[fic] A Soul Adrift

[Endorenna]

Chapter 3

 

A Promise

 

 

Sri’lo became conscious, vaguely aware of being held by someone. The little girl heard a man’s voice. She gave a sigh of relief when she recognized the tone as Gaeva’ib’s.

 

“Here you are, Jehal, as promised.”

 

“Excellent work, Gaeva’ib! Just drop her over there with the other females.”

 

Sri’lo suddenly realized what she had just heard. She struggled to free herself from the man’s arms. Gaeva’ib dropped her in surprise, and Sri’lo leaped to her feet. She looked up at him, horror stretched across her face.

 

“Uncle, you—you—“

 

Gaeva’ib’s face creased into a casual smile. “Helped the slavers?”

 

Sri’lo nodded dumbly.

 

“Yes, I helped them. Helped them arrange the whole attack.”

 

A few tears crept out of Sri’lo’s eyes, and she exclaimed, “What? But—but Mama and Daddy both died! I saw them die! I—I got their blood on my hands, I—“ She starting backing up. “How could you—it’s your fault, I—I trusted you, t—they trusted you, I—I hate you! I’ll always hate you!” Sri’lo whirled and saw Nya’van sitting with a group of women, and she ran to her, burying her face in her shoulder.

 

Nya’van hugged Sri’lo tightly. The little girl felt a tear from her teacher’s face drip onto her shoulder. Sri’lo swallowed hard and tried to process the emotions she felt running through her. There was grief, grief that made her want to cry until she could cry no more, but there were other things too. Anger...anger filled her. Anger at her parents’ deaths, anger at the slavers, anger aimed in many directions, but mostly directed towards Gaeva’ib. He had betrayed her! He’d worked with the slavers! He’d given her to them! He caused her parents’ deaths! He caused everything! Everything! She felt a tear run down her cheek. Gaeva’ib had been like a second father to her, and then...then this happened.

 

There was more talking, she could hear. Gaeva’ib was speaking, and she pushed herself away from Nya’van so she could turn and watch.

 

“Now, the money.”

 

Jehal, obviously the leader of the slavers, smiled. “Of course. Two thousand credits, was it?”

 

“You know how much you owe me.”

 

“Two thousand credits...or—“

 

“Or what?” A dangerous look crossed Gaeva’ib’s face.

 

“Perhaps you would consider a different offer. One thousands credits, and a place in my little band. I could use a man like you, Gaeva’ib. A man willing to sell his own flesh and blood for a few paltry credits.”

 

A grin spread across Gaeva’ib’s face. “Done.” They shook hands, and Jehal walked away to attend to other matters.

 

Sri’lo glanced around, suddenly feeling very small and insignificant. They were all in a large metal—thing. It was a bit dark, and panels covered with flashing lights covered much of the wall space. Sri’lo bit her lip and tried to remember what her parents had taught her. This...this was a space ship, and those panels were consoles. Those strange weapons that the slavers—and Gaeva’ib—had used were called blasters. She saw that she and all the other captured Twi’leks were sitting in an octagonal area. There was a metal post at every corner of the shape. Sri’lo shivered. This was called a Force Cage. Her mother had told her about them, but she’d only said that animals were kept in them.

 

Sri’lo glanced at Gaeva’ib, and her eyes hardened with hatred. He had sold her like an animal. Her hand closed around the bracelet her uncle had given her just a few hours before the attack. Her mouth twisted, and she ripped the jewelry from her wrist and threw it on the floor. Sri’lo’s hand found the necklace that her parents had given her and closed on the crystal pendant. Her emotional storm seemed to calm slightly as she fingered it, knowing that Taisan’kye had worked for hours to polish it to perfection.

 

A few moments later, Gaeva’ib walked over and squatted down in front of her. Nya’van put a protective arm around Sri’lo and asked tersely, “Must you torment her even more, traitor?”

 

Gaeva’ib laughed. “Nya’van, I meant to thank you. You helped increase my little girl’s value.”

 

Nya’van’s eyes were icy cold. “Leave Sri’lo alone.”

