average height, but the one thing that stood out was the black tattoo that twisted around his neck.

Marc.

"He wasn't too hard to find, you know," she said to Sari. "We just followed the scent of betrayal and found it. What's that Valkir motto you have?"

Sari glared at her. Ezaye didn't have the right to bring her family into this.

The Mirialan walked up to Sari and pulled out a dagger from her belt. They both looked over the old fashioned weapon before Ezaye held it up to Sari's cheek and dragged it down.

"Say it."

Sari grimaced as hot blood trickled down her neck. All of her anger at Marc had been redirected to Ezaye, and she refused to say it.

Ezaye sauntered back over to Marc, who was still unconscious. She traced his tattoos with her knife, creating a thin line of blood that soaked his shirt.

Suddenly, Marc woke up, his eyes staring directly at Sari. His face contorted into that of a scream, but he made no sound.

Sari briefly met his eyes and she could see the grief and sorrow in them.

"The finger of a traitor is worth less than a grain of sand," whispered Sari.

For years, the saying had been ingrained in her mind. She'd seen it as pointless - nobody would betray anybody, they were family - but here she was staring into the eyes of a traitor.

"So you agree, the finger of a traitor is worth less than a grain of sand?" asked Ezaye. Joy danced across her face, as if this was fun for her.

Sari tried to protest, wanting to let Marc know she really didn't think this. She'd been so angry, but she could forgive him.

Only, when she opened her mouth no words came out.

"Did you hear that, Marc? Do you know what your cousin thinks of you?"

Sari wanted to scream, thrashing about but making no progress.

Marc didn't say anything either. They were both stuck in silence, unable to apologize.

Ezaye continued, "I believe her exact thoughts were, 'If I ever see Marc again, I'll make sure he's dead.' I'm happy to tell you, Sarilea, but your dreams will come true."

Within a second, Ezaye stabbed the knife into Marc's heart. Sari watched as the blood ran out of him, his eyes draining of all emotion. She wanted to look away, but she knew she didn't deserve to.

"Goodbye, Sarilea," Ezaye said before walking out of the room.

Sari stared at the wall where Marc's body had just left and she couldn't contain her thoughts. She was lost in the sea of regret and numbness before realizing that the floor beneath her was moving.

No, no, no.

The metal ledge she had been sitting on had already went into the wall, and she looked over the edge only to see hundreds of feet of darkness below her. She couldn't see how far down it went, only that it was deep.

No.

She tried to scream, but nothing came out. Somehow the silence was even worse.

Her entire body was both chilled to the bone and covered in flames, with her hands becoming numb. Her heart began to beat so fast she couldn't tell if it was even beating anymore.

No, no, no.

She couldn't fall, she couldn't. But the fear inside of her watched as feet of floor became inches until she was standing on her toes to avoid the pit that loomed beneath.

Yes.

Sari was dropping through the air, her body hitting the walls that surrounded her. She couldn't feel anything but pain and terror.

People say that when you die you relive everything that happened in your life.

Sarilea Valkir wished she had, perhaps it would have made dying less horrible.

12 Politician Female Ila

I slowly wake, looking around I see I'm in a small holding cell. I notice I have some shackles on my feet and wrists, they are attached to the wall. But they have a lot of leeway, so I start to walk around the cell a bit. I see that the door in front of me, rather than being solid and electronic, is actually bars. I walk over to the bars and try to look out of the bars at my surroundings. Sadly though, the walls on either side of the door protrude out so I can see no further than in front of me and a little bit to the left and right. Deciding that calling out would be useless, I walk back over to the metal block, that I woke up on, and sit back down.

After a while of sitting around Jecelli appears from the left in front of my cell.
"Hello Ila." she greets.
"Jecelli, what is going on? What am I doing here?" I ask panicking, realising who it is, hoping that I could trust her. Hoping that I'll get some answers.
"I haven't come here to talk about that." She states.
"I've come here to tell you something, it's been on my mind for a little while now. I've wanted to tell you, but only when I knew I needed to. I feel like now is a good time to tell you." She says looking down at the floor. Then she lifts her head and looks at me.
"I was the one who told Sidious your weakness, I was the one who told him where to find them." she says looking at me, her eyes searching me for any sort of reaction.

I feel sick, I can slowly feel the bile rising in my throat at she says this. I start to shake my head and mumble
"No." over and over again, trying to make sense out of this.
"W-Why?" I stutter out rocking back and forth over the painful images of my parents dying over and over again flashing across my mind.
"He threatened to kill my family." she says shrugging. I look around the room trying to find a point where I can fix all my anger to. But her words playing over repetitively in my head and the constant flashes of lightening blinding me from the flashbacks I'm now experiencing. I cradle my body and rock back and forth on the spot. Tears threatening to spill over, as once again all I can see are my parent's heads rolling across the floor.
"Pip, where's Pip?" I suddenly call out hoping that maybe he is somewhere nearby and that he can come and calm me down.
"Ah the lovely Pippin, I have always been jealous of your close relationship with Pippin, but never did I realise how close this relationship was. Anyway, he should be along any minute. I'll go and find out where he is, just for you." Jecelli says with a smile that makes me feel even more sick. I just want her to get away as quickly as possible. It was her fault that they are gone. I don't want anything to do with her anymore.

