Khendon’s Inferno: The Ninth Circle

[Khendon Sevon]

The metallic, throaty sound of Train Wrecked Flying Monkeys blasted from a series of high-volume speakers. The mind-dazing, neo-durasteel Delteon rock blared with select tracks from the band’s debut album River of Rot. The self described “ion band gone h-space” played on a continuous loop, screeching vocals mixing with trance-like tones followed by assaults of heavy rifts and deep rushes of chords.

A flickering glow panel incessantly lit then extinguished itself in one of the most perturbing displays of electrical wiring ever present in a modern facility. The small, long room was constantly being filled by a bright, harsh white light only to fall back into complete darkness to be followed by a mind-numbing eruption of blinding whiteness.

Khendon leaned over a technician’s shoulder and frowned, “tighten her restraints a fraction of a centimeter. Increase the humidity by twelve points. I’ll be back in an hour to begin. Have the volume increase half a decibel every minute until I return.” The Imperator’s voice was all work.

He walked out of the control room to go get a stimcaf.

[R. S. Esalis]

Her eyes refused to open, but still the light filtered painfully through her eyelids. Her hands bound together, R. S. Esalis sat stoically in the far end of the room, enduring the "music" as it was pumped into the narrow room. She made no sound, no cry or utterance, and certainly no move as time dragged on.

She felt her restraints tighten almost impercebtably, and found herself grimacing. Yet, that was the only show of discomfort that she had granted herself. Remaining calm and collected was something she had cultivated over her years, and even in the face of torture at the hands of Khendon Sevon she kept silent.

Esalis let her head fall back to hit the wall, allowing the sporadic flashes of light to wash over her. She was sweating, beads of persperation forming on her brow to trickle down her face. She did not lament her situation, nor did she cry out in frustration. Instead, the Grand Inquisitor remained patient for the torment she knew would follow.

And the music steadily grew in volume...

[Khendon Sevon]

Khendon returned to the control room with a cardboard container filled with cups of caf. He looked at the yawning technician and handed him one of the enhanced drinks, “Take a break, I have some things to do. Have the guards leave this wing of the facility… the walls are too,” the Imperator looked for the word, “thin.”

As the younger man left Khendon frowned down at the complex control console. The leader of the Federacy thumbed down the humidity to zero and paused for a moment, enjoying the variety of options to choose from. The Imperator tapped a display and pushed a few buttons. The temperature in the small room dropped drastically.

The former Vice-Diktat keyed in a complex string of numbers and letters and linked his neural implant to the scheme of controls. With a turn he picked up the tray of cups and entered the long-thin room where his “patient” was being housed.

A neural impulse closed the heavy blastdoor behind Khendon. He mentally lowered the volume of the music and changed tracks. A subtle, sweet symphony of electronic noises gently played in the confines of the chamber.

The dark warrior sat down on the far side from his guest, instantly feeling the constriction of the room’s design. His shoulders bumped the walls on either side and he frowned in reaction. “A bit tight, don’t you think? And awfully cold,” Khendon breathed out with lips purses and observed the pattern of the white mist.

[R. S. Esalis]

The sudden drop in temperature came as no surprise - she herself had used such a tactic numerous times when dealing with those in her charge. If she'd chosen to open her eyes, Esalis would have seen her breath before her as she breathed. As it was, she could feel the sweat on her face growing cold.

At his words though, the Grand Inquisitor opened her eyes, turning her head to look at Sevon. Ice blue eyes were both bloodshot, the victims of merciless barrages of flickering and pulsating light - the only outward sign of what she had endured thus far.

She barked a laugh then. "Sevon, I am no stranger to this treatment. I have no interest in such trivial chitchat, so I suggest you get on with the macabre ritual both of us know so well."

[Khendon Sevon]

Khendon smiled broadly and nodded, “Esalis, you’ll never surprise me.” With a moment of concentration the lighting in the room stabilized, the temperature became comfortable. “So, off and done with all of the fancy techniques and silly mind games.”

The Imperator stood and walked towards the woman. He took a knee several feet away from her and winked, “Which part do you want to skip to?” Khendon’s face suddenly became as serious as death; the music began to build in intensity.

“Should I start by detaching your pinky?” The dark jedi removed a small case from the inside of his jacket and placed it on the floor in front of him. He opened the shell and turned the contents towards his patient.

With a deft move he retrieved a rusted and blood stained wrench-like device. Other utilities within the case were just as arcane. Interestingly, only one appeared to be clean and unused. A single, sharp, jagged blade reminiscent of brass knuckles reflected the gore of the other unpolished mechanisms.

“We could always skip to the part where you tell me where Kyry is… but that would ruin the fun, wouldn’t it?”

