A New World (Skye)

[Apollus Alexei]

His eyes flickered and shut as he stared into a dramatic light. His eyes burned. He struggled to remember the last thing that he had experienced. Corellia, the droids, the train... the Sith. One in particular, one with threatening red eyes. He recollected the gas that finally ended their escape. Their escape. He remembered Skye in a panic and forced his eyes open, squinting from the light, and turned over to look for her. He silently prayed to his god of childhood that she was there. She was the only thing he had anymore.

His eyes set on her, at the other end of the room. He ran, slowed by a multitude of objects as he made his way to her. "Skye, are you alright? Can you hear me? Are you fine?" He said panicked.

[Skye Connan]

Skye opened her hazel eyes in an exhausted type manner when she heard Apollus call to her. She had been awake for a while now. She had been blinded by a massive amount of light when she first awoke, her body especially her injured shoulder now was sore and drained of energy from previous events. Skye was able to prop herself up on a wall near where she had originally awaken, her clothes a mess and her limbs entangled with each other.

Her eyes took a few seconds to focus clearly, she heard Apollus more than she saw him. When she saw him she would have laughed if she wasn’t so burned out, he seemed frazzled beyond belief. Skye decided to greet him with an attempted tired smile.

“Relax, Apollus…I’m fine.” She tried to sound more lively but her voice betrayed her, she sounded more coarse than she wanted. Skye locked her eyes with Apollus’; it didn’t seem she had convinced him, she must have looked worse than she thought. Her painted on smile faded and she dropped her gaze to the floor.

“How’s your side doing, Apollus?” Her voice was forced.

[Apollus Alexei]

His side, he barely thought of it. The pain had become an annoyance in the back of his mind, taken a backseat to other concerns. She didn't sound fine, she sounded worse than he did. She locked his eyes and he stared freely into hers. His fingers touched the skin on her arm beneath the blackened blaster mark on her shoulder.

"You don't sound fine, and I think we need to figure a way out of here. How's the battle wound? Are you able to run?"

[Skye Connan]

“My shoulder? It’ll live.” She sighed…the wound was numb but it hurt every now and then. She flinched slightly at his touch; it felt like her skin was burning. She did agree they had to get out of here and once again help each other. Personally Skye didn’t mind Apollus’ company.

“I’ll make it…this is what happens to me every time I lose myself. I wish I could get myself under control.” She hated admitting to her weakness.

“You’re right though, we need to get out of here. Could I have some help gettin’ up?” She didn’t think she could successfully stand on her own.

[Apollus Alexei]

"You did fine, you saved us." He ignored the fact that they got caught anyway, he didn't want to bring it up. No need to make her feel worse than she might already. He wrapped his arm around her waist and guided her up. His arm lingered and he met her eyes for the briefest moment. He quickly broke away.

"Umm.. I'm not sure where we are anymore. I haven't seen that Sith at all. I don't even know if we're still on Corellia." He hoped they were though. A scalpel caught his eye on the cart next to Skye. He grabbed it and lead the way to the door, careful to make sure Skye was making it alright. He wasn't about to run off and leave her behind.

[Skye Connan]

Skye mumbled her thanks to Apollus and right after blushed slightly at their awkward moment. She hadn’t realized there was a blade next to her; she was more out of it than she thought. Her strides were short and shaky, she swayed every now and then. She was just glad that the red eyed Sith wasn’t around anymore. Her anger about being caught still bubbled in the back of her mind. Luckily she was able to keep herself contained for the time being.

This place was different, it didn’t have the same comforting feeling as Corellia. Skye didn’t even know how long she or Apollus had been out of it…for all she knew they could be on the other side of the galaxy by now. The feeling of this place was frightening, it was dark and cool. Skye had grown accustom to hot and dry weather with lots of sun.

“Apollus…I don’t know if we are on Corellia anymore. I have this feeling about it.” She staggered behind Apollus, her nervousness at a peak and her discomfort following closley behind.

“I don’t like this place.”

[Apollus Alexei]

I hope you're wrong, he thought. Sudoku was the only person he had left, except maybe Skye. Neither of them had a plan though.

I don't like this place."

"Yeah, I don't either. But there's gotta be a way out." He glanced down at his meager weapon. Anyway out wasn't going to be easy, surely the Sith did not just up and leave. He dreaded a fight.

His hand passed by the door pad, it opened unexpectedly. He peered into the hallway, it was barren. "I'm not sure which way is the exit..." He said quietly.

[Skye Connan]

Skye side stepped out from behind Apollus when the door slid away, her drowsiness still plagued her and yet she tried her best not to show it. The hallway ahead of them was long and dimly lit.

“There’s only one way to find out.”

Skye placed her hand on Apollus’ shoulder for support as she gradually passed him. Her first step into the hallway was unsteady and cautious. There didn’t seem to be any immediate danger. She dropped her hand from his shoulder and took another stride into the darkened hall. She turned back to face Apollus.

“Come on, Tough guy. We have nothing to lose now. Let’s see where this goes.”

Skye had grown quite accustom to calling Apollus by her little nickname.

[Apollus Alexei]

"Well then." He secured her hand on his shoulder as she stepped out into the hallway. "I guess we don't." he followed behind her and stepped into the hall. He glanced cautiously behind. The last thing he wanted was a surprise.

They walked slowly and quietly down the hallway, observing the walls, looking for a clue as to where they were and why. Again, he looked back in paranoia. Something sacked his diaphram, he could breathe fine, but something was physically disturbing him. It reminded him of his personal encounter with the Force, but this was slightly different, like when he met Sudoku. The feeling of a strong preseance in the Force.

"Skye, do you feel... I dunno, funny? Like something to do with the Force?" He asked.

[Skye Connan]

Skye faltered at his words, she had never heard Apollus openly confess that he had felt or even used the Force. She eyed her companion questionably, her looked a little...troubled. She turned her gaze down the dark hall, trying to find the best way to answer his question.

"Yes, I do feel 'funny'."

"Ever since I met him" She refered to Sudoku. "I've felt more of the Force, but nothing more that a few caresses. But now...it's different."