 

“You taught her to play the flute. That could easily add a thousand credits to her price.”

 

“Filth!” Nya’van hissed.

 

Gaeva’ib shook his head. “I didn’t come over here to talk to you.” He picked up the bracelet he’d given Sri’lo and glanced at her. His face took on another smile. “Sri’lo, thank you for reminding me. I almost forgot.” His hand brushed hers from the pendant. He took hold of it and gave the necklace a swift jerk. The Twi’lek held it up, inspecting it. “Yes, Sri’lo, my dear departed brother-in-law did a fine job with this. This crystal’s valuable. I should be able to sell it for a good price.”

 

Nya’van slapped him as hard as she could, and she exclaimed angrily, “Can’t you see you’re hurting Sri’lo! Go gloat somewhere else, and leave us in what little peace we have left!”

 

Gaeva’ib’s eyes took on an evil glitter, and he crooned softly, “Careful, Nya’van. Your next master won’t like it if you start hitting people. Do you know what happens to troublesome slave girls?”

 

Nya’van’s eyes met his firmly. “I know well enough. At least have the decency to leave before Sri’lo does.”

 

Before the conversation could continue, some loud shouting was heard from the other end of the ship. Jehal was ‘addressing’ some young, scruffy-looking punks of various species.

 

“Don’t you have any brains? I said to set your blasters on stun, not kill! Do you know how many valuable Twi’lek girls we lost today because of your stupidity? Do you? We lost thirteen! We’re lucky we didn’t lose the Lethan, but we would’ve if it hadn’t been for Gaeva’ib! Follow orders next time! If you don’t, you’re out! Permanently! Now are you all sure we picked up all the live girls?”

 

A Twi’lek slaver spat on the floor and growled, “We got ‘em all. Let’s get off this rock and into space.”

 

“Fine, then. Someone turn on the Force Cage, don’t want anyone getting any bright ideas and trying to crash the ship like last time.”

 

Gaeva’ib darted back just in time to avoid a yellow, glowing force field that was activated between all of the pillars. Sri’lo watched him as he turned and walked towards Jehal. Her lips pursed tightly. Nya’van tried to hug her again, but the little girl pushed her away. The teenager nodded and moved a foot or two back. There was a gentle jolt as the ship lifted off the ground.

 

Sri’lo sat staring at the floor for the better part of an hour, thinking about what had just happened. Her thoughts dwelled on Gaeva’ib, what he had done to her...and the growing hatred that was consuming her. It was enveloping her from the inside out, clinging to her like a sweaty garment. Her black eyes closed for a few minutes, and she concentrated on her hatred. It made her feel—better, somehow.

 

Finally, exhaustion took her, and she slumped down to the floor, asleep.

 

A few hours later, the force field snapped off. Sri’lo was jerked awake by the sudden noise, and she glanced up to see Gaeva’ib approaching with a human man she’d never seen before.

 

“Lord Kazic, as I told you, we have only one Lethan, and she’s just a little girl. However, we do have several other slave girls that you might be interested in.”

 

“Shut up and let me see them.” He stopped a few feet in front of Sri’lo and began glancing over the captured Twi’leks with cold, heartless eyes. Sri’lo glared at him, the hatred inside her spilling out onto her face. Kazic sighed and asked, “Did you say these were Kamalan?”

 

“Yes, My Lord.”

 

“Hmph.” He was about to continue when he noticed Sri’lo glaring at him. Kazic saw the look in her eyes, and he studied it for a moment. He suddenly turned his gaze back to Gaeva’ib and said shortly, “I’ll take the Lethan.” He glanced down at Nya’van. “And that one. My master will be most pleased with her.” Nya’van cringed slightly and glanced at Sri’lo, a worried expression on her face.

 

Gaeva’ib flashed the perfect businessman’s smile and said smoothly, “Excellent choices, My Lord. This female is skilled with the flute, perfect for soothing your master’s nerves when he’s ill. And the Lethan is also skilled with the flute, for her age.”

 

“Save it. I’ll give you ten thousand credits even for the both of them.”

