“K’tana, I’m not going to ask how you even know about this place, let alone get passed the guards and into the restricted areas…” Atyriu paused for a moment as she looked around, “Is that a bedroll? Do you live here?”
The Twi’lek cocked her head to the side as her eyes narrowed and her brow momentarily twitched. She stood silently, her thick heeled boots were covered in damp grass and dried mud. Atyriu turned when she heard a thunderous gallop coming towards them.
“Don’t move, my Lady.” K’tana growled, last words dissolving into a threatening hiss. Atyriu raised her brow, her blindfold raising slightly as she froze in place. The Consul, having turned towards the sound sensed a large presence barreling towards them. Threats bloomed within the Miraluka’s mind, brought about by the unknown life signature.
May’riia rushed towards the women, the rancor’s eyes frenetic as she was mentally brought to a stop by her Bond-Mother. Her leathery chest heaved with her frantic breaths. The large beast stood half as tall as both Humanoid women and her black eyes locked onto the Miraluka. She growled voraciously while her mental harness kept her from lunging at the strange woman.
“K’tana?” Atyriu whispered, her voice shaking slightly as she quickly thought of a way to sooth the still angry Twi’lek. The Priestess’ green eyes ignited with rage, keeping her gaze on the young rancor. May’riia suddenly snapped at the Consul, her teeth gnashing at the air before the woman, expressing her Mistress’ fury but causing no harm.
“Please, K’tana. We can still discuss this. Send your beast away.” the Shadow Lady spoke softly, but there was no mistaking the underlying threat behind her words.
The Twi’lek’s gaze on the rancor faltered as she looked sideways at her former lover. The connection between the rancor and K’tana endured the loss of eye contact as the two women had their moment. The Priestess held the link and pulled back on May’riia’s rage, as well as her own.
“Why are you here, Atty?” the Twi’lek’s voice was like cheap silk rubbed the wrong way. Her rancor whined before heaving a heavy sigh and stalking back off into the forest to look for either a Eopie to chase or to find the Kowakian monkey-lizard that was skulking about elsewhere in the glade.
Atyriu heaved a sigh as she turned towards the Twi’lek.
“The Grand Master has sent for you. No one knows why, but he demands your presence tomorrow morning. He will be leaving by mid afternoon and we-” The Miraluka spoke solemnly as she felt K’tana studying her face.
“Oh! That’s so cool!” K’tana’s voice immediately reverted back to her usual convivial tone. The Shadow Lady, once again, raised her brow and cocked her head to the side as the Twi’lek stopped babbling and got to her point. “So, who’s that?”
“Wait,” Atyriu said as her hand came up, pinching the bridge of her nose, “ you do not know who that is? How coul- nevermind. He’s only the head of the Brotherhood. No big deal.”
“Okay, d’ia!” K’tana smirked inwardly as she confounded the Consul with her apparent ignorance. “So, Atty... If he’s no big deal, why do I give a kark?”
The Miraluka’s jaw dropped for a moment before she regained her composure and searched the Twi’leks feelings for the presence of sarcasm. Atyriu restrained her smile as she found it and chose to keep her veneer of professionalism.
“K’tana, this is of the utmost importance and I really need you to take this seriously,” the Miraluka pleaded with her former lover, her braid swinging over her shoulder as she turned to follow the Twi’lek who had started towards the bedroll.
“You people and your ridiculous hierarchy. You place men on thrones so you may pretend like something in this life makes sense. We hold each other to standards arguably contradicting to the natural order of the cycle of life and death. Even you. Especially you. A Eopie among Cythraul.”
The Twi’lek spoke manically as she shoved her lightsaber and a pair of spare boots into a rucksack. The Empath knew better then to rise to K’tana’s sudden fit of pique, she could feel the hurt hiding beneath the other woman’s heated words.
“I did what I had to and I know that had you been in my place, you’d have done the same.”