She found herself stopping in mid-stride. She scanned the area ahead of them. Something did feel funny and Skye didn't think she face could face whatever it was, right now anyway. A strange sensation was boiling in the back of her mind.

Skye shivered. "It's difficult to explain, this place is empty but so full of emotion at the same time...Apollus....I can feel everything here."

[Apollus Alexei]

"It's almost similar to when I'm around Sudoku and the others... except this is more intense." He said and walked forward. There were stairs coming into view now, hopefully the sign of an exit. He lead the way up, glancing back to see that Skye was still fine and following. The stairs winded up, the floor they were approaching hidden until it was right in front of his face.

It was a hallway that looked more like a really long room. A red carpet covered the center of the stone tile floor. Busts, paintings and benches litterd the sides. He had to admit, it was pleasent change to the plain and dark floor they had just been on. He couldn't say he recognized any of the faces in the paintings and busts. But each one seemed eerily different than any other portrait he had seen before.

He lead the continued exploration of the hallway, he said, "This hallway is huge. I think this whole place is much bigger than I thought."

[Skye Connan]

“I would have to agree. The size of this place is remarkable.”

Skye wandered now but barely straying from Apollus. The paintings were beautifully made, appealing in a certain sense. Each individual painting was encased in a semi-faded golden frame. None of these mosaics showed any sign of aging or decay. By way these were painted Skye would have guessed this place was old…very old.

She continued after Apollus shifting her glances all around until one painting caught her eye. Skye stopped dead in her tracks, just staring at the painting before her. The painting was matted on the wall like all the others, the same golden frame but the person in the illustration was so…familiar. Skye’s heart turned cold at the sight, her mind swimming in memories of her childhood. The painting portrayed a man with tan skin, much like Skye’s, and dark hair. His body posed and strong, there were no faults about the man in the painting.

Without realizing it, a tear slid down her face. Skye hadn’t been completely honest about her past with Apollus. The real reason she left was not because she was ignored…she hadn’t had the heart or courage to tell him in the first place. This picture reminded Skye of the pain she went through as a child being the outlet of torture to her father’s failures. The abuse she faced before she had left…

Skye let her black hair cover her face as she hung her head, trying to rid herself of her past. She watched as her loan tear fell and stained the red carpet beneath her beaded moccasins.

[Apollus Alexei]

Apollus let his hand graze a bust of another face that he didn't recognize. He turned back to see Skye, who now hung her head low.

"Hey..." He whispered. He did not see the tear and put his hand on her shoulder. "Are you alright?" He honestly felt concerned, not in the way that she might loose her restraints again, but in a genuine way. "You look distraught."

[Skye Connan]

Skye cringed away from Apollus and turned her back to him. She wiped away the slightly wet tear stain on her cheek with the back of her hand. The memories in her mind made her shudder.

“I’m sorry. It’s nothing.” She kept her back to him, her voice meek and soft. “That painting brings back…horrible memories.”

She wanted to tell him, but this was not the place to lose herself. It even surprised her how much she trusted Apollus, in the little time they have known each other. Honesty would have to wait for a better time.

“I'm sorry but I can’t talk to you right now…” She raised her head some and sadly trudged down the hall, not bothering to look up from the floor…no telling what other paintings would bring back memories of her childhood.

[Apollus Alexei]

He wished she would just trust him to tell him. She hinted that she might say something later, they were, after all, in a foreign place with no signs that lead to escape. No time to talk, he told himself, there's just not the time. He tried to dismiss his feelings on the subject and for the most part did, but they weren't far from his mind.

creak

He turned around at the slight noise that apparently he had only heard. Skye drudged ahead as he turned around. It was nothing, his imagination perhaps. He caught up to Skye, who apparently refused to look at anything besides the floor. They came to a dead end, the only way to move was left or right. To the right glowed a massive window in the distance. It looked to be the better option when the left hallway was pitch black.

[Skye Connan]

Their journey was mostly spent in silence, at the moment, there was nothing in the galaxy that Skye wanted. Her fatigue gradually wore off. She felt the slightest bit better, if only she hadn’t seen that portrait. As much as she tried, the image wouldn’t leave her mind. Revealing her past was not the best thing for anyone especially herself, after the first few months of angry beatings in her childhood…Skye lost control of her emotions for the first time. That was when she found out that she had a secret connection to the Force.

Skye shook herself, it was dangerous for her to think about how her weakness started. She had already had many experiences involving her past, she didn’t want anything to happen now. Skye didn’t know if her body could handle another episode in such a short time since her last one. Finally looking up, Skye noticed they had come to a dead end…which way to take was obvious.

She headed right, the light in the distance illuminated the hall. Skye focused on trying to be optimistic, she wanted to get out of here. She snuck a glace at Apollus, the look in his eyes confused her, was it…paranoia?

The sensation was acting up again, the back of her head felt like it was on fire…something was not right. Their journey along the hallway to the window was short lived. She gazed out the window, where the hell were they? She pressed her hand against the glass pane, it was so cold. What was this place?

Skye couldn’t believe her eyes.

“Oh gods…” It came from her as a whisper.

[Apollus Alexei]

Korriban was the stuff of stories. It was a far off land without any precise coordinates, distant from every planet within the Empire. Apollus was never a fan of the Jedi versus Sith stories, but he certainly knew of them. Korriban was home to the Sith, the evil Sith. The one's who tortured and maimed children. It was mildly frightening when he was a child, and ironically it was exceptionally frightening at the moment.

He took a sharp inhale as he stared through the window towards where the orange sky met the black earth. "So I guess that makes this the palace." He said without breaking view with the horizon. The window also proved that they were much farther above the ground than he originally thought. Wasn't the medical room in the basement? He never had a strong sense of direction, this being a good example.

[Zereth Lancer]

"Not what you where expecting, is it?" came a disembodied voice from somewhere in the hallway, "I bet you hoped to look out that window and see the deserts of Tatooine, or the grasslands of Dantooine, or even the rising temples of Yavin Four. But no, what you see is a wasteland of tombs, plains of black sand, and cliff faces that rise up into the heavens. Here there is no escape, no where to retreat to, no place to run to for help, and no vessel sitting idle; waiting for you to jump in and fly away," The voice continued.