 

Gaeva’ib’s eyes glistened greedily. “You are most generous, My Lord. I’ll have the men place your purchases on your ship immediately.”

 

“Just make it quick. I need to get back to Rattatak soon.” The human whirled and strode away, his very walk proclaiming his arrogance. Sri’lo winced as a slaver’s large hand closed over her arm and jerked her to her feet. Gaeva’ib took a last look at Sri’lo, and he gave her a broad wink and flashed a smile. Sri’lo cast him a hate-filled glare as three slavers hustled Nya’van and Sri’lo away to Kazic’s ship.

 

Everything happened too fast for the young Twi'lek to take in, but when she finally got her bearings again, she found herself in a small, dark metal room with Nya’van. The door clanged shut, and there was a loud click as it locked.

 

Nya’van shuddered and pulled Sri’lo closer to her. The little girl whispered into the dimness, “Nya’van, where are we going?”

 

After a moment, she replied, “We’re going to a planet called Rattatak.”

 

Sri’lo said after a moment, “We’re going to be separated, aren’t we?”

 

Nya’van bit her lip and bowed her head, her face twitching with emotion. She nodded. “Yes.”

 

Sri’lo gritted her teeth and snarled, “I hate them! I swear, Nya’van, one day I’m going to kill them, and then I’m going to find you and rescue you!”

 

“No!” Nya’van exclaimed. “Don’t say things like that, Sri’lo! You—you never know who might be listening.” She glanced around fearfully and lowered her voice. “Sri’lo, promise me something.”

 

“What?”

 

“When we get to where we’re going, I want you to try to escape.”

 

“I will—as soon as I kill them all.”

 

“No! Don’t kill them all, they’ll just kill you! Get away, far away!”

 

“And go where?” Sri’lo asked bitterly.

 

“Go—the Jedi. They can help you.”

 

“They didn’t help when our village was attacked!”

 

“Please, Sri’lo, promise me!”

 

Sri’lo reluctantly replied, “I promise.” Her eyes lit with fire again. “But I’m going to come back and get you!”

 

Nya’van shook her head gently. “No—no, don’t. Stay away. Don’t give them a chance to catch you again.”

 

“But—“

 

“I’ll be all right, Sri’lo. Just worry about yourself.”

 

“Nya’van, I’m not going to desert you!”

 

Nya’van exclaimed sharply, “Sri’lokamala!” The little girl stopped her tirade. “Sri’lo, I want you to do as I ask. Don’t return for me. Leave me behind.”

 

“I can’t just—“

 

“Yes, you can! You must! Please, Sri’lo! I don’t want them to catch you after you’ve escaped! Promise me you won’t come back!”

 

Sri’lo pursed her lips, and her jaw tightened. She nodded once and said stiffly, “I promise.”

 

A relieved smile crossed Nya’van’s face, and she hugged Sri’lo. A tear found its way out of her eye, but she wiped it off before it dropped onto Sri’lo. Sri’lo pulled away from her and said flatly, “We need to rest.”

 

Nya’van started to say something, but she stopped herself and nodded. “You’re right. We do.” The Twi’leks each lay down, Sri’lo keeping to the wall away from Nya’van. The teenager watched her back for several minutes before closing her eyes and falling into a troubled sleep.

 

Sri’lo wasn’t asleep. Her mind raged as she thought of Nya’van’s words. Why couldn’t she come back and help her! She’d lost everyone else! Why was Nya’van insisting so hard! It wasn’t fair! She could save her! She could! If only she had a chance!

 

Several hours later, Sri’lo felt the ship shake again. They had landed.

 

Nya’van sat up and broke the sudden silence with the frightened whisper, “We’re here!”

 

Suddenly, the door burst open, and two guards walked in. One of them grabbed Nya’van and dragged her away. The teenager shouted back to Sri’lo, “Remember what I told you! Rememb—“ The guard struck her and pulled her around a corner.