[R. S. Esalis]

Esalis gave another clipped laugh as she watched Sevon retrieve his instruments. "An eye for an eye, is it? Such pettiness suits you so well."

Her eyes narrowed then, and with a terrible tone in her voice, she went on. "But you see, I am not with child as your wife is. I will have no offspring that you can turn against me and indoctrinate.

"Tell me Sevon, how will it feel when your own child looks upon you with hate and revulsion?"

[Khendon Sevon]

Khendon’s face appeared to become even cooler; his visage’s humanity left like the receding waters of a sun-scorched world. The lighting in the room dimmed ever so slightly as the dark man’s emotions coiled around his soul and twisted, and twisted.

If evil could be personified, it had just been. The Imperator’s voice was harsh and cold, it seethed with magma and brimstone, “Esalis, you will out live me, I will guarantee that. I will spare no expense to do so. I will ensure that you are preserved.

“That is right, you will be alive… and lonely, and cold. Every morning you will wake with pain beyond your wildest dreams, and that pain will grow like a child in your womb. It will mature, as your body no longer is capable of reading the sting of living I will have new nerves grown and grafted for your pleasure.

“There will be no ‘getting accustomed’ to the tortures inflicted upon your frail body. You will be on death’s doorstep without the possibility of passing on!” Khendon threw the torture tool at the black-hearted woman and picked up the shimmering knuckle blades.

With the intensity of a tornado the Imperator burst forward towards the woman.

[R. S. Esalis]

She deflected the tool he'd thrown at her, squaring her body against the oncoming storm barreling down the length of the room at her. Her words had sparked him, and she allowed a smile to emerge upon her lips.

Esalis readied herself, leg muscles tense as he approached like a galeforce solarstorm.

"Your child will only see a monster!" she yelled at him, "A monster who wallows in the death and destruction of others, and rapes their planets - all the while drinking from chalices crafted of human bone!"

And that was when her leg lashed out, aimed for Sevon's left knee.

[Khendon Sevon]

Khendon ground hit teeth as he sent a wave of invisible energy towards Esalis. Although the dark one had responded quickly, it wasn’t quite fast enough. The woman’s attack clipped his shin as she flew into the hard, duracrete wall.

The Imperator bit his lip in pain and frustration and clenches his left fist. An invisible rope tightened around his prey’s neck like a noose. He ordered the force to do his bidding, commanded it to take the breath away from that, “STONE-HEARTED BITCH!”

With a flick of his wrist Khendon sent the woman face first into the gray floor and shoved his knee into the small of her back. He leaned with all of his weight.

[R. S. Esalis]

The sheer force of his power caught her unawares, and Esalis hit the wall, breath knocked from her lungs. And yet when she attempted to suck air into her lungs, she could not. She did not panic - Sevon would not kill her yet. His seething words reached her ears then, and she managed a leering, serpent's grin.

And then she was sent to the concrete floor once more, Sevon's knee grinding into the small of her back. She let out a gasp then as he applied the entirety of his weight.

"Perhaps I will raise your child," she managed to rasp, "I'm sure I could do a better job than some knocked-up plaything you call a wife."

[Khendon Sevon]

Khendon’s work took over; he ignored the voice of the liar, the traitor, the Judas. His hands were well versed in the delicacies of revenge. The Imperator took a great lump of Esalis’s dark, rich hair and, with a stiff motion, pulled it back hard, her head followed suit.

“Maybe this will remind you of where you are.” The dark jedi gripped the knuckle blade tightly and took the first swipe at the tight bundle of hair. The edge slid and a great tuft of flesh was pulled free from the force of the punch-like motion.

“Oh, I forgot!” Khendon smiled, “I never sharpened the blade! Oh well,” a sneer grew on the man’s face. He continued his dark deed.

[R. S. Esalis]

She endured the pain in silence, feeling as flesh was pulled away along with hair.

"Your methods are barbaric," she gasped as another handful of hair and flesh came away.

"I'll be sure to visit the same treatment upon your wife though.

"As a gift from her husband."

[Khendon Sevon]

Khendon watched in silence as the last of Esalis’s beautiful hair fell to the hard, cold floor. His hands were covered in thin, crimson blood. The dull blade’s glean had gone, scarlet was all that remained.

“You bring this on yourself, I hope you understand,” the Imperator’s voice was mechanical, distant. He stood and walked towards the door. He picked up the thrown instrument and packed it away in its case, which was then neatly tucked away.

“I’ll leave you to your thoughts.” Khendon ignored the cups of stimcaf and walked out of the room. When the door had securely slid behind him he fell to his knees and brought his stained hands to his face. He held himself for a long moment, rocking ever so gently. Kyryanu, where are you… where.

