Recovering Power

[Alice Di Scarra]

Socorro (http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Socorro/Legends)

The headache hit her again, almost forcing her to rest her back against the dirty wall of the back alley she had been walking down, an unknown figure among countless others. Alice (http://p1cdn04.thewrap.com/images/2014/11/gotham-41.jpg) didn't allow her body to betray her though. She rooted herself in the Dark Side, letting its familiar sensation permeate every cell in her body. She let a long exhale pass through her lips. She kept moving forward, her internal issues unseen to others around her. She was barely scratching the surface of the new galaxy she found herself in. Awakening from her centuries spent in cry-stasis had been a welcome experience but anger was burning in her soul for so many reasons. She didn't care so much about starting over for the one meaningful bond she had ever forged had slipped through her grasp as she had held her master in her arms as Aksara Siron rendered her last breath on the battleground, moments before the Sith Knight got captured by outnumbering Jedi. She hated being likely unable to ever get her revenge on her late mentor's assassins.

When a large Wookiee almost tossed her into a wall as he passed her by, wanting her to make space for him, she had to restrain herself not to choke him with the Force. She knew better already though. Having been at the margins since her escape from the complex, it hadn't taken her long to realize that Force users weren't so widespread and especially not so obvious about their identity in this new universe. She had been foggy and rusty at first, so she hadn't revealed herself by accident, a blessing in disguise. And the few victims she had had, the killing had happened in the deep of the night on a remote moon at the edge of known space.

"Watch where you're going," she hissed in a naturally commanding tone. Bystanders stared at her, expecting the Wookiee to tear her a new one. Even without the Force, Alice had been trained as a warrior from a young age and survival instincts had been first to kick in when she had come back to her senses and found out about her new epoch. He tried to grab at her neck, but she was swifter and gutted him with a large vibroblade she had acquired shortly after waking up. She stabbed quickly and repeatedly. Given how many brawls of the kinds she had seen in that violent and lawless area, people turned a blind eye to it and a couple of scum actually gave her a nod before stepping back.

She gave a few more looks around and then walked away, as if she had just done the most normal thing. In a way, especially for her current settings, she indeed had. She yearned to go back to Malrev IV to investigate her ancient domain and see whether the vaults hidden so deep still held any of her riches and belongings. She wanted to start again but she knew that she had to be clever about it and be organized, quench her impatience and use her devious mind to come up with a solid plan.

[Alice Di Scarra]

Besides the fact that she had made sure to get her hands on practical gear, Alice had always preferred such things. Not only had she been physically trained since her childhood, but her late Sith mentor had definitely added to her liking of combat-ready outfits. A pang of pain stabbed her at the memory of her trainer. Instead of pushing it away as some light sider might be inclined to do, she feasted on it, letting it sharpen her focus. She had to find better means of transportation for herself and she also needed credits, at least enough to make it back to her family's old property, if the place still stood.

Everything was new and yet fully deja-vu. Politics changed, and some technology and scientific knowledge did, but the galaxy hadn't so drastically changed in sight and sounds in her long sleep. Yet navigating the new landscape proved a little more challenging than expected and it irked her. She was grateful she had gathered early on that for the most part Force users laid low, which was enraging but a reality she had to put up with. She had learned predatory patience from a young age, and it was going to prove the rightful opportunity to embrace it, regardless of how her blood may boil when pathetic creatures got in her way. She longed for being able to make poisons again, once she got an appropriate lab for such practices.

The market area hadn't proved very fruitful for the time being, and she decided to venture further. Cantinas and other shady establishments had always been hives of information. Who knew what she might find, especially since Socorro seemed to have a very lively underworld.

[Alice Di Scarra]

<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <o:OfficeDocumentSettings> <o:AllowPNG/> </o:OfficeDocumentSettings> </xml><![endif]--> Alice liked a challenge. She welcomed hurdles as lessons to hone her anger and magnify her rage into weapons of refinement. She didn't mind having to be patient when it came to certain things, as an appropriate buildup provided for the most magnificent release. Yet she would be lying if she preached any enjoyment into the mess that this galaxy was. Distant worlds had always been swamped with scum and other low lives. Some could be useful before being discarded, but not all could even claim such a trivial use. Only Sith novices could find a feeling of achievement for killing insignificant preys.

She longed for finding resources to delve into herbalism again. Poison making and assorted creations had been her forte, besides being a worthy predator which had seen her rise among the dark ranks. So far, the disgusting rocks she had set foot on had been useless in such pursuits. It annoyed her and she wanted to get out. She could have just gone to a nearby spaceport and stolen a ship, but if she could glean some information about the grand scheme of things, it wouldn’t hurt. Her patience was wearing thin, even with her potent knowledge of how it could pay off. The dizziness of hibernation had since long worn off but she still felt restless.

Ruminating, the athletic brunette entered a cantina when she felt the tug of the Force. She didn’t know what it might mean, but she would take the bait without the shadow of a doubt.

“Hello sexy,” a gruff voice interjected. The moment a wandering hand reached to her butt, Alice lashed out in a feline manner. Slender but strong fingers wrapped around the man’s throat. She raised a brow as he turned out to be quite a handsome humanoid.

“Buy me a drink and you may keep your hand.” She released her grip and he stared at her. “For now,” she added with a grin. Men were often way more easy to manipulate than women, although she didn’t mind using her persuasive – or barbaric – talents with any gender.