“I trusted you and you betrayed me. Worse. You didn’t trust me. Giving you my body isn’t an issue. Obviously. But I gave you my trust.”
“K’tana, you have no idea what you’re talking about.” Atyriu finally snapped, but only for a moment. She inhaled deeply and smiled at K’tana. She reached out for the Priestess to take her hand and took a small step forwards. The Twi’lek watched the Consul, her eyes narrowed with caution like that of a cornered manka cat. She looked down at the Miraluka’s hands and gingerly placed her fingertips against the other woman’s palm
“I trusted you with my life. I gave you that mission to convince the other members of the Summit that you can be trusted. Why do you think you’re now second in command of Shadow Gate?”
K’tana froze at the Consul’s words and felt a sense of calm wash over her tumult of her mind. She knew that it was Atyriu’s doing but the Twi’lek did not seem to care. She looked at her feet and then back up to the Consul’s face.
“Alright. Where do I meet Lord Pravus?” she deflected, uncomfortable with the situation despite the serenity that flooded her. She pulled her hands away from Atyriu’s before turning back towards her bedroll. The Twi’lek’s mind soon returned to its turbulent and fractured state.
K’tana kicked aside the bedroll, her jagged and vicious looking saber hilt lay beneath where she had been sleeping.The violet woman slipped her foot beneath the weapon and kicked it into her left hand before shoving it into the backpack. K’tana noticed Atyriu stiffen as the saber went into the bag.
“I’m not going to need this, am I?” the Twi’lek asked curtly.
“Perhaps not, but you will be meeting with-...”Atyiru cut herself off momentarily before taking a breath to continue. She shook her head, her braid flipping wildly across her back and catching the Twi’lek’s attention. The violet woman tuned out whatever the Miraluka was about to say as her predatory gaze locked onto the pleat of hair. She immediately reached out and started to bat at the long braid in order to fix the boredom she suddenly felt as the Consul went on about how important the mission would be for Arcona.
“-and I feel there could be need of-” the Consul continued to talk as K’tana began imagine what the Miraluka would look like with short hair. As she tilted her head and scowled at her former lover her hand drifted down to her dagger.
“Don’t even think about it.” Atyiru’s voice was sudden enough to regain K’tana’s attention, the Twi’lek’s violet fingers dropping away from her blade.
“Ok, but only if you just promise to stop talking for a few moments so I can walk away.” K’tana stuck out her tongue, flipped her lekku over her shoulder dismissively and turned her back on the Consul.
Atyiru sighed heavily as she realized there was no communicating with the other woman while she was in this mood. The Miraluka decided her best course of action was to allow K’tana to have her temper tantrum and get out of her way.
“Just be sure that you get there on time,” the Consul offered a sad, long-suffering smile before turning away and sauntering towards the glade’s exit.
K’tana watched the Shadow Lady leave, a strange sensation flooded the Twi’lek’s body. She could not decipher the feeling, but she assumed it was something akin to sadness. As K’tana tried to hold the feeling it flickered out, once again leaving her hollow.
Once any necessary items were packed into the rucksack, K’tana said her goodbyes to the rancor and called out for Liera to say goodbye. Excited to be going on another trip out of the glade, the Kowakian rushed to the Twi’lek, lept up to the woman’s shoulder and nipped affectionately at her lekku only to be disappointed when her Mistress smiled sadly and shook her head. Liera jumped down, squawking in anger before rushing off to go play with May’riia.
|-o-|
“The Sergeant of Shadow Gate is late, Grand Master.” the messenger waited a few moments at attention before getting dismissed with by a wave of the Dark Lord’s hand. The man promptly left the room as Darth Pravus turned towards the door.