From an area of thick darkness half way for the hall from the adepts; two specks of red light appeared. One might assume these were just a pair of lights, but the black pupils in the middle revealed that they were not lights, but luminous eyes starring out at the two adepts. A moment of silence went by and then the eyes started to move, coming closer to Apollus and Skye. Out of the shadow stepped Zereth Lancer, the man who had capture the two and brought them here.

Zereth smiled inwardly when he saw the looks of terror in the children's faces. He stood there and watched as Apollus pushed Skye behind himself and pointed a scalpel in Zereth's direction. "There is no need for that," He said, and with a wave of his hand he pulled the medical tool out of the man's hands and pulled it through the air and into his own hand, "I am not here for ill purposes, but to welcome you."

[Skye Connan]

“Actually I’ve grown quite tired of the deserts on Tatooine.”

Skye stepped out from behind Apollus, still attempting to digest what Zereth had just spoken. Her hand gently gripping Apollus’ forearm, as if telling him it’s alright. His protectiveness was making her start to wonder…She turned and gave Apollus a cautious glance, before turning her attention back to the red-eyed Sith in front of them. She was scared no doubt, she reeked of it. She wanted to know why the hell they were here…Skye swallowed the lump of fear in her throat.

“Back on Corellia, why did you chase us? Why are we even here?” If she recalled right, they had been perfectly fine up until the droids and then everything turning into chaos. To top it all off these Sith appeared and screwed everyone over.

Skye didn’t like this Sith, not just because he was the one that caught both her and Apollus but the fact that he seemed so amused by both their fears.

[Apollus Alexei]

Apollus watched as the scalpel tugged out of his hand. This was complete bull, everyone seemed to be able to use the Force at a whim accept him. And the few times he had ever used it, disaster was always a result. INsticnt told him to fight, to reject the situation in front of him.

Skye put her hand on his arm. She told him to relax.

She was asking all the right questions. "What do you want from us?" He added expressing his own frustration. In his mind he asked himself why they were so welcome.

[Zereth Lancer]

"Because I was ordered too, Miss Connan," Zereth said and enjoyed watching the suprise on her face at the mention of her name. True they hadn't revealed their names, but through a little mind probing Zereth had learned their names, but had not had the heart to go any deeper then that. He respected their privacy and wasn't about to dig up their entire life and watch it like a holovid. He would let them reveal themselves as they felt to.

"I really do not understand exactly why Jorshal wanted us to bring you here, I just followed his order and did what I was told. But just know that if we hadn't jumped in then you would be sitting in a little cell waiting for the empire to pick you up and take you away." He walked over to the window and looked out at the land below. This window was one of the few secret, one way, transparisteel windows that they had been installed quite recently, "We really can't have a bunch of rogue force users running around carelessly. Here you are safe from outside force and perhaps you might feel like staying awhile," He turned to face then, leaning against the window and folding his arms, "We have many things to offer you here. Information and training programs that could help you learn to use and control your force abilities, but if you want to leave; there is not anything standing in your way. I'm here to help you, so you have nothing to worry about. I won't harm you unless you give me reason to."

Zereth stretched his hand out towards Apollus, "Zereth Lancer," He said, "Welcome to Korriban."

[Apollus Alexei]

He soaked all the information in as Zereth spoke each word. He wondered if he had much of a choice. When Sudoku showed up and took him in, he wasn't sure if he had a choice then. Everything always seemed forced upon him.

Fortunately for him, Zereth was making his offering in a much less violent way than Sudoku, who roughed him up quite a bit. The were no options to weigh then, and none now.

He had no choice.

He reached out and met Zereth's hand, but he knew it would be a long time before he ever trusted the Sith.

[Skye Connan]

Skye turned toward the window; during Zereth’s speech the idea of running came to her mind. Scanning the black sand land, she realized that there was no chance in escaping this place. Only now she regretted leaving home, out of all the times she could have left regret…not even in prison.

Her complexion darkened. She wasn’t angry at anyone not even the Sith. He had had orders and he followed them. Frustration built in the pit of her stomach, how could she have been so careless to leave even a life as bad as hers was, for this?

Skye placed her hand on the window again; strange the glass was warmer now.

“It appears…that we will be staying.” She said to Zereth, her back still turned away.

[Zereth Lancer]

"A wise choice, Miss Connan," Zereth said, pulled his hand back from Apollus and folding both of his hands behind his back, "I do hope you will do anything thing for us to make you regret it," He smiled; the kind of smile that was not a smile, but baring the teeth in a nice way. "The rest of your comrades are either here or will be arriving shortly," He turned, stood beside Skye and looked out the window again. The view was not anything to be proud of, in fact. it was the kind of view that caused people to board up the window and build a sky light instead.

"Would you care to tell me, Miss Connan, why you reacted as you did when you beheld the painting in the hall a few moments ago?" He asked, turning his head to look down at the young woman. He had already drawn his own conclusion, but he wanted to hear her own explanation, whether truth or lie. Zereth had no idea who the man in the painting was. He was just one of The Sith Order's members, dead and forgotten. Not even the Master of Records could find anything on the man, except that he had been a powerful sith lord.

[Skye Connan]

A spark of anger flickered in her stomach and the numbing sensation started up in her mind. She turned to she Zereth watching her; she looked at him like he just asked her to jump off a cliff. What made him so special to know her abusive past? Rage burned in her hazel eyes. All she knew is she wouldn’t be let off the hook that easily. First she had to settle herself. Taking a deep breath she started…

“The man in the portrait is the spitting image of someone who used to be part of my past life, h-he...” Skye didn’t want to continue, she was on the brink of tears, and also her control was slipping as the picky feeling spread down her neck.

“He is the reason I left home so long ago.” Skye let her head rest on the glass window with a small thud. The thought of her father made her grimace; she realized long ago that he was the only one she feared…so far.

