1

i decided to post the first five chapters early in honor of the holiday! 🎉 

happy labor day batchers 💫 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The training room at Fortress Inquisitorious was daunting.

Made of the same black stone as the rest of the fortress, it had the feeling of being consumed by a black hole. Like all the light died as soon as it met the threshold of the room. Even with the dim red strips that glowed along the floors, it felt like they were in the deepest, most remote reaches of space.

Saedii stood obediently at Krell's side. Waiting for his order.

In her time here, she had learned the hard way that her new master liked his orders followed immediately. That he wouldn't repeat himself. Saedii did what she could to ensure his orders were followed.

This morning, Krell seemed to be in a lighter mood than usual. A dangerous little smirk hovered around his lips, and every time he looked at her, his bad eye would crinkle in anticipation.

He had something bad planned this morning.

In front of her, Saedii's hands were bound with binders. Callouses had formed along her wrists from wear and dark purple scars traced where blisters had repeatedly burst. Krell kept them intentionally tight. Made her wear them every moment of the day to remind her that, while she was here and wearing the black clothes, she was still his prisoner.

As if she could have forgotten.

Around the room, shadows moved. Other Inquisitors coming to watch. Their training sessions were usually in private. A special kind of torture designed just for Saedii. She fought to keep the unease from her face as she pretended that the sight of the other Inquisitors didn't bother her.

"Do you know what today is, Apprentice?" Krell asked her, voice deceptively calm.

The shadows along the walls whispered to each other. From behind her, the weight of one gaze in particular seemed to sear between her shoulder blades. A certain icy blue gaze that always seemed to follow her. But she was aware of only the one – the black stare that was hidden behind thick, opaque glass far above.

Saedii kept her gaze far away. Made her expression and her voice blank as she responded, "No, Master."

Master. It was how he liked to be addressed. Like he was mocking her.

Saedii hated that she had to call him that.

Traitor, a voice said in her mind. He is not your master.

Krell stepped in front of her, leaning down so she could see him. "It's nearly been a year since you've joined us."

A year.

The words echoed in Saedii's mind. One year. One year wasted. One year of my life – gone.

It didn't seem possible. Time felt different here, deep in the bowels of the Fortress. A year didn't seem long enough. It felt like she'd been here an eternity – like she'd been born and raised in darkness. Sometimes, it even felt like her life outside of these walls had all been nothing but a dream.

She resisted the urge to brush her necklace, which remained hidden under her shirt. It was the only sign that her life had been real. That this, here, was the nightmare and not the other way around. That there was something better waiting for her beyond these black walls. It was the only thing that gave her hope.

"Do you know what that means?"

"No, Master."

His smile widened. "It means it's time for your initiation."

It took all of Saedii's grit from the past year to keep the anxiety from her face. Ever since he'd first tossed her in the training pit, Krell had taunted her about her upcoming initiation. He hadn't said a word to what it might entail, but he'd implied that it would be brutal. A test of some kind.

A test he had designed for her to fail.

Krell often gave Saedii impossible tasks, but she knew this would be different. Worse.

Fail. Fight back, that voice demanded. You are not an Inquisitor. You are a Jedi. Jedi do not give up.

But she couldn't. Failure would result in her death.

And Omega's.

She waited for his instruction. In the past year, she'd learned not to speak out of turn. To not ask questions. Krell had no patience for it. In her first week, he'd beaten her for asking to remove her binders for training – so badly that she'd had to see a medical droid to save the vision in her right eye. She hadn't asked a question since.

"Did you know that you are not the only initiate that we have been training?" Krell asked lightly.

Across the room, another black clad figure was ushered forward. This one, like her, was not in the black leather of the Inquisitors, but in the same simple black shirt and pants that Saedii wore.

He was taller than her. Broader, too. Pale green skin reflected off the dome of his shaved head, following a line of black tattoos that traced down and disappeared into the neck of his shirt. A matching one dipped from beneath his wide, dark green lips and down his chin, following the line of his throat. A Mirialan male.

With a jolt, Saedii recognized him. Jek Dekkara – a Jedi Knight that had served as Padawan to Master Voolvif Monn throughout the Clone Wars. He'd been several years ahead of her at the Temple, but he'd often visited the younglings, much like Saedii and Kalth had.

If Jek recognized her, he didn't show it. His expression was eerily cold and detached. Determined.

"Initiate Dekkara has trained the past year under the First Brother's guidance," Krell explained in a sick sort of glee. "He, too, is ready to take on the mantel of the Inquisitors."

Saedii already had an idea of what they wanted. Of what was about to happen.

Refuse. Fight back.

Krell's smile widened. "The Inquisitors only have room for one of you. In order to determine the best initiate, you will participate in trial by combat. The victor will assume the mantel of our newest brother...or sister."

Jek looked Saedii over and smiled – a cruel sight.

She took a moment to look him over as well – searching for weaknesses to exploit, just like Krell had taught her. He was bigger than she, but Saedii was sure she'd be faster. He seemed to favor his left foot, as well.

While Krell had taken a sick pleasure in hurting her over the past year, he had taught her, as well. Perhaps unintentionally. Every hurt that he'd inflicted had been a lesson, and Saedii was a quick learner. Without a doubt, she knew that she was the better duelist. The more cunning of the two.

And she'd be fighting for more than her own life.

Traitor, her own voice hissed in her head. Jedi do not fight their own.

Krell removed her binders and handed her a lightsaber. It was different than the one she'd trained with – just a single red blade. When Jek ignited his own, he had a double blade with a moving pommel. An advantage.

Behind her, Kalth's gaze burned against her skin. She ignored it.

As Krell stepped away, a red dome of light encapsulated the two initiates. From the other side, Krell clasped his hands behind his back and said, in a lazy, off-hand kind of way, "This battle will be to the death. Inquisitors do not show mercy."

No mercy.

It was the same lesson that Krell had taught her over and over