“Go find her and being her her.” His calm voice resonated throughout the large room. He needed no confirmation to know that two skulking forms had detached themselves from the shadowy walls behind him. They made their way down the halls, looking nearly incorporeal as they moved along the walls. Had anyone been watching, they would have seen a momentary shimmer before the two beings disappeared from view.
|-o-|
“...then she actually had the karking oddity-”
“I think you mean audacity…”
“Yeah, okay. Whatever.” K’tana hissed as she rolled her eyes at the Zeltron she had been flirting with. While initially interesting, her patience with the lovely male had worn thin. Unbeknownst to him, this was a very dangerous position for him to be in. Had he paid a bit more attention he might have noticed the way she fingered the razor edge of the blade on her thigh.
And yet, had the Twi’lek been paying closer attention to her surroundings, she would have noticed that two silhouettes were stalking her. From the shadows they crept around the bar, their eyes never leaving the Priestess as she stormed away from the table. The pair of umbral figures took no interest in the other patrons as they moved towards their prey.
The way that K’tana moved gave no indication of the fact that she had in fact spotted the two hunters and was leading them deeper into the crowd of people on the dancefloor. The hollow thrum of the bass drove her forwards and throbbed through her system as she acted the part of unknowing prey.
Violet flesh swayed to the beat of the pulsing noise as she used her hypnotically fluid movements to lull her stalkers into a sense of false security. As they approached their target, the prey became the hunter. K’tana suddenly slipped between a couple of lovers dancing close to one another and she grabbed the male counterpart, slamming her mouth against his and causing the female to shriek in rage and jealousy.
The incensed woman spun on the Priestess, eyes wild with fury. Her arm shot out with brutish force, a whirling, drunken punch that did not even come close to hitting the vastly more agile Twi’lek. K’tana twirled out of the way, taking the female’s boyfriend and pivoting him in between the jealous lover and herself.
Biting the male’s lip and shoving him back towards his infuriated girlfriend with a giggle and a wink, K’tana dipped backwards into the crowd. Her green eyes caught the lights in the dark room and flashed when she saw the shades watching her. She smirked, raised her arm and gave the hunters a wave with her middle finger as she slipped back into the sea of pulsating dancers.
Moving swiftly, the Twi’lek slithered through the crowd, causing chaos in her wake. She kicked out the backs of knees, stepped on feet, pulled hair and sliced off the straps of shirts.
Although she only sliced apart shirts for fun, her madness had a method to it, her turbulent passage leading to an incipient riot behind her.
Despite appearances, the shapes following K’tana were flesh and blood and so were struggling to work their way through the violent crowd. They had enough of exerting themselves in order to catch their prey and moved to end the chase. Stalking around the edges of the dancefloor, the hunters began prodding the minds of dancers and filling their heads with fear.
The first woman affected clutched the person next to her, shrieking incoherently into her ear about large creatures in the lights. Blue eyes went wide in fear. The once laughing and jovial voice was now fervorous and grating. The woman she screamed at was sobbing and pulling herself away as further horrors could be heard echoing from the other end of the dancefloor.
The cacophony of horror filled the bar as it started to empty. Dancers, drug addicts, thugs and voyeurs ran from terrors they could not name in a manner so violent it tore down one of the doors to the bar. The hunters swept through the remainder of the cowering patrons, grabbing Tyrian Twi’leks and pulling them to their feet, only to find their target gone.
K’tana pressed her shoulders against the club’s back door, using her weight and strength as leverage to keep it shut. She gave everything she had to keeping the door firmly in place as terrorized people attempted to push it open and escape through the back. The Priestess waited for the shrieks of horror to subside before pulling the door open slightly and peeking inside.
Around the corridor, K’tana watched one of the hunters grab a man by his collar and heave him against the wall. She heard no question, but the answer reverberated through the corridor.
“I-I’m...I-I don’t know! I s-swear!”
K’tana silently closed the door heard as she heard loud snap and the body hit the ground.
Kark me.
The Priestess slipped her lekku over her shoulders and quickly scanned surroundings. Dumpsters, broken bottles and other refuse cluttered the alley, none of it any use to her.