 

Sri’lo started after her, but the other guard grabbed her arm and yanked her after him. After a few twists and turns through the narrow corridors of the ship, Sri’lo felt a hot blast of air hit her face and saw a ramp leading out of the ship onto a dirty metal floor. She was pulled down the ramp by the guard, and she saw the surface of Rattatak. It was hot, dusty, rocky, barren, devoid of almost all life. Sri’lo felt a pang go through her. This was much like Ryloth. The guard yanked her around and strode towards a door in a nearby wall. He entered, taking Sri’lo with him, closing the door behind them. Sri’lo shivered. It was cold in here, especially after the heat of the outside. She glanced from side to side as she and the guard proceeded down the hall. The walls were made of rock. There were metal grates on the floor, and every heavy footstep of the guard clanged loud and clear, echoing far down the tunnel. Every now and then they passed a side hall, stretching far out of sight. Several minutes later, the guard stopped at one of the intersections. A tall, rough-looking Twi’lek walked up and asked the guard a question in a language Sri’lo didn’t understand. The guard nodded. The Twi’lek grabbed Sri’lo’s sleeve and started down a side hall, leaving the guard behind.

 

The Twi’lek girl glanced from side to side, a chill of fear creeping up her spine. There were cages lining these walls. Many of them were empty, but some held animals. They all had a hungry, lean look about them, and several of them snarled and tried to attack her through the bars. Finally, Sri’lo spoke up.

 

“Where are you taking me?”

 

The Twi’lek struck her hard across the face and growled, “You don’t have permission to ask questions!”

 

“I—“

 

He struck her again. “You will not speak unless spoken to!”

 

Sri’lo bit her tongue hard and shut her mouth.

 

A few twists and turns later, the Twi’lek opened one of the empty cages and threw Sri’lo in. She looked up at him, startled. He slammed the door and locked it.

 

Sri’lo exclaimed, “What’s going on?”

 

The Twi’lek snickered. “Lord Kazic told me to make special preparation for you!”

 

“But why a cage?”

 

“Arena slaves deserve no more! Be silent, or I’ll come in there and make you silent!” The Twi’lek stomped back up the hall. Sri’lo crept over to a corner and glanced around. Three sides of the cage were made up of bars. The side she had her back to was solid rock. She slid into a sitting position and hugged her knees to her. Sri’lo felt empty inside, as if her heart had been cut out. The little girl glanced around. There was a loud growl from down the hall, and something roared in reply. She shivered again and wished that she were back home. Her eyes darkened. Gaeva’ib...

 

Sri’lo felt angry tears well up in her eyes. She had trusted him so much, and then he had sold her! Nya’van might’ve made her promise not to rescue her, but she hadn’t made her promise not to kill Gaeva’ib! She didn’t care how long it took!

 

The faces of the slavers passed into her vision. The slavers—half of them had been Twi’leks.

 

Sri’lo felt the anger inside her threaten to explode, and she ground her fingernails into her palms until she felt blood flowing. If that’s what regular Twi’leks were like, she couldn’t trust any Twi’leks, not now, not ever! She whispered fiercely under her breath, “I want nothing to do with them!” The girl slammed herself into the bars and screamed furiously at the hall where the Twi’lek guard had gone, “I want no part of you!”

 

She remembered that once, Taisan’kye had told her about a punishment reserved for the worst of Twi’lek criminals. They were exiled, cast out into the Bright Lands or the Shadow Lands to die. But before they left, their names, the very things that identified them, were broken, and they were forever separated from their people.

 

Sri’lo’s eyes darkened as she said out loud, “My name is Sri Kamala.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

_________________________________________________

 

 

There ya go, BFA.

[HIGH ON PIE 14]

Wow, I would say this is the most emotional chapter yet! I could feel Sri'lo's hatred, especially for her uncle. I like where this story is going...well of course I don't like enslaved twi'leks, but you know what I mean.

 

I hope Sri'lo gets her revenge one day, though I think she willhave to wait a while. I think this was the best chapter so far.

 

BFA is quite the impatient one, isn't he?

 

~HOP

[The_Catto]

I can't help it!

 

Wo0t! New chapter! My spirit has been re-forged!