For the second time that day Skye let her emotions go and the tears began to leak silently down her tanned face. It seemed that her tears carried her anger with them, draining the urge to lose herself. It was truly relieving to have all her bottled up rage flow away from her like an emptying river.

[Apollus Alexei]

He put his hand on Skye's shoulder as she began to cry. He stared at Zereth blankly for a moment. From where Apollus stood he could see that the world was much different than he had believed it to be before his own incident with the Force. Nothing was carefree and optimistic, the world was a dark place now. A man with glowing red eyes watched them and next to him a woman was crying.

He didn't know if he should thank Zereth for his hospitality or scream at him for bringing Skye to tears. "Umm..." He began, not sure of what he was going to say. "Is there... Is there a place where we can stay? Some quarters of some type, err... two rooms preferably. Just somewhere for Skye to get some privacy."

[Zereth Lancer]

Zereth starred at Skye, somewhat surprised at her reaction. A crying girl was not something you saw often in the order. The few female members didn't cry, at least not out in the open, because their masters would scold them on such a action. Sure the pain could help fill your body with darkside energy, but its hard to operate when you can't see through the tears.

Zereth's hands opened and closed a few times as he ran scenarios through his head on what might help make her stop crying, but he was far too inexperienced in that area. He turned to Apollus and listened to his question, "Yes, two rooms have already been prepared. Please follow me," He said and then, with a ruffle of his cloak, turned and walked down the hall. Apollus half lead, half dragged the still sobbing Skye as they followed after Zereth.

They came to a flight of stairs leading down. They exited the stair well and walked down a hall, turned a corner, another corner, walked down a few more halls and corridors before stepping into a hallway with several doors on either side, "We just finished digging and constructing these rooms," Zereth said as he led them down the hall, "You and your comrades will all be housed in this wing. So, you don't have to worry about being cut off from them."

He stopped in front of one of the doors and pulled a datapad out of his pocket and browsed through the contents for a moment and then tapped a combination into the lock on the side of the door. The door hissed open and Zereth stepped aside to let the two in, "All the doors possess unique passwords. You'll find a datapad with the combination sitting on your nightstand," He pointed at the square object that rested on the wooden stand beside the bed, "As I said, all the combinations are unique because some of our students and masters are still caught up in the old ways of killing each other, and the privacy of the dorms are the perfect location," He looked around the room. It was modest, but comfortable; with a single bed, nightstand, desk, and a bookcase. There was a small table in the corner with a two chairs at it. A side door led off into the 'fresher, "Please make yourselves at home," He said before looking back down at his datapad and tapping a few things into it. He handed it to Apollus, "You'll find the combination to the door across the hall on this," He stepped back to give the two a little space, "Is there anything else you require or questions you would like to ask?"

[Skye Connan]

(OOC: Sorry for the wait, boy'z)

Even though Skye’s sobs had died off; she couldn’t find her voice. She wiped her eyes and shook her head at Zereth’s question, all she needed right now was to be away from this red-eyed Sith. Skye didn’t trust him even if his generosity was more than anyone had ever given her. Eventually she would thank him but not now, now she need time to think and she needed time to recover.

“I-I’d feel best if I took my leave now.” Skye stated hoarsely as she turned toward the homely room, leaving the two men in her wake. If Apollus wanted to ask any questions it was up to him…but her body was sore and deserved a break for the time being, and she was in definite need of a shower. Skye made her way to the ‘fresher’ in high hopes of feeling better once she reappeared later.

The door slid open and closed with a thud. The room was smaller but it didn’t matter to Skye, it had a mirror and shower; that was all it needed besides other useful necessities. Skye took a long look at herself in the mirror; her nearly black hair was tangled and stringy with no red highlight in sight, there were tear streaks in a thin layer of dirt smearing her face, and she had a large black and purple bruise forming on the side of her jaw…funny she never remembered getting hit in the face. She was about to turned away when her shoulder caught her eye; she had totally forgotten about it up until now. By the looks of it, the wound was infected, there was a thin layer of red greasy skin surrounding the area were she shoulder had been charred. A shower was more of a requirement now than an idea.

Skye stripped out of her clothes and jumped into the shower corner. The warm water was incredible; she didn’t realize how much she missed a hot shower. To her joy, she found a bar of soap and the means to wash her hair. In less than an hour she was crystal clean and actually smelled good, wildflower for that matter. She spent a good amount of her shower time cleaning her shoulder, which stung now, and any other small abrasion in her skin. Skye stepped out of the shower stall and glanced at her clothes piled on the floor, honestly she didn’t want to get dressed in her ripped and torn clothes. She wrapped the only available towel around her body and went to the door; hopefully there was another set of clothing somewhere in the next room and hopefully the two men had left.

Skye poked her head out to the ‘fresher. To her relief both men were no where in sight but strangely her main door was still wide open. She shrugged to herself and took a look around the room; her eyes landing on the dresser. She half jogged to the dresser, pulling open the first drawer and to her astonishment found a pair of black sweatpants and a off-white knitted shirt. She grabbed the clothing a sprinted back to the fresher.

Within minutes Skye emerged again, clothed and clean. She had managed to rip her old skirt into pieces; in doing so she washed them and wrapped her shoulder with the make-shift bandage. The black pants she now wore were baggy and clumped under her feet as she walked. As for her shirt, it was baggy like her pants and the neckline nearly fell off her shoulders. Her hair was finger combed and tied into a lose braid which hung lazily over her right shoulder.

Throwing what was left of her dirty clothing on the floor near the foot of her bed, Skye gladly dropped on the bed itself. It had been nearly seven years since she slept on a real bed. Skye almost immediately forgot about earlier events and fell into a much needed sleep. Not even bothering to close her wide open door to the hallway.

[Apollus Alexei]

Apollus nodded as he watched a shaken Skye enter her room and close the door. Silently he wondered if she was going to be alright, but then again she had proven before to be capable of handling herself.

"Well, thank you." He said quietly, unable to think of anything else to say. "I think I'm going to retire as well."

With that he let his head hang a little as he entered his new room and shut the door.