Kark me sideways!
K’tana slipped quickly through the dark street and into a side alley just as she heard the back door open. Spotting a pipe running up a wall to the rooftops, the agile woman quickly and silently ascended the building’s single floor and dropped down to her belly. She knew that hiding like this would be of no benefit against another Force user, especially not if this man was as advanced as he seemed to be.
The Priestess chose not to cast her senses about to find any close life forms, knowing there would be many in the vicinity and concerned it may get her caught. This gave her just enough time to string together a few expletives before the second hunter crept up behind her and drove the butt of his lightsaber against the back of her head, sending her into the black arms of unconsciousness.
|-o-|
K’tana opened her eyes to bright light and sterile walls. The Twi’lek tightly shut her eyes to block out the invasive sight and struggled against the arms holding her upright and forcing her to walk. They simultaneously squeezed the nerve clusters in her biceps and caused her to grunt in pain as her fingers went numb. She snapped her suddenly sharp-looking teeth at the one to her right, causing him to pull her arm behind her back and twist it viciously.
The Twi’lek’s knees nearly gave out as she yelled in pain-fueled anger. She began to pant in fury as a lust to bite out the hunter’s trachea began to seep through her system. Instead, she went limp and forced the men to drag her towards the door, curiosity temporarily overwhelming her outrage.
As they approached the chamber, a heavily armored man stepped into view, stopping in the middle of the room. He nodded his head when the trio made their way to the door frame. The Priestess’ green eyes flashed with rage as her captors made her stop outside the door. She locked her eyes on the masked man and scowled viciously.
“Sergeant of Shadow Gate.” The hulking form stood tall and even from the distance separating them, K’tana could feel the man looking down on her. “Good of you to heed my summons.”
“These karking frazlat drinkers were sent by YOU!” K’tana spoke with barely suppressed fury as she pulled her arms from the Royal Guards who stood silent and stoic, keeping their eyes pointed front. The Twi’lek frowned as she looked at her arm, her violet skin having turned into a damson bruise.
“I was on my karking way. Is patience not a thing with you High-and-Mighty hair-bags?” Her eyes snapped back to the Grand Master and once again she could almost feel his patronizing smirk.
“I have very little time to waste on matters of little importance. However, “ the Sith Lord’s voice dropped very near to a whisper, “I have heard some...disturbing things about you. Rumors that I needed to confirm for myself.”
“And?” K’tana’s defiant gaze and impatient tone betrayed her apprehension towards the situation.
“And it seems you were not worthy of my attention after all.”
The Priestess went rigid at the dismissal, her jaw clamping shut and a manic grin flickering against the sides of her lips.
“Take her to the docking bay and on the next ship back to Ol’val. Send her with a small escort to be sure she gets to her destination.”
One hunter brought his fist to his chest and bowed his head. The other nodded slightly and moved forward into the room. The first guard motioned for the Twi’lek to follow and she chose to do so out of a slight nod to her survival instinct. Once out of earshot, Darth Pravus turned to the other guard and spoke softly.
“Watch that one.” he whispered, turning away to allow the guard to follow behind his target.
|-o-|
K’tana smiled widely at the Royal Guards as they watched her walk up the entrance platform of the ship that would take her back to her House and tossed a wink to the one who had bruised her.
“Call me?” she giggled, biting her lip and pirouetting gracefully, swaying her hips as she sauntered into her ride’s entrance.
Once in the cockpit, K’tana locked eyes with each of her new “escorts”. Her manic grin displayed pointed teeth as she tried to intimidate the four elite guards. Each held her gaze in turn before glancing away and moving to follow their orders to lock her in the quarters.
“So, one of you pretty creatures wanna come inside,” K’tana paused and bit her lip with a smirk as she eyed her guards, “and dance with me?”
The automatic door shut and locked from the outside, leaving the Twi’lek standing in the room, alone and smirking.