 

Damn Uncle. I can't wait until Sri gets her revenge on him for what he's done. This is a very good fic indeed. Indeed this was the best chapter so far and I can't wait for more. [i will though, I think I've been annoying enough as it is ]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

OK, that was long enough .. When's the next chap due?

[Endorenna]

Glad you liked the chapter, guys! (BFA, you need to get a hobby or something...)

 

JK. Okay, the main reason I made this post was as a disclaimer and apology to Darth Yuthura. I just read her story, Shrouded in Darkness: Yuthura Ban's Tale, and I want to apologize for any similarites, most especially the necklace/pendant Taisan'kye gave to Sri'lo; I read Shrouded in Darkness after I made Sri Kamala's story.

 

BTW, BFA, I'm already working on the next chapter.

[The_Catto]

I've got a hobby!!!! It's reading and writing Star Wars fics!

 

Haha, I've got a couple of days off and the band is waiting to hear from the studio so we can't go in and record yet so life is going a bit slow at the moment and I need something to occupy meeeee!!!!!! :D:D

[Bee Hoon]

With regards to the previous chapter, what you said about the Council in reply to my post was at odds with what was portrayed in the story, where Taisan'kye decided to explain it to Sri'lo because he was afraid that the elders would tell her with disregard for tact

 

It seems that one of my biggest problems in writing is remembering that the writer is omniscient and the reader isn't. Sorry, that was totally my bad!

I do that a lot as well, so no worries;)

 

...horror covering her face.

"Covering" is a little awkward. Try rephrasing? It's also odd that Sri'lo seems to have forgotten that her uncle was the one who stunned her:/ The memory loss may occur, but you should acknowledge it somehow

 

Sri’lo’s senses clouded with waves of rage

How so? If anything, rage should sharpen the senses--the whole fight or flight response.

 

Overall, this chapter has a less polished feel than the first. The best advice that I can give is to take it slowly; there is no rush to post as your fans will always be hanging around anyway The dialogue between Nya'van, Sri'lo and Gaeva'ib feels a little stilted. Nice touch with the slavers getting scolded! You could work in more descriptions about the pain Sri'lo felt, as I seem to see her as a somewhat pampered child, never punished and thus never experiencing physical pain (besides breaking her arm).

 

I was half-expecting Nya'van to attempt some sort of diversion so that Sri'lo could escape (although expecting her to survive a desert alone might be foolish). I also thought that the Twi'leks working for the slavers would have been the ones cast out, hence I was a little surprised when she broke her own name (especially given the connection with criminals). I suppose it could have gone either way, but you might want to have Sri'lo think more about it, and sort out her reasoning so that the reader can follow her train of thought:)

[Astor]

I do that a lot as well, so no worries;)

 

I think everyone does that at some point or another, so we're probably all guilty of that!

 

"Covering" is a little awkward. Try rephrasing? It's also odd that Sri'lo seems to have forgotten that her uncle was the one who stunned her:/ The memory loss may occur, but you should acknowledge it somehow

 

How about:

 

She looked up at him, a look of horror stretched across her face

 

That works a little better, I think.

 

Overall, though, pretty good!

[Endorenna]

Hi guys! I just dropped in to apologize for not having the next chapter up. I'm working on a Javyar's Cantina entry, so I haven't had much time to work on the next chapter. And the power cord for my laptop died just after I posted the last chapter. :compcry: Unfortunately, all my Sri files are on there (including names/memory hints/outlines/roughdrafts/etc.). As soon as I finish the Jav. Cantina thing, I'll be back on Sri!

 

BTW, thanks for the comments, guys! Bee, about the 'waves of anger' bit, that was a complete and total cop-out. You're absolutely right about me needing to change that.

[The_Catto]

No need to rush, Endo!

(Wow, did I just say that???? :0 )

 

Can't wait to read both the Jav entry and the next chap.

[Endorenna]

Okay, quick update. The computer cord finally got here (yes!!!), and the next Sri chapter is almost done. Hopefully, I'll have it out later today or tomorrow. Hopefully.