Jecelli exits off to the left, and I am left alone for another little while. Still trying to calm myself down. The silence is not helping with this, as it gives more room for my parents screams to get through and repeat continuously in my head.

Not long afterwards I see a cowering Pip walk in front of my cell, being pushed by a white skinned Nautolan. I looked over Pip, relieved to see him alive and well. However, as I am looking at him, I notice that his hands are bound and that his brave facade masked his private despair. I look into his eyes, slowly releasing my knees, I place my feet on the ground and look at Pip and the women that is holding Pip by his shoulder.
"Hello Ila, glad to see you are finally awake." Says the Nautolan. "Myself and Pip were having a lot of fun getting to know each other." She says with a grin that makes me feel sick. Pip cringed slightly and looked down.
"Who are you?" I ask the lady, my jaw clenched at the obvious discomfort she has put Pip through.
"You don't know who I am?" The women exclaimed. I shake my head. "Well we'll have to do something about that, won't we?" She questions looking between Pip and myself. She stood there as if thinking, flicking her eyes between Pip and I.

She must've finally come to a decision.

"I think I know just how you will remember me." She says with an added smirk at the end. She suddenly turned Pip around and kissed him. In that moment, I thought I was going to be sick. Watching Pip standing there, being forced to kiss this vile woman was just about enough for me. I suddenly stood up and ran towards the bars. I reached out and tried to grab a hold of Pip. Grabbing a part of his sleeve, I pulled him away from the wretched women. She turned to me and started walking close.

"That was better than expected, you know your little pet is quite a good kisser." she says with a light laugh.

When she got to me, she reached her arm out to grab me, however my anger got the best of me and with my free hand, I slapped her arm, hoping to get out of her grip. She let go and glares at me.

"You will regret that, you wench." She says menacingly. She then grabs Pip again, but this time she walks as far back against the back wall as she can, so Pip is out of reach.

"You will remember my name, I promise you this, and whenever you hear my name it will strike such fear in you that you will run in the opposite direction. Because my name Missu Dannarri and I'm the one going to kill Pip." Missu says smugly as she plunged a knife straight into Pip's stomach. Missu pushes his body forward so that it falls in front of my cell.

"Have a nice day." Missu says then walks off.

I slowly fall down against the bars crying like I've never cried before, sob after sob escapes my body.
"I'm so sorry." I say. Pip slowly moves so that he is sitting up against the bars, he then turns so that he is looking at me.

"Ila, I love you so much, you need to get out of here, you need to leave, you need to survive." Pip says slowly, his breathing gradually becoming more and more sporadic.

"Pip, I love you to, please don't leave me not here, not now." I say between crying. I then turn my head and rest it against the bars, I replace my hand onto his face. He copies my movement and we lean in just holding each other's faces. We stay like this for a moment, until I feel a searing pain in my abdomen. I look down and see Pip's hand wrapped around the knife, that has just been plunged into my abdomen. He slowly twists the knife destroying my insides.
"Pip?" I say, finding it hard to breath.
"I'm sorry, I couldn't let you live." are the last words I hear.

14 Citizen Female Jenaara Kalor

"Where did you find this weapon?"

Jenaara lifted her gaze from the floor and looked into the eyes of the man in front of her. She looked away almost immediately and glared instead at what he was holding in his hands: her brother's lightsaber. She remembered this man now; he had been there when she had been captured; he had wrenched the saber from her hands. His name was Kaladin, I believe.

She stared forward and set her jaw. She didn't want to speak with this man if he had anything to do with her capture—or with Vader. Kaladin stared back at her for a few moments, echoing her own silence. After a few tense minutes of silence, he stood abruptly. "Fine," he said shortly.

He stormed out of the room. Jenaara was left alone to her thoughts once again. She caught a glimpse of his back out the tiny window in her cell door. He turned to the side, gesturing to the two stormtroopers guarding her door and walking out of her view. The troopers followed, marching in the static fashion they always used. Jenaara stood, moving to a different angle to try to see more of them, but they had disappeared.

"Greetings, Miss Jenaara."

Jenaara jumped about a foot in the air and wheeled around. When she saw who it was, however, she exhaled in relief. "Oh, it's just you, N-3."

N-3O6, her protocol droid, was standing behind her.