A moment passed, the Imperator composed himself. Long tears rolled down his face as he went to the console. Khendon keyed in commands and sat back in a great chair in front of the primary monitor. He held himself, even now, and gently moved from side-to-side.

In the room two small orbs floated from the ceiling, several meters above the floor. They spurted to life and began projecting images on the walls. The lighting returned to its sporadic death and rebirth, the cold began to set in, anew.

As the darkness fell the projected images became clearer: they were of Esalis’s tattered and bloodied head, a 360 holo. The music began again, Train Wrecked Flying Monkeys blasted over the powerful speaker system.

“Tighten,” said Khendon through a sob, “tighten, tighten, tighten!” The computer processed his voice request and decreased the diameter of Esalis’s cuffs appropriately.

[R. S. Esalis]

His work done, Esalis followed Sevon's departure with her ears, listening as he strode from the room. She lay unmoving then, bringing the pain he'd inflicted under control. She knew that her words had incited the rage she was now feeling the effects of, but to the Grand Inquisitor it was well worth it.

Sevon had lost his temper, showing him to be susceptable to mere words.

Another grin - this one strangely of triumph - graced her somewhat haggard features as she rolled to her back. Where Sevon had placed his knee was knotted, tendons and muscle bunched tightly from time spent crushed beneath the Imperator's kneecap. Sitting up, she once more placed her back to the wall, eyes closing as the music rained down upon her once more. She would sit through this auditory display of filth, ignoring the projected images of Sevon's handiwork.

"You have proven yourself susceptable to words, Sevon," she said to no one in particular, "And for that you are weak and easily manipulated."

[Khendon Sevon]

By the time the technician returned Khendon’s constitution had returned. A brisk, steaming shower had brought the Imperial to his senses. He felt invigorated and renewed.

“So, how is she…” the man’s words trailed off as his mouth continued moving, “What did you do!”

“What had to be done.” Khendon turned to the expert torturer and frowned, “Do you have a problem, Samuel, is it?”

“Yeah, Sam. Uh,” the technician’s eyes shot to the bloodied blade sitting on the floor a meter away, “yeaah… Imperator… right. Uh, so, we ready for it?”

“Yes, we are ready. Call the surgeons, remind them, anesthetics aren’t required.”

“Yessir!”


*************

The door to the thin room slid open and an armored officer entered, he wielded a staff expertly and approached the sole occupant of the chamber. “Don’t try to resist,” said Khendon’s voice from behind the mountain of armor.

“He won’t hurt you… that honor is reserved for me. Restrain her.”

[R. S. Esalis]

Esalis opened her eyes as the door opened once again, though her bloodshot orbs still remained passive and alarmingly tranquil. She stared at the officer covered head to toe in armor.

"Sevon, your trickery and strongarm tactics do not scare me. I do my job to the best of my abilities, as I told you on Myrkr."

She did not move as the man approached her, but her evil grin once again returned to her lips.

"It is not my fault your wife is suffering - I told you what would happen and you did not heed my warnings. And now your wife is paying the price of your disobediance. And you will continue to feel the pang long after this is over when you look your child in the eye and see nothing but disgust. Disgust in the eyes of a child for its' own father."

[Khendon Sevon]

Khendon shook his head, “Do it.” The officer prodded Esalis with the tip of his staff, which was surprisingly metallic and hard. A needle quickly slid into the woman’s arm and injected a fast working, minor toxin.

“Oh? Did that hurt? My apologies.” The Imperator frowned, “Yes, do you feel that? I’m sure you do. The cells in your muscles are losing their ability to produce mitochondria, it’s temporary, not a permanent solution to the problem of your existence.

“I’m sure you’ve heard this before,” the frown broke into a light, sad smile, “you’ll be able to feel everything while we perform the ‘operation.’”

The officer stepped over the woman and allowed Khendon to enter. He knelt next to her and gently stroked her cheek, “Do you want to say something?” He leaned towards her lips for an instant then retracted, shaking his head with a laugh, “Didn’t think so. You’ll find you can’t blink or move your eyes, I’ve heard it’s quite annoying. The toxin is very specific, thankfully, so you won’t have to worry about brain damage.

“Now, your heart should be slowing, we’ll have to prevent that,” Khendon signaled for the doctor who inserted a long device into Esalis’s arm, “and your lungs will be feeling weak,” the surgeon then retrieved a long, see-through tube and put it down the woman’s throat.

“Are you enjoying this? Doctor,” Khendon’s voice was laced with malice, “where do I make the incision?”

The surgeon smiled behind his mask and pointed to a location behind Esalis’s ear. “Supposedly your sense of pain will be hightened, an odd side-effect of the drug…” Khendon took a scalpel from the doctor and pushed it against the indicated spot.