[The_Catto]

One long, elongated word: WOOOOOOOOOOOOOO-ooo-OOOOOOOO-oooooooo-OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOTAAAA-aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!

 

Arr har, looking forward to it!

[CommanderQ]

WOW! This story is excellent! I've been sitting on the edge of my seat for every chapter. Can't wait till the next one. Post it soon!

 

When you wrote the 2nd and 3rd chapters, did you start a new thread or did you post it using the quick reply box? I'm planning the second part of my story, but don't know how to post it. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

 

Please avoid double posting whenever possible. Use the edit button on the bottom right corner or your post instead

[Endorenna]

Thanks, CommanderQ!

 

Yea, to put the second part of your story in, use the 'reply to this thread' button and type it out. (I had mine on my word processor, so what I did for the second and third chapters was copy it off of Word and paste it into the reply box. You have to go through and put italics, boldface, etc. back in, but it sure saves a lot of typing time!)

[HIGH ON PIE 14]

The computer cord finally got here (yes!!!)

 

Hooray! Blast those guys for giving you the wrong cord and delaying this fic. They will rue the day. Rue it!

 

...sorry for the outburst I'm better now. As BFA said, take your time. We will wait...some of us more patiently than others. *looks pointedly at BFA* (I know, I'm a hypocrite )

 

~HOP

[Endorenna]

Chapter 4

 

Passing of Days

 

 

Sri lay down in the chilling darkness of her cell. Three years had passed. Every day had been a constant nightmare. It hadn’t taken long to find out what her purpose was. The day after her arrival, a man had come and taken her to a large warehouse, around the edges of which lay many open cases of weapons. Then he’d told her that he was supposed to train her to fight. When she’d asked why, he’d said something about Lord Kazic having high hopes for her in the arena. Almost every day, Sri had trained, slowly building her skill and physique. She had one day every moon to rest—she was usually recovering instead of resting. Every few days, Kazic had paid her a visit, seeing how she had progressed; but before he returned to his normal life, he’d always beaten her severely. Once, one of the trainers had tried to make him stop, but had relented when Kazic told him that he was building Sri’s immunity to pain, besides making sure she remembered who her master was. Sri used to cry and scream, begging for him to stop, hoping for any relief, but then she’d found out that it only increased the sadistic pleasure he took in hurting her. She had then resolved not to give in to his cruel nature. After several months, only her eyes and what cries of pain she couldn’t suppress showed what she felt. Not one tear had ever trickled down her face since then, no matter how much she hurt.

 

Sri’s sharp ears listened for any sound of guards coming. Nothing. She got to her feet and pressed her face against the bars, glancing down the hall both ways. Good, she was alone. The girl backed away from the bars and began stretching.

 

Sri had never complained about the harsh tutelage she endured. She’d absorbed all of the training she could. But, instead of using all of her skill against the ‘tutors’, she’d kept her true capabilities hidden, watching and waiting for the day when she could kill Kazic and escape. Ah, killing Kazic—she would enjoy that. He would regret all those beatings he had given her! Her eyes gleamed in the darkness as she thought of it. Once that was done, she would leave and find Gaeva’ib.

 

Her eyes became bitter at the memory of her parents’ deaths. The images of that horrible day had branded themselves in the forefront of her mind, the mangled bodies of her parents and the smirk on Gaeva’ib’s face giving her strength. The anger and hate lurked inside of her like crouching predators, ready to spring up and strike, but only when the time was right. They’d grown stronger over the years, feeding on her bitterness, their vicious fangs dripping her own poison back into the bottomless well of her soul. It was difficult to keep them from taking complete control of her. Now, it was hard to imagine how life had been without them. There was no peace in her mind, just an all-consuming need to fulfill her one purpose left in life: revenge.

 

Someone was coming! Sri silently dropped to the stone floor and pretended she was asleep. Two guards were walking down the hall. She could hear them conversing in Rattataki and smirked slightly. There was one more thing they didn’t know about her. Daily exposure to the Rattataki tongue had helped her understand it, and now, she was fluent in it. Her face relaxed back into a stolid expression as they drew closer.