He too was in much need of a shower and some fresh clothes. He drudged through the motions of cleaning himself in the shower, paying special attention to his crusting wound. Even under the neutral water it burned, but he payed no mind to it. His mind lingered on Skye. They'd been through quite a lot lately. He supposed it was normal. Wasn't it?

He stepped out of the shower and dried off. If only he could find some decent clothes he'd be set... He found a generic set in the dresser. Apparently the Sith had anticipated someone would be staying, or maybe it was standard protocol. He slid into the new clothes and sat down on the small bed. The toll of the past few days was taking itself on him, but he couldn't bring himself to sleep. He still had Skye on his mind.

He stood up and walked out into the hallway. It was as barren as it was when he had first stepped into it with Skye. He turned to the door to his left and noticed it was open. It was Skye's room for sure, he remembered that much. He peered in and saw her lying on the bed.

"Hey, I-" He started when he realized she was asleep. She must be alright then if she can sleep. He stepped out of the room and pulled the door closed quietly behind him. He supposed if she was alright enough to sleep then he might as well sleep too. He walked into his room and collapsed on the bed, instantly surrendering to sleep.

[Skye Connan]

Skye screamed in pain as another large set of knuckles collided with her collarbone. Judging by the loud snap that echoed through the small living room, her collarbone was now broken. As a seven year old, Skye began to sob in extreme pain; her left arm cradled in her lap and a males’ voice could be heard from behind her…

“Shut up! You stupid girl, you deserve everything you get, so stop crying!”

Another shriek left Skye as she was backhanded right across her small face. Her tiny body crumpled onto the ground. This was a daily routine for Skye; wake up, work, eat maybe once or twice, and receive multiple beatings from an unstable father. With her mother and brother dead and her father on the verge of being fired from his job; the beatings only beginning to get worse.

“I told you to stop crying, you useless wench!”

Name calling was something Skye had gotten long used too. Unfortunately his verbal abuse was just as bad as his physical abuse. Skye was trying her best to stop weeping; just to make him stop his rage rampage. She felt herself being hoisted off the living room floor…

“Daddy…stop…please…it h-hurts so bad…my shoulder.”

Her pleas went unheard as usual. Her back hit the wall hard and was forced to the ground again by her father’s fist. This time nothing else came. The seven year old Skye lay broken once again; her body lay motionless but her mind very much alive. Her pain surged through her body never letting up. A twinge of hatred sprung within her child sized heart as the low laughter of her father bounced off the walls. Her mind processed her pain and anger slowly; letting them build.

Through Skye’s blurring vision, she could see her father towering over her bruised and broken body. He laughed, not just at her but at what he had done to her. The pressure in her mind could handle it anymore…a high pitched wailed pierced the air as Skye let go; her fathers’ body flew back and the lamp above her shattered, leaving all in darkness…

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Skye awoke with an unwanted scream of her own; just in time to see one of the steel chairs go soaring across her living quarters and smashing into the lamp across the room. Skye was on the brink of tears, she hadn’t had a nightmare that bad since…probably prison. Whenever she did, her emotions went wild and all of a sudden something would break or go flying in some direction.

Taking a few calming breaths, Skye forced herself to calm down; it was a part of the past and nothing more. The feeling in her room was scaring her. It seemed as if all the energy she had just used hung in the air, haunting her almost. Skye wanted to leave, this place was evil in a sense; she shivered. The cold air in her room was only making her feel worse.

Reluctantly, Skye slipped off of her single bed; dragging along the blanket at the foot of the bed. She wrapped the fabric around her body as she walked over to mess she had unknowingly caused. Silently cursing to herself, she turned the chair upright and managed to pick up most of the shattered lamp. Skye set the broken pieces on the table next to the door to the hall.

Apollus crept into her mind; she wondered what he was up to, if anything at all. After her nightmare she could really use his company, for some reason Apollus made Skye feel safe…maybe even cared for. He was someone she could trust…she wanted to trust him, more than anything actually.

Skye left her room, still wrapped in her soft blanket, in hopes to finding Apollus up and about. She stepped out into the hall and turned to her right; she approached his closed door and gave it an echoing knock. When no one answered, Skye’s spirit fell some, he could be sleeping. She turned to go back to her quarters but stopped on her way in…the aura emanating from her room was strange, evil, it was dark. She honestly didn’t want to stay in her room.

She thought of trying Apollus again but no, if he was sleeping she didn’t want to disturb him. All though she wouldn’t be surprised if he had heard the racket she had caused earlier. Instead she grabbed the datapad Zereth had given both Skye and Apollus from off her desk and closed her door.

Skye settled on the floor in the hall, the soft blanket pulled closely around her. She held the datapad in her lap, maybe the damn thing was worth more than reading; she smiled to herself. She placed the small device on the carpeted floor in front of her, maybe some practice was in order. Shutting out her emotions, Skye concentrated on the small mechanical device, deep down hoping it wouldn’t go flying like her chair.

[Apollus Alexei]

He had only drifted to sleep for but a moment when the knock at his door awakened him. Who was it? He asked himself. Perhaps Skye, maybe, but doubtful. It was probably some Sith wanting to talk to him about he darkside, or doomside as Wil called it.

He sat up and blinked few times, he rubbed the nuisance from his eyes. The Sith palace still held a strange aura for him. It was unlike anything he had experienced... Except maybe during the accident.

He approached the door and opened it slightly, looking for something or someone in the hall. For a moment he found nothing, he opened the door more and looked further.

It was Skye.

She was sitting against the wall between their two rooms looking at the datapad. She seemed uninterested, but looking for a distraction.

"Hey." He said quietly. "Are you alright?"

[Skye Connan]

Skye wasn’t able to do anything to the datapad; she guessed that her night mare took more out of her than she thought. The toll for using the Force was just too high for Skye, it left her weak. In the back of her mind she couldn’t keep the nightmare from her attention.

The sound of Apollus’ voice made her jump; she didn’t expect to see him that soon. She had been so focused on keeping the nightmare away that she hadn’t noticed his door open or even emerge some. Still, she gave him a welcoming smile.