[R. S. Esalis]

The injection startled her - this she wasn't expecting - and Esalis felt rage well up in her chest. A brief struggle was all she offered before her body fell still, the drug firing through her body. Her eyes radiated waves of hate nearly tangible in the atmosphere of the room, and she lay, unable to move as Sevon's doctor did his work. If she could have, she would've gagged as he roughly inserted the tube into her mouth and down her throat.

She felt the blade of the scalpel brush against the skin behind her ear, and mentally cried out. It was the first time since being deposited here that she showed any inward signs of fear, and the momentary look of madness in her normally cool eyes was quickly replaced with harsh determination.

Sevon would pay for this, she would make sure of it. She would have his wife raped and beaten to death - she would have his unborn child taken from her womb and given to someone who would raise it with an ingrained hatred of the Imperator. And she would make sure Sevon recieved every shred of the videofiles compiled on everything done.

Esalis felt the tip of the scalpel press into her skin as all manner of evil thoughts raced through her mind. She felt acute pain washing over her body, augmented by the drug, and her motor functions momentarily took control and she spasmed violently.

[Khendon Sevon]

The music in the room had calmed, the lighting stabilized. Khendon smiled, “I hope my hand will be steady, drill, please.”

Directly in front of Esalis’s gaze the surgeon passed the Imperator an odd looking drill, “Now, Mr. Sevon, be careful! You have to apply just the right amount of pressure. Too much and you’ll end up turning her brain into cheese.” The doctor grinned at his own joke.

Khendon frowned, “I’ll just go very, very slowly.” He grasped the device and the surgeon braced Esalis’s head. The drill did its work. The sound was horrible.

The former Vice-Diktat cleaned the spot and inserted a tube to clear away the constant trickle of blood. “Now how does this fit into this little hole?” Khendon held up a neuro-chip-spider and gazed at it. “Do you know, Esalis?” He held the creature in front of her eyes.

“The drill bit we used was too small,” the doctor frowned behind his mask, “you’ll have to force it in… her skull should adjust for the pressure… eh… I think.”

Khendon shot the man a wicked glance and put the end of the neuro-spider to the woman’s head. With his freehand and a rod he began to stuff the chip into the incision point.

[R. S. Esalis]

Her mind cried out, wretched screams of pain filled her thoughts as Sevon had his way with her; his drill making quick, grisly work of skin and bone. Her eyes, unblinking, had already begun to dry out, and her teeth ground against one another.

The pain left over was intense, heightened by the drug Sevon had had her injected with, and a single tear formed in the tear ducts of her right eye.

And when he held the small neural implant up to her eyes, the Grand Inquisitor felt the very first stages of panic sweep through her being. What devilry was this? Sevon's horrid little machines were to be implanted within her mind??!

R. S. Esalis. Remni Soriah Esalis felt something she had not felt since she was a small girl.

Rising from the pit of her very soul, she felt despair.

[Khendon Sevon]

Khendon felt something tug at him in the force. It was an emotion, or a trickle of it. “So,” he said as he finished stuffing the implant into the woman’s skull, “Esalis... what is this that I’m feeling?”

His grin was less friendly than usual; it seemed almost poisonous. “You don’t like being powerless, do you? You hate it that I can do this to you, take control like this. Is that what it is? Well, when I’m done, you’ll tell me all about it, won’t you? Hm? Surgeon, what now?”

“We have to seal it, first the bone.” Khendon passed back the drill and rod and was given a bottle of clear liquid in return. The Imperator poured the substance on the tiny hole that had been cut in the bone and watched as it sank in and replaced the lost material.

”And? Now?”

“We have to apply a skin patch and—“

“No need,” Khendon unclipped his lightsaber and held the weapon before Esalis. “You know what this is? Of course you do. You’ve seen it before. I promise to be careful… of course, cauterizing a wound with a blade of its width will be very, very difficult.”

The silver blade leapt to life in the dark jedi’s hands with a snap hiss. The warrior nimbly wielded the saber and brought the tip nearer and nearer to Esalis’s head, adjusting his position ever so carefully.

“Uh, Imperator?”

“Not now, Doctor.” He brought the blade just close enough and the skin around the wound began to sizzle and melt. The smell suddenly filled Khendon’s nostrils, he cringed. “Enough of that,” the former Vice-Diktat snapped the weapon away and deactivated the blade.

“Uh, so, I’m done here? Right? I get my credits and my license to practice back, right?”

“Change of plans, you’re going to visit my aid, outside. Tell him to give you special treatment,” Khendon smiled, “he’ll give you what you deserve. Tell him, tell him I can handle her from here on.”

[R. S. Esalis]

If she could have cried out, she would have. She could feel her skin burning, being cauterized. She had never once felt such a sickening sensation, and it showed in the shock evident on her features.

And then the saber was gone, leaving her to lay on the concrete, still smoking and her mind reeling from what had just happened. Sevon had touched the tip of the iceberg though, with his revelation that she could not stand to have the reigns of control taken from her. It was very true - Esalis could not bear to think that there was no situation she could not preside over with cold and calculating precision.

If her eyes could close they would have been screwed shut in the vain attempt to send away the pain still coarsing through her nerves. She could not even speak; could not utter a single sound. In the back over her mind though, that collected portion of her mind wrestled for control over the chaotic emotions of panic.

Slowly, ever so slowly, that calm portion of her thinking began to advance, and started its' own journey to take over her roiling emotions.

Sevon would not get the satisfaction of controlling her in any way.

[Khendon Sevon]

Khendon grinned with satisfaction. He set himself down on the floor facing Esalis, eyes on level with the fallen woman’s own. “Was it good for you?” A wicked, tormented smile replaced the calm of the grin.

“Come now, this antidote will be fast acting,” the Imperator turned to his chrono with a frown, “as it should, we only have a few more moments before we risk heart failure.” The dark jedi removed the tubing and machines from the woman and threw them through the open door.

“Now, what shall we talk about while we have a few moments of rest?” He palmed a small syringe out of his pocket and removed the safety. “Ah, yes…” Khendon called upon the force and bent it to his desires. Esalis’s form lifted as the Imperator stood. “Yes, we shall talk about my unborn child… we shall talk about the dream I had last night,” he chuckled to himself.

“Did you know that the Force allows its users glimpses of the future… do you want to know what I saw? I saw my daughter. I saw her smiling and learning how to pilot a TIE Executioner for the first time.

“For this reason, Esalis, I know you shall fail.” Khendon stabbed the needle into her neck and injected the contents. “We’ll talk when you feel better, I suggest you sleep.” He walked out of the room. The light died. No noise penetrated the walls of the isolated chamber.

[R. S. Esalis]

The agent he released into her neck worked almost instantaneously and her eyes fluttered. Esalis felt herself falling back into her subconscious, tumbling down into a neverending void that swallowed her completely.

The Grand Inquisitor crashed to the concrete floor when Khendon had left, his hold on the force severed to drop her.

She landed on her back, unaware of everything but the inky black that had pulled her into its' yawning cavernous expanse. And in her mind's eye she saw the outline of someone she knew well. Someone she had held out hope of seeing once more. But his back was turned to her, and no matter how close she tried to draw herself to him, he always remained a constant distance from her. It was infuriating, but still she kept on, refusing to give up. That man - he was the only thing she clung to now. His was the only memory she would allow herself.

Alone, away from the waking world, swimming in blackness, Esalis screamed.

So powerful was her emotion that it seemed to transcend the barrier of consciousness and her primal cry rang out in the dark of the narrow room.

[Khendon Sevon]

“Emperor’s black bones,” the technician watched the monitor.

“What was that,” Khendon’s eyes were half-open, his voice was groggy. He sat up on the cot in the small control room at looked at the younger man. “What’d you say?” He yawned heavily.

“Nothing, Sir… just. She freaked out for a moment, I think you got to her!”

“Did you doubt I could?” Khendon felt his heart fall, “Get me a caf.” The technician made a puppy dog face and stood. He was about to leave when, “and, Sam?”

“Yes?”

“What did you do to the good doctor?”

“I gave him to some other surgeons to experiment on. They’re testing new, experimental neural implants, very complex interfaces… 93% failure rate in their animal testing.”

“Good.” Khendon relaxed when the torturer had left. Something in his heart called out for him. Kyryanu, he stretched out with the force and sent her all the strength he could muster. I love you, my wife… and I love our daughter.

Although he had bluffed to Esalis, he truly did know his unborn child was a girl. There was a connection, a feeling that told him so. A momentary pang of sorrow seeped into his emotions for Esalis. No… she doesn’t deserve it. He removed the offending emotion and left her with his anger and hatred. No remorse for her. None for the Sovereignty. They won’t return it.

[R. S. Esalis]

Time held no meaning. Time had long since abandoned her as she had fallen into the caccoon blanket of unconsciousness.

And so when her eyes flew open, Esalis had no way of knowing how long she had been submerged in the depths of her own mind. All she knew was that Sevon had implanted one of his horrid machines within her mind. The area he'd drilled behind her ear still burned in memory flashes, and her hands were still bound. The Grand Inquisitor closed her eyes then, thankful for that small ability which before this most recent ordeal she had taken for granted.