 

“Come on, let’s hurry up! I want to get back to sleep!”

 

The other guard grunted, “I don’t even know why Lord Kazic’s having us check on her. She’s just some kid.”

 

The first guard asked in a lower voice, “Haven’t you seen her lately?”

 

There was a coarse laugh. “’Course I have. You think I’m blind or somethin’? She’s gonna look real good in a year or two—”

 

“No, you don’t understand what I’m saying!” the first guard snapped. “When she looks at me, I don’t know why, but I’m suddenly—afraid.”

 

The second guard snorted in disgust. “Afraid of some kid? You’re a coward!”

 

“Just wait until she glares at you, then you’ll know what I mean!”

 

They halted in front of her cage. The second guard suddenly slammed the end of his rifle into the bars, sending a loud ring through the cage. Sri leaped to her feet as if startled.

 

The first guard exclaimed, “What do you think you’re doing!”

 

The second one laughed and replied, “If she’s so scary, I’ll know soon enough.” He switched to Basic. “Hey, girl!” Her black eyes darted to him and remained on him, glaring, boring into his face. He was visibly shaken at the effect they had on him. Fear possessed his entire being, making him want to run away as fast as he could. He could feel her hatred, as if it were a snake slithering closer, wrapping around him, its mouth opening, its fangs folding outwards--. The guard whirled abruptly and walked down the hall again. His friend followed suit, laughing at his retreating back.

 

Sri’s mouth twisted into a smile. Those two guards had unwittingly informed her of her greatest weapon; her eyes! They had finally finished developing! A few times, Atan’il had told her about the effect they had on other tribes and races. When a full-blooded Kamalan looked at you, you could feel his emotions towards you. Sri’s smile darkened. Her hate was serving her once more. These eyes of hers eroded the will of her opponent, planting an irrational fear of her in his soul! The young Twi’lek continued stretching her slim figure, readying herself for her nightly practice. Now was the time when she would exercise her hidden talents against invisible foes. It wasn’t nearly as good as fighting real people, animals, or the holograms she used to learn to battle against numbers, but it would suffice until the time came to exact payment from Kazic.

 

Another year passed. Her situation had changed little. Sri’s skills had exponentially increased, for some reason, and she was having trouble hiding them now. Her weapons had changed as well. Instead of wielding two vibroswords, Kazic had found two new toys for her to use, some things called lightsabers. Their energy blades were weightless and glowed a bright, piercing blue. It had taken several weeks to learn how to balance them in her hand, since her trainers knew nothing about these lightsabers. Now, she was just as proficient with them as she was with the vibroswords. They would cut through almost anything. The only real threat to their power seemed to be an element called cortosis. Some swords, her trainers said, had this rare element mixed in with the metal of their blades. But those swords were supposed to be rare, so she had little to fear from them.

 

But matters were beginning to get out of hand. Sri had almost killed one of her instructors during a bout of hand-to-hand combat. For the past four years, he and the other trainers had wisely taught her a style that made her natural inability to reach a man’s strength invalid. She’d almost broken her trainer’s neck with her last strike. Sri didn’t care. She hated him as much as she hated all the others around her. She was just sorry that his spinal cord hadn’t shattered completely from that strike.

 

Sri flexed her sore muscles in the dim light of her cell. She’d taken a serious beating for that ‘accident’. As usual, it was extremely painful, but left no scars to mar her skin. The girl crouched in the back corner of her cell as footsteps approached. A guard walked up and set a bowl of water and a portion of food through the bars. He left as quickly as possible. Sri crept over to the food and tore into it with all the manners of a ravenous wolf. It tasted terrible, but it would keep her alive and healthy, and that was all she cared about. As soon as she swallowed the last bite, she drank the water from the bowl. In a few minutes, her instructor would come by and take her back to that cursed room, and another day would begin.