"...but how did you get inside?" she asked.

"I was sent by your father," the droid said simply.

Relief flooded Jenaara's veins. She was saved! But there was still something that seemed off. "How did you get here?"

"That does not matter," he said. "What matters is that I am here, and we are leaving."

"No." Jenaara could tell something was wrong here. "It matters. How did you get in? There are stormtroopers outside. They would have spotted you in seconds. The only opportunity you would have had would have been when Kaladin led them away, but you wouldn't have been able to get in then because I would have seen you, and you don't have a key anyway..."

"The manner of my entrance does not matter," he said again. "What does matter--"

"There's something you're not telling me, N-3."

"I have told you everything you need to know."

"No, you haven't! This could be a trap for all I know. Someone could be using you."

"No one is using me except for your father," N-3 said, "and he wants nothing but the best for you.

Maybe he's lying, she thought.

It's not in his programming to lie! The voice in her head answered.

It shouldn't be in his programming to hide the truth either, she retorted, but that's exactly what he's doing.

She looked up into his artificial eyes and said, "If you tell me how you got in here, I will come with you. But until then, I'm staying here."

"I don't under--"

"Stop!"

The door to her cell had suddenly opened, and Kaladin was once again standing there, this time with three or four stormtroopers behind him. "How did he get in here?" he asked through clenched teeth.

"I don't know," Jenaara answered. "He just appeared."

"He was coming to aid you in escaping, no doubt," he muttered, half to himself. "But how would he have made it past me?" He looked up so suddenly that Jenaara gave a little jump. "Kill the droid," he said quietly to the troopers.

They advanced forward, drawing their blasters and putting them to N-3's head. Kaladin looked over at Jenaara as if expecting her to drop to her hands and knees and beg him to spare N-3. But she simply shrugged. "Go ahead," she said shortly. "I never liked him anyway."

But despite those words, she turned her head away as the stormtrooper pulled the trigger, and she felt a pang of sadness as she heard the explosion. Even though he had only been there for a few moments, N-3 had been a small piece of family there with her.

Suddenly, Kaladin moved forward with startling agility, grabbing her face by the jaw and forcing her to look up at him. "Tell me where you found the saber!" he screamed.

Jenaara's heartbeat quickened and her breaths grew short. Still, she said nothing.

"Tell me," he hissed, his tone dropping from a yell to a harsh whisper in a matter of seconds, "or I'll do to your father what I just did to the droid."

Fear froze her heart. Her arms suddenly grew weak and shaky, as if ice had suddenly replaced the blood in her veins. Just tell him, the reasonable voice in her head whispered. Is the information really worth Father's life?

This man is evil, another voice said. In all likelihood, he'll kill Father anyway.

The thought brought tears to her eyes, but she knew that it was true. So, she took a deep, shaking breath, looked up at Kaladin with all the courage she could muster and said very simply:

"No."

He let out a loud noise of frustration, releasing her. Turning to the stormtroopers, he said, "You heard the girl. Bring in Kalor."

Jenaara's shaking hands clenched.

After a moment, the door opened, and the stormtroopers marched back in, this time with a bloodied body between them. Jenaara stifled a gasp. It was her father, but his face was barely recognizable through all the bruises and cuts that marred it. Every now and then, his chest would rise only slightly, as if it pained him to even breathe. "Father--" she said, trying to rush over to him, but Kaladin pushed her away.

Kaladin unsheathed a double-bladed lightsaber and held it to her father's throat. "Tell me what I want to know," he said slowly and threateningly, "or my saber will be the last thing he sees."

She looked into her father's eyes, which gazed back at her. She could see the message in them: Don't tell him.

She looked up at Kaladin and shook her head.

Without warning, he swung his lightsaber. Jenaara barely had time to close her eyes.

There was a sharp intake of breath that she knew had come from her father, and then... no sound at all.

Her eyes snapped open against her will, and she saw her greatest fear. Talrik Kalor was dead.

She dissolved into hopeless sobs. All sound faded into background noise, and the cold of the room dissipated. She was floating--no, she was sinking--alone in a cold sea of helplessness. She heard Kaladin's voice saying to the troopers, "Dispose of the body. I'll deal with the girl."

Looking up at him, she suddenly felt such a great loathing as she had never felt before in her entire life. "Are you ready to answer my question yet?" he said softly as if he hadn't just killed an innocent man.

But she didn't look at him. Her eyes were focused on his weapon, the blade of which had disappeared. Barely even thinking, she lunged forward. She was going to kill him.

But his blade was out before she could even blink, and there was a sudden pain as he drove it through her chest. She gasped and fell to the floor.

Without a word, Kaladin left the cell, leaving her alone. I'm dying, she knew.

Somehow, the thought was a comfort.

20 Sith Female

DID NOT HAND IN