Her body relaxed then, and she calmed herself. It would do no good to show any further signs of fear to Sevon - she knew he'd gotten a significant amount of pleasure from her small breakdown, and resolved to not let such a sin against her mindset occur again.

No. She would endure everything he put her through, and when all that was finished, she would make sure he was repayed ten-fold. For a brief moment she almost felt bad for the man - he would be seeing his wife's corpse before too long, and his child; apparently daughter, would look upon him with anger and disgust.

But that thought was soon quelled. For she would be the harbinger of his anguish and descent into mental torment.

[Khendon Sevon]

Khendon sipped from his steaming cup and composed himself. “Alright,” he mumbled. The door to the room gently slid open. “Lights.” A harsh, white glare filled the chamber from all angles.

“Esalis!” he shouted in a demanding voice, “enough rest! You’ve been sleeping for days!” A bluff, a mild one, he had to throw off his patient, it wouldn’t be right for her to know how long she’d been inside the cell.

The Imperator smiled like a predator ready to trounce its foe, “Your implant should have grown its full extensions by now, I’m sure you feel different. Had any dreams as of late? It’s a common side effect of having microelectro-impulse threads woven into the tissue of your brain.

“It’s not as orthodox an implant as your average Federacy officer would have. You should know that I spared no expense! Now, come girl, stand… I have some food for you, have to keep your strength.” Khendon placed a steaming pan filled with grains and vegetables in a light sauce half-way between the two. He then took a step back, placed a cup of caf on the duracrete floor and walked backwards until he touched the door.

The Imperator buried his hands deep in his pockets and leaned on the steel portal. "You better be a good little girl, or there’ll be no dessert."

[R. S. Esalis]

Esalis sat up, her eyes much calmer than they had been during Sevon's most recent, previous session. She made no move for the food he had placed on the floor between them, instead only bringing her knees slightly off the ground so that she could rest her arms across them.

"You're games will not work, Sevon. You may have placed something in my head, but that will do nothing to alter my intentions against you, your wife, and your child."

Eyes becoming sharp orbs of cold blue steel, the Grand Inquisitor continued. "I lost my composure during our last meeting, but rest assured that it will not happen again. Your actions may have been unexpected and my reaction I know quite to your liking, however I have also gleaned my own results from this ordeal."

She stopped then, glaring at him.

"Tell me, do you have any preferences as to the name of your child? I must admit a bit of selfishness on my part, as I was thinking of naming her after myself,"

[Khendon Sevon]

Khendon looked at his nails idly. They were clean, well shaped, and healthy. His steel eyes shot a glance at the remnants of the woman’s hair. A smile came across his face, “How’s the head?” The Imperator’s lips remained stationary, his throat did not even move. In fact, his voice wasn’t at all like it normally was; it seemed artificial, computer generated.

The former Vice-Diktat sighed and took a sip from his own caf. Faces appeared on the walls, shapes, all of them extremely beautiful. Angelic looking woman walked from side to side, hid behind Khendon, even looked over his shoulders.

Yet, the Imperator did not move, he simply looked over Esalis, oblivious to the creatures. Khendon glanced at the ceiling. A neural simulation, I wonder what that tech head is feeding into her brain?

[R. S. Esalis]

Her gaze became a steel-slitted look of utter contempt. She expected nothing less than something like this from Sevon and his technology. She knew the Terrisz'Voss insurgents had such neural technology, and so it was no surprise that someone as far along on the technological frontier as Khendon would have much the same.

The sight of each woman was taken in silently, and Esalis squared her shoulders, her whole body stiffening.

"Your technological hallucinations will not deterr me, Imperator. I will not forget what you have done, and it is your wife who will feel the repercussions of this trangression."

[Khendon Sevon]

Khendon grunted in amusement, his eyes finally centered on the dark woman. He showed his teeth, but not in a friendly manner, “Esalis, tell me… how do you plan on departing from my company?”

The dark warrior suddenly shifted in time and appeared behind the Inquisitor. “Esalis,” his voice was like a serpent, his jaws came around her neck, fangs pressed their venomous daggers into the moist flesh. Coldness sank into the spot and a piercing as the giant snake bit the queen of hate and wrapped its coils around her body.

A pressing began, like that of two rocks moving closer. The powerful muscles of the giant creature constricted the woman’s body. Popping sounds and creaks, groans from bones in torment filled the otherwise still room.

Khendon was leaning against the metal door again. Eyes dull and uncaring. His stance was relaxed, breathing steady. “Esalis? How do you plan on departing from my company?” He could feel the link between his neural network and hers, almost tangibly so. Information streamed from the woman’s implant, he could nearly read her thoughts.

With a mild laugh the Imperator shook off the remnants of his interactive simulation. He needed a bit of reality to fortify his constitution before he entered the digital realm anew. Khendon could taste Esalis’s blood on his tongue, though he had never physically touched the woman… So, little fly, won’t you come and play in my web?

[R. S. Esalis]

Esalis remained stoic as Sevon's digital coils constricted around her. Her teeth ground together as her life breath was squeezed from her body, only to dissipate and leave her be once more.

"My time will come," she gasped, regaining her breath, "And when it does, I can tell you that it will not be my feet you'll be groveling at. Even Desaria will fall to his face and beg forgiveness for his crimes. Mark my words,Sevon. The orders given to me superced all, and I will obey them until I die, or I will die carrying them out.

"You cannot create a schizm in my dedication no matter what you do or what you put into my body."

[Khendon Sevon]

Khendon raised an eyebrow, “Oh? Pray tell, holy knight, what quest are you on?” For a moment he thought about putting pain behind the question; however, he decided to not force the results.

Instead, the Imperator took a few steps closer, hands still deep within his pockets. He wore a sleeveless, black shirt. The black Sith tattoos on his arms accented his defined, yet thin, muscles. “What orders are you following, my dear?”

The former Vice-Diktat took a knee in the center of the room. His silver eyes examined the woman who had brought such pain to him. Could she be working for another Imperial? Maybe one of the lesser warlords… or maybe, just maybe… He shook the thought out of his mind with a minor laugh—though his insides frowned.

[R. S. Esalis]

She snarled at him then, lips curling back to expose a row of straight, white teeth. For a brief moment she felt jealousy of the unregistered Lupine - Loklorien s'Ilancy - who she'd already had some dealings with. To be able to change into a rabid beast and devour such a man as Sevon would have been something she'd gladly do.

The momentary jealousy passed quickly though, and a bright flash exploded before her eyes. A split second glimpse of his form once more, and then he was gone.

Esalis blinked furiously, but kept her gaze focused upon Sevon.

All had transpired within only a few seconds, and the Grand Inquisitor let her rage simmer. She would do as ordered and preserve both factions unto her dying breath.

[Khendon Sevon]

Khendon’s already cocked eyebrow rose every so slightly. “Esalis,” he slid a few steps closer, “what’re you hiding in that beautiful, little head of yours?” He peered into her cold eyes. Would pain be necessary as an incentive?

A chill ran up the Imperator’s spine as he tentatively snapped a glance at his chrono. Something gnawed at his patience and it snapped like a worn rope. Weights fell, pulleys moved, emotions brewed to the surface.

This time the coolness was in Khendon’s voice, “You don’t seem to understand,” the former Vice-Diktat stood, eyes locked on the woman’s visage, “a war is about to start! You fool! Do you have any comprehension of what you’ve done?

“You sought to hold me from interfering with Sovereignty actions, but now I am knee deep in their fodder! The confrontation you attempted to prevent has occurred! The Federacy and Sovereignty are at war!

“I don’t expect that to mean anything to one as dead as you… but it means something to me. I don’t want my child raised in a war stricken wasteland! Mark my words, Kyry and my unborn child will be back in my arms, even if I have to drop marines on every planet! Even if I have to raze every city to smoke out the vile Dark Jedi that, doubtlessly, hides my wife!”

The Imperator clenched his fists and locked his jaw in defiance. His lightsabers clicked together in their hip holster as he swayed with anger. ESALIS, YOU FOOL!

[R. S. Esalis]

Lord Viscera will burn you alive!" she snapped, her fury boiling over.

"I am no fool, Sevon! You are the one who continued to send us all deeper into turmoil! You would not listen to me, and I was forced to react accordingly! I will do everything in my power to carry out the last orders I was given, and if that means using innocents that are close to one such as you, then very well. I will do it. You are the one who would not listen, and now you are paying that price with the loss of your family! I answer to only one man, and he is not you, and he is most certainly not Desaria.

"I admit that I miscalculated and your actions have further proven that," Esalis stood then, pointing a single finger at the Imperator, "but you will know this very instant that I did all within my power to keep the factions from destroying eachother! And if I am to die while performing my task, then so be it - I would rest peacefully knowing that all that I accomplished was done to the very best of my abilities. I have faught to preserve the Empire in its' shattered form, and all the while having to tolerate my position within the Sovereignty!

"So kill me now and be done with it. Continue on with your war! Death would be preferred over the storm of anger and utter rage that will engulf you all upon Viscera's return!"

[Khendon Sevon]

Khendon frowned, the lines of his face smeared into one large, angry look. The dark man crossed his arms and shifted his weight uncomfortably. Gigantic, gargantuan wheels turned, rust falling like rain from the mighty machines. Realization flooded into every nook and cranny of Khendon’s brain.

“Esalis,” he hissed, “you are perhaps the most horrible person I know!” He scowled heavily and shook his head. Khendon laughed half-heartedly and cringed at the same time.

“Of all the crack-pot lunatics in the Empire Viscera just had to give you so great of a job. Look what a mess you’ve made! You deserved to die!” Khendon withdrew the lighter of his two sabers and examined the intricate hilt.

The silver beam snapped to life with a serpentine hiss. “Stand at attention now, Esalis.” The leader’s voice had taken on a commanding tone, one he used when he ordered subservient bridge crews. His steel-colored eyes shone in the saber's light.

[R. S. Esalis]

"I stand at no one's attention but one man's," was the angry reply, "... and you are not him."

She readied herself all the same though, her whole body relaxing, ready to be no doubt impaled upon the Imperator's lightsaber. If she was to die, then so be it. She performed her duties to the full extent of her powers.

"You made this mess, Sevon. You and Desaria. I will not be held accountable for trying to stop the both of you from going at each other's throats.

"I don't care if you consider me a raving lunatic or a crack-pot; I was following orders. My methods may not be to your liking, but that doesn't concern me."

[Khendon Sevon]

Khendon grunted, “ESALIS!” His voice boomed beyond human means, “You speak to the Vice-Diktat of the Galactic Empire! Viscera’s most trusted advisor and tactician! You no longer speak to someone of Desaria’s foul repute!

“When I say for you to stand at attention, you do so!” The Imperator brought his lightsaber’s weightless, humming blade mere centimeters away from Esalis’s chest. “Now!” his voice was filled with authority, “STAND AT ATTENTION!”

With his free hand Khendon took the Emperor’s medallion out from underneath his shirt and let it sit, its gold in deep contrast to the black of his garb. The object of lore had once belonged to the True Emperor and had been given to the Vice-Diktat by Viscera for this express reason, when weight of words alone was not enough.

[R. S. Esalis]

A storm brewing in her eyes, Esalis obeyed. However, the sight of the medallion was enough spark pride within her chest. Even in her current situation, R. S. Esalis wore her dusty, scuffed and in some places torn uniform with the smallest sense of returning pride.

"I know who you are, Sevon," she said evenly, "but your status with Viscera would not sway my decision to do what I have done."

[Khendon Sevon]

A wicked, devious smile fell upon the Imperator’s face. He allowed his weapon to hover for a moment then, with a snap of the wrist, brought the blade down and cut Esalis’s restraints. “Don’t think I trust you, I just know that I can put the cuffs back on. And don’t think I won’t remember your cold heart when our Lord returns.”

Khendon took a deep breath, “Let’s get out of this cell, it’s depressing. Want some real food?” He suddenly realized just how hungry he was. The dark jedi deactivated his saber and placed it in its holster. “After you.”

[R. S. Esalis]

Silently, and not with a little caution, Esalis stepped from the cell.

"I would rather have a shower and a clean uniform before a meal."

Just as Sevon did not trust her, she did not trust him. Perhaps in time she would, but that would be a while in coming. That he had in his possession the medallion created a wholly new situation regardless of whether he was the Vice-Diktat, but the Grand Inquisitor would relegate herself to simple observation in the coming hours.

She had no knowledge of the level and depth of Sevon's loyalty to Viscera, and so she would act accordingly.

[Khendon Sevon]

Khendon grunted his consent, “A shower, stiff drink, clean uniform, and,” he looked her over, “a wig.” A tentative smile came to the man’s face. He would be watching her every move, one false step and she would find the end of his saber in her side.

“Afterwards, Esalis, we have some very important matters to discuss.” The Imperator eyed the black-hearted woman with both a sense of respect and hatred. Her physical wounds would heal soon enough, but how long would it take for the others?

A dark energy still lapped at Khendon’s consciousness. He could still feel a shooting pain in the depths of his soul. For a moment the force swirled around the dark jedi, he knew what was wrong. Kyryanu, I will come and get you. I’m doing the best I can… just hold on… I will make sure everyone pays, and I will make sure you’re safe, soon enough. Just, hold on, please, for me, my Love. He sent all his strength to the one place in the galaxy that held his calm… it was so distant, so weak. Fear crept into the Imperator’s mind. The fear of losing his only love.

[R. S. Esalis]

"A wig is not needed. However, I would greatly appreciate the use of a bacta chamber, if you would be so kind."

Esalis turned to look at Sevon. "My hands are nearly useless, and I am sure that pnuemonia will be settling in shortly. I would like to counteract this as soon as possible." She inclined her head then, offering the slightest of bows at her midsection, "By the Vice-Diktat's allowance, of course."