[Alice Di Scarra]

After a couple of hours spent in the cantina, and a few paid drinks, Alice was growing frustrated. She knew the Force had guided her to this place. She might have spent centuries stuck in cryo-stasis, but she was still well-trained in the ways of the Dark Side, and she wasn't rusty as hell. She yearned to make it back to Malrev IV to get her belongings back, and be hopefully able to start anew. She hadn't had found much about the goods she had and how to regain the familial property but she would figure things out. She had kept much hidden on Malrev IV, and she was already wondering about the current state of Drogheda Citadel, where her family had once held a position of power. The new opportunities were exhilarating despite how annoying waking up in a universe where Sith held little to no power at least on a public level. It was a weird time to be alive, but Alice would make the best of it. She had survived wars, so a new place and era shouldn't be too much for her to handle.

She had managed not to end in any fight so far but she was growing bored. Yet, war had taught her to wait for the right time to strike at times, and herbalism and poison making had been among the best teachers of patience. It didn't mean she had to like it though.

At some point, she eyeballed an alien woman exiting the place. She had watched this patron on and off, without speaking to her, but this time, Alice decided to follow her out. It was nighttime now, which would mean the hunt would be even easier, maybe too easy...

[Alice Di Scarra]

Following the other woman was easy, especially as the street lights were far and few. Most people minded their own business, and quite a few of them were already full of liquor. Alice actually hoped that the woman owned a good ship she could steal. She wasn't the most skilled pilot in the galaxy but she knew how to fly well enough. And having to rely on public transports and expensive pilots weren't much to her liking. She had already stolen enough stuff to make do and go from one place to another but she was tired of it. She had hoped that Socorro, a not totally planned destination, would provide new resources.

The humanoid headed to a nearby small spaceport. This area of town was such a mess that a formal spaceport wasn't much of a thing. It was fine with the Sith. She sneaked her way towards the woman's ship, and smiled to herself as the humanoid lowered the boarding ramp and climbed up inside. Without hesitation, Alice rushed to get aboard before the board closed again. It was a medium-sized freighter, which was exactly what she needed. A fighter would have been problematic and required yet another stop because Alice knew that a small space craft would not hold all her belongings, should she find them as expected back on Malrev IV.

Her progress was short lived though, because as soon as she got aboard, she felt her arms pulled behind her, and she winced under the pain, taking it in to heighten her senses.

"What have we here?" The humanoid captain came back into the hallway and stared at her, kind of amused. "I don't think you want to mess with my Redux. He's a mean assassin droid...."

Droids.... Those mechanical devils were impossible to bloody sense. She should have thought it further. She was cursing herself, she managed to get a glimpse of the thing that looked liked a darn HK. Those were already old by the time she was first around the galaxy.

"I didn't know those were still running...." The droid gripped tighter.

"Let's talk," her unexpected hostess stated.

[Alice Di Scarra]

Alice silently assessed the situation. There was no other living beings besides the other woman, the stupid droid, and herself. Close quarters would give her only so much room to move and get herself out of this mess. Yet the Sith had no doubt she would be successful. Despite a beginner's mistake - which was enraging, it was but a minor impediment.

"I would ask your room or mine, but we're aboard your ship, for now." The brunette's piercing gaze traveled across the ship captain's silhouette, expressing genuine appreciation, with a touch of darkness to make her behavior all the more persuasive.

The other woman blushed but straightened up. "I'm not into women, but thank you."

She nodded to the droid that gripped tighter.

"Your loss, really. I tried to make it a sweeter pill than it could be."

The woman reached for a vibro blade at her side. "I don't like trespassers. You'd better have some cash to make my day worth this intrusion."

Alice's annoyance and wounded pride were done with this mess. She let her anger imbue her muscles and she pivoted at once, able to turn her back with the droid behind her towards the ship's captain. The three of them went to hit the nearby wall. She used the brief puzzlement of the HK to get free.

The droid already had his weapons up, but she grabbed it quicker than he could move and she tore its mechanical arms off. The time it took her to give attention to the droid though offered the other woman the opening to stab Alice into her thigh. The brunette felt the twist of the blade into her flesh and fell to the ground.

[Alice Di Scarra]

The sharp pain was what Alice needed. It was the final touch to toss all cobwebs of rustiness into oblivion. Alice was better than such pitiful mistakes. She had been trained in harsh and life-threatening conditions and she had to get back to her own level. A look of monstrous pleasure reached her bright eyes as she grabbed the captain's hand and pushed the blade deeper into her own flesh, the pain magnifying her senses. It also took the ship's captain by surprise. She stared in disbelief at the brunette.

It was all that the Sith needed, this time wasting no time. She pushed the woman hard against the hallway floor, almost knocking her unconscious. She took the weapon out of her thigh, the pain throbbing harshly. The ship captain grabbed her blaster, mumbling some nonsense about the mad woman in front of her. There could be madness in embracing the darkness, but above all, there was liberation, a breaking of chains that only the boldest favored.

Clenching her teeth under the searing pain, Alice instinctively relied on the Force to rip the blaster off of the other woman's grip. The weapon hit the damaged droid.

Alice propelled herself forward, landing atop the captain.

"Who are you?"

Alice grabbed the woman's throat and leaned close to her face, until her breath caressed the other woman's lips. "The new captain of this rust bucket, lovely."

She crashed her mouth into the captain's, devouring her in a kiss of death as the Sith crushed her victim's throat.