“Hey.” She let the datapad drop in her lap as she pulled the blanket wrapped around her tighter. “I’m doin’ alright. I’m still exhausted from everything that happened earlier and…” She moved her neckline and pointed at her bandaged shoulder. “I’m healing already.” She wondered about Apollus' side wound.

She knew she was looking on the up side of things, but she couldn’t change the tone in her voice. It always betrayed her in these situations. And partly lying to Apollus wasn’t making her feel any better. Maybe it was time to be honest with him.

“Umm…I’m just looking for something to do or someone to talk to.” Admitting things was not what she was good at. Not in the least. She motioned for Apollus to sit by her. His presence was making her feel much better than before.

“I had a nightmare…about my childhood. As a result, I guess I kinda gave a chair flying lessons and broke a lamp in the process. It was strange, I haven’t had a dream quite like that since I was in prison. But I think I has something to do with this place.”

[Apollus Alexei]

He smiled a little when she mentioned throwing the chair. More than once before he had been angry enough to throw things as well. He sat down next to her and leaned against the wall.

"Yeah. This place is... different. I think the whole planet might be this way. It's like what I'd imagine being around ghosts to be like. But the Sith don't seem to be affected..."

So she had a strange childhood, how did that tie in with this place? Why would this place revive haunting dreams? "Maybe its something you haven't owned up to yet, or ended. I mean, I'm not going to pretend I know what your life was like or what you've been through, but maybe this place and recent events have sparked a revival of memories..."

[Skye Connan]

Skye sighed. She wanted to spill her years of secrets to him, she felt in a way she owed him. She did agree that all these events had reminded her of home.

“I think you may be right, what happened the last couple of weeks made me think a lot of home. It may have caused a chain reaction. All this running reminded me of running away from home, home reminded me of my life before I left, that led to my childhood, and my childhood leads to my father…”

She stumbled over her next words. It was truly are for her to talk about life before Tatooine and prison.

“Umm…I lied to you earlier and now I-I suppose I should tell you what really happened before I ran from home.” Skye stretched out her legs, the tension to tell Apollus everything was uncomfortable…he was the first person she would actually tell.

“Well, I was born into a normal family. I was the oldest out of three children…” Skye proceeded to tell Apollus about her family. How everything was pretty much perfect until her mother became ill. Skye and her younger sister, Willow, had to work in order to keep a stable life for their mother’s sickness and their baby brother, Jackel. The illness that plagued her mother gradually got worse to the point where doctors knew Skye’s mother wouldn’t make it.

After her mother’s death, everything went downhill. Her father was devastated and grew emotionally unstable. To make matters worse baby Jackel was getting sick as well. Despite the families’ best efforts, Jackel died within a few months of falling ill. Skye paused during her story; this was harder than she thought.

“My father cracked…he became abusive.” She stated simply. “At first it wasn’t bad, only a few smacks to the face and he left Willow and I alone. But of course the more unstable he was at home the more he grew unstable at work. He would be angry everyday he came back from work and always in the mood for beatings. I received the short end of the stick since I was older; I loved my sister and usually I stood up for her and took the beating scheduled for her.”

Skye stared straight ahead as she spoke. She didn’t think she could stand to see Apollus’ expression.

“All this started when I was five and only progressed as time went on. On several occasions my sister and I both came close to dying; but we both worked together to get through our pain.” Skye wanted to cry now; she remembered all the pain Willow and her went through.

“The nightmare I had was first time I ever experienced the Force. After my daily “punishment” I lost it, much like what happened on the train recently. After that, the beatings became worse for me; now that he knew what I was capable of. Years passed and then I finally couldn’t take it; I left for Tatooine.”

The welled up tears spilled in her hazel eyes down Skye’s face.

“Now that I think back…I can’t believe I left my sister with that monster!” Skye cried for the third time in twenty-four hours.

[Apollus Alexei]

He put his arm around her as she began to cry. Her story was heavy, there was a lot to think about and he wasn't positive of what it was he should say. "Well, we'll go for your sister then." He said and offered some hope that he wasn't entirely sure he could fufill.

"Perhaps there is a way to right some of these wrongs. I'll help you." He promised. "We've got some resources now, the Sith seem accommodating enough. You can make things better."

[Skye Connan]

Apollus’ words comforted her in ways no one could ever imagine. Of all her childhood memories, her sister was the only one that made her happy, but at a cost. Skye took shelter in Apollus’ hope; one day she would find her sister but she knew it wouldn’t be soon.

Skye rested her head gently on Apollus’ shoulder; a few strands of hair falling in her face. She was done crying, she knew by the way her eyes burned. The only thing that had Skye worried was asking the Sith for help; she has and always will be reluctant to ask them for aid…

She stayed like this for a while; her head resting comfortably on his shoulder. It was relieving for her to finally tell someone what had happened to her. She was relieved that Apollus was there to help her if she needed it. She smiled softly and cleared her throat.

“Thank you, Apollus.” Her voice was slightly raspy from all her weeping. “You’re more comforting than you know.”

[Apollus Alexei]

He never had a way with words. They always seemed to trip over themselves rushing out of his mouth. But maybe this wasn't one of those times where he had to say anything at all. He let the moment speak for itself as they sat in silence together.

Finally, she spoke softly and with a bit of rasp, the tears dried from her eyes. "Thank you Apollus. You're more conforting than you know."

"You mean a lot to me." He said quietly, unsure of where this would take him. "I haven't had anyone to go to nor anyone to come to me in far too long. You're someone special and I'm going to look out for you."

[Skye Connan]

A content sigh passed her lips; she was truly touched by Apollus’ words. It felt good to have someone to rely on and visa versa. She tilted her head some to look at Apollus; a coy smile gracing her face. Leaning herself a little closer, she gently brushed her lips against the underside of Apollus’ jaw.

“Thanks again. This means a lot to me.”

Skye’s smile broadened when she pulled away. She was about to say more but was interrupted by the abrupt growling of her stomach. She chuckled to herself, before she pulled out of Apollus’ arm and stood up. She quickly retrieved her datapad, walked to her room, and threw it inside. She turned back to Apollus a bright smile on her lips.

“Well I don’t know about you but I’m gonna go find somewhere I can eat.” She gestured towards her ‘talking’ stomach. She held out her hand out to Apollus to help him up. “Care to join me?”

[Apollus Alexei]

He took her hand and helped himself up with another on the wall. He stood up and smiled. "Of course. Food sounds like a great idea."

[Skye Connan]

A genuine smile graced her lips, her troubles were whisked away. She would have never expected that revealing her past to Apollus would be so comforting to her. Skye kept his hand trap with hers as she began to gently tug him down the hall…her mood had been lightened quite a bit.

She had only gone through a few hall before she finally realized she had no clue where to go. She turned and faced Apollus. She began to laugh…

“I have no idea were I’m going.”

[Apollus Alexei]

OOC: SO yeah, very sorry. I've been so swamped with papers and the like I haven't had much free time at all.

IC: "Yeah, I'm not so sure myself." He said. "But let's head this way." He lead the way through the hallway, carefully studying the walls as if they might provide some clue. "I don't suppose they post maps on the wall, 'Welcome to the Sith Palace: You are here."

[Skye Connan]

Skye couldn’t help but chuckle at Apollus. A sign would be helpful in this place, that was for sure.

“No, I don’t think the Sith have had that many visitors here.”

As they loomed through the halls of the Sith enclave, everything slowly started to cool and darken around them. It made Skye’s senses flare, mentally and physically she was on edge; oh how she hated the Force right now. A small war raged inside her mind, her own true being fought against her ‘other’ side…the side that made her lose control.

Mentally, Skye squirmed under the pressure. It wasn’t the same feeling she had before she lost it, it was strange. It must be something to do with this dark place; all the hate and trickery. Secretly she wanted to know if Apollus could feel it.

The dark empty feel of this place made her restless; it was like the feeling that creeps just under your skin when you walk through a shaded alley that has a dangerous reputation. As the feeling grew so did Skye’s nervousness; her grip on Apollus’ hand tightened considerably. As much as she hated to admit it…she was scared.

[Apollus Alexei]

He could have sworn he saw a person pass by, a dark figure that he only noticed in the corner of his eye as it passed by. No, perhaps his mind was playing tricks on him. That woman he repeatedly saw was a fine example, why couldn't he see other people too... even if they were strangely frightening. But then again, maybe it really was this horrid castle. Maybe it was this whole planet.

He felt the squeeze on his hand tighten. Skye was afraid, but so was he. He took in a deep breath and straightened his spine. Inside, he desperately wanted to assure Skye everything was going to be alright, but yet again, he was at a loss for words. Finally he spoke, "You don't have to be afraid." And why not? "Because..." No reason presented itself and Apollus could have sworn he saw another ghost thing pass by. "Well, other people live here. They're fine. So logically..." Real smooth. He feared it was the worst possible explaination. Sith lived there, they thrived on this stuff.

A scent alerted him to an exit from his horrible assurance to Skye. It was food, unless the Sith roasted beings alive and it happened to smell tasty. Tasty like roast nerf steak... and fresh Naboo greens. A side of noodles smothered in cream sauce. The scents reminded him of home and his short time with Ky's Krew had provided little good food. He glanced at the stairwell, this appeared to be where the scent was coming from. "Well, the food smells great!" He said, taking his mind off the freaky castle, hoping Skye's mind was also at least a little put to rest. "I think it's this way."

They decended down a wide half-spiral staircase until they reached a much less frightening cafeteria, full of the scent of fresh food. He looked around, several young men and women were helping themselves. Nothing looked special about them, Apollus and Skye could easily fit into a crowd unnoticed. "And I think we an help ourselves."

[Skye Connan]

Such a large cafeteria reminded Skye a lot of when she went to school; which she had never finished. Lucky for her all the beatings from her father pushed her to become more advancedthan the rest of her classmates. It seemed lik the higher the grades and better the reports were the lashing dropped a level in pain. Or it just could have been her imagination playing tricks on her.

Skye followed Apollus timidly into the relatively large room. No one seemed to care as they moved across the flat of the cafetorium. Her stomach growled in appreciation as they neared the food. The food here looked like a feast compared to the meals she ate in the last weeks of the Krew. Skye almost forgot about the sense she felt earlier when she picked an apple off a table as they passed by. Instead all her senses filled with hunger.

“Mmm. I think I could eat a full grown bantha.” She directed at Apollus as she chuckled.

And so began her rampage collecting foold from practically every table. Apples, a few biscuts, and a couple strips of some sort of dried meat was just the start.

. . .

After a few minutes, Skye halted her journey of food collecting and took a moment to look around. It surprised her that most of the other people eating were around her age if not two or three years leeway. She knitted her eyebrows together and turned back to Apollus.

“Do you think they are all Sith students?”

[Apollus Alexei]

The steaming hot nerf steak filled his nostrils as Skye asked him the question.

"They could be." He said as he looked at them all. All of them were his age, and they looked pretty fit as if they were training for something. "I think they are. Except maybe no those guys in the corner." He said and nodded off to a table of men dressed in a uniform of sorts. "They look like they might just work here or something.''

Apollus grabbed a cool water for a tub of ice and began to walk away, though keeping an eye on Skye. He didn't want to loose her, especially not in a room full of Sith. Patiently he waited away from the food displays as Skye picked out her dish. Then she joined him as they walked to find a table.

"I had no idea the Sith had this many people." he said. "I mean, I after our run in with the one red eyed one..." He shook off the awful memories. "I thought there'd be a handful at best."

[Skye Connan]

“Maybe most of the Sith aren’t as scary looking as everyone thinks.” She inquired as they found a couple of empty spots to sit. Skye set her tray and sat down across the table from Apollus. “I’m thinking the Sith are somewhat like the Jedi; they look like everyone else until they pull something extrodinary.”

She smiled a bit at the thought of the Jedi and Sith being somewhat alike; it seemed so unreasonable. From all the childhood stories she had heard of both the Force using sides, it sounded impossible for the them to be alike. In tales, the Sith were heartless and blood thristy and the Jedi were generous and kind. But now, Skye saw how similar they could be. She giggled.

“I mean, I kind of use the Force and I don’t look any different than anyone. At least I don’t think I do.” She added before sticking her tongue out playfully.

[Apollus Alexei]

Cuter maybe. No, he dare not say that, friends was good for now. She was the one person he'd grown close to since joining with Sudoku's group, best not to play games with his only security.

"Nah, I guess we fit right in... we normal folk." He smiled. Skye's observations were making sense to him now. He had no idea what a Sith was, other than the red eyed freak was one of them. He didn't know what they stood for, their history... He didn't know anything about them.

What he did know is that seeing such... normal people was relaxing his nerves a little. Granted, his semi-visions of black ghosts weren't disappearing, he still felt a little more at ease. He wondered if she was getting used to this place. Could he stay on Korriban? He didn't know. Was she planning on it? He couldn't say. Worry about it later, he was happy at the moment.

"I wonder how Sudoku and the gang are dealing with this place. I don't think we've seen anyone from the Krew since we got here."

[Skye Connan]

She simply shrugged as contemplated what she was going to devour first. He was right though she hadn’t seen anyone since she had woken up. She was guessing that since they all got separated they were in all different places of the Sith compound or possibly not even at this compound. At this time they could be anywhere, probably on a different planet even.

Skye inspected the apple in her hand as she thought about it. Sudoku had most likely smooth talked his way out of here, Michael, she thought, would be sticking close to Sudoku’s side, Leiko, Sudoku’s sister if she was correct, had died; even though Skye hadn’t known her very well it still pained her to think about the other girls’ death, Apollus and her were stuck here as of now, and then there was Wil.

She snickered after she took a large bite out of her apple at the memories of Wil. He was a character she had never thought about meeting. And he was definitely not the type she would of thought to be Force sensitive. She snickered again.

“Neither have I, but if we are doing alright here, I’m guessing the others are doing fine. I am worried about Wil though, his. . .bubbly. . .personality may not be the best thing here.”

[Apollus Alexei]

He chuckled. "I can see him trying to impress the girls with his awesome doomside powers." Had he even seen Wil exibit any Force use? He couldn't say, he knew the man was Force sensitive but proving so was another story. Then again, maybe he simply accessed it like Apollus or even Skye did, sporatically.

As Skye bit into her apple Apollus turned his attention to his own food. It was going to be nice to have a full belly again. The conversation died down to short observations about how one item was particularly tasty or another wasn't quite what was expected. For the time being, both were satisfied with what food the Sith could provide.

As he set his utencils down on an empty plate his mind began to wander. Riddles of the Jedi and Sith plagued his mind, he knew so little. Kyashi had taught them of the darkside, the way it came across to Apollus was that it was using the Force without restriction. Though Sudoku never really referred to the Darkside the most Apollus had gathered from him was that Sudoku stood on neutral ground. No dark nor light.

"What do you think about, and I quote, the darkside? I mean, Sudoku seems to give it no pleasure of concern. The whole Force thing... is it the right thing to go this way?"

[Skye Connan]

Skye let her eating utensils lay on her tray as she leaned back a little; happy with a full stomach. She was slightly shocked by Apollus’ question; she hadn’t seen it coming at all. It was definitely a question to make her think, she didn’t know anything about the Sith or the Jedi, just childhood tales that were passed down from generation to generation.

She ducked her head in thought; focusing her eyes on the tray in front of her. Skye really didn’t know what she thought about both sides. They were both so opposite, the Jedi and the Sith. But they were also so alike in many ways. They were two pieces that completed each other; like love and hate or friend and enemy. It was all to complex for Skye to fully understand. She raised her head with a sigh and locked eyes with Apollus.

“I can’t really answer that, Apollus. I mean when you think about it, there is and there isn’t a difference between the darkside and the way of the Jedi. They’re so alike but then they are so different. The two sides, the Sith and the Jedi, they complete each other; they are exactly what the other side needs. Just like the Rebellion and the Empire; they are opposites but they still need each other.” Skye shook her head as she explained but still kept her gaze on her companion across from her.

“There really isn’t a side in between the two. I’m guessing you could try to be neutral but I don’t think a person can stay that way for very long. Especially, since the two sides are so strong, one or the other will catch a person’s attention.” She stated with a hint of misery.

“As for me, I don’t know what to think when it comes to the two sides. It seems to me that the Sith take your very last emotion and use that as power, while on the other hand, the Jedi believe your emotions lead you down the path to the darkside . . . I’m thinking this is the right thing for me because I have trouble not using my emotions and not showing my feelings for someone else or something else. I don’t know what kind of person I would be if I couldn’t show or feel love for someone. Or maybe even hate for that matter. I just don't know which way is right for everyone.”

[Apollus Alexei]

"Maybe there isn't a right for everyone..." He mused softly. "I'm sorry for bringing it up, its just something I've been thinking about for a while, since we've become affiliated with the Sith I guess. It's nothing, I'm sure I'll figure it out." He hoped that was enough to put an end to the can of worms he let out.

"Anyway." He said changing the subject. "There's a ton of Palace here, I'm sure they all can't be as creepy those hallways before. Maybe we got roomed in the haunted wing or something." He stood up, standing felt good on a full stomach. "Let's see where that cluster of people is heading." He motioned to the right as a handful of young Sith began to leave the cafeteria and down a hallway.

[Skye Connan]

Skye stood with a stretch as she followed Apollus’ suite; all the while chuckling at his little crack about them being assigned to stay in a haunted wing. She watched as the group of Sith students walked out of the cafeteria, around the corner and out of sight. She was in a good mood now and didn’t really mind another walk; it wouldn’t do her any harm at all.

“Alright, Let’s go. I’m feeling a bit adventurous.” She grinned at Apollus before she picked her tray and brought it to where she had seen other students drop their’s off. She turned back to Apollus and both of them left the cafeteria together. For better or for worse, she didn't know but either way she really didn't care. Her insecruity seemed to drift away.