 

Sure enough, a few minutes later, her instructor and a guard showed up. Sri glared at the instructor out of habit. He shivered as he grabbed her arm and pulled her down the hall after him. The guard remarked glumly, “At least you don’t have to put up with the little beast anymore after this, if Kazic likes what he sees. It was a lucky break for you, the other guy getting himself injured.” He lowered his voice to a confidential whisper. “I heard someone say that he’s showing her off to a special guest today, and he might go ahead and throw her into the arena next week.”

 

The instructor gave a relieved smile. “Good! I didn’t know what I was getting myself into when I accepted Lord Kazic’s offer to train this girl! She gives me the creeps; I’ll be more than happy to get her off my hands!”

 

“Huh, guess who’s probably gonna have to put up with her for the rest of his life? You’re looking at him!”

 

The instructor laughed. “Don’t worry, I’m sure you can get out of here eventually. Tell you what, for a hundred credits, I’ll take you with me when I leave. I know a Hutt on Tattooine who can always use another guard like you.”

 

The guard replied apprehensively, “I dunno, a Hutt…”

 

“His name’s Jabba.”

 

“Jabba? You’ve got a deal!”

 

Sri stopped listening to them at that point. Her eyes sparkled fiercely. Today was the day; it had to be! Kazic would die before the sun fell from the sky, and then she’d be free to wreak her vengeance on Gaeva’ib!

 

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

 

Yes, I finally got it out!!!!! Sorry about the long wait guys. I feel kinda bad giving you this dinky little chapter instead of a nice long one...

[HIGH ON PIE 14]

I like how much Sri's life has progressed in this chapter. It is ironic how her enemies are teaching her the very skills that she plans to use against them. She has changed a lot. She is not that innocent little girl anymore...and the eyes - thats so cool how she can make the guards afraid of her by looking at them. Big bad guards are scared by a twi'lek girl.

 

I found this a very enjoyable read. It's short, but sometimes short is good, besides, I'm happy with whatever I can get hands on (well not literally of course but you get my point).

 

I eagerly await your next installment, Endorenna!

 

~HOP

[Endorenna]

Thanks HOP! I'm planning to start on the next chapter tomorrow.

 

BTW, folks--extra special thanks to Andurilblade, who beta'd this earlier today during a nasty case of the stomach virus.

[Darth_Yuthura]

I have been neglectful and never left feedback for the first chapter... or keeping up to this point. Sorry it's taken so long.

 

This is a remarkable story for an OC and plotline. I find your writing style to be a great quality to the enjoyment of the read. You have a great balance of descriptions that don't slow down the story, but they are not sacrificed when needed.

 

I think the irony as HOP stated was terrific. I think the best plots are those were you get a bipolar interpretation of what is right and wrong. Shri is an enjoyable character to read and I will get caught up to the last chapter so I can say why I'm excited for the next installation.

 

This story was catching at chapter two... at least for me.

[CommanderQ]

This chapter is awesome! It was shorter but it still had the cool adventure feeling from the others. The way you ended was excellent as well, we're ready for the next exciting chapter! Post it soon!

[The_Catto]

^^^ Hey hey hey! The spot of annoyingly impatient reader has already been taken! Pick another thing!

 

 

Anyways ... Good stuff, Endo.

I'm glad I had to wait a lo-HO-ho-HO-ho-HO-hooong time for this chapter

It was well worth it.

 

It's ironic just how funny irony can seem, don't you think?

[CommanderQ]

^^^ Hey hey hey! The spot of annoyingly impatient reader has already been taken! Pick another thing!

 

Fine, I shall be the OTHER annoyingly impatient reader, so be it...

[Endorenna]

"Oh, no! Now dere are two of dem!"

 

"We should not have written dis story."

 

jk

 

Thanks for all the compliments, guys! I really appreciate them!

 

Folks, I have an announcement! (taps microphone) The rough draft of the next chapter is well on its way!

 

PS: I love irony.

[The_Catto]

..... But .... But I liked being unique ....

 

Anyways..

Announcement = Good News!

Can't wait.

[CommanderQ]

Okay, that's understandable, I will be a randomly annoying dedicated fan. So be it...

[Endorenna]

Don't worry, BFA, no matter how annoying CQ gets, you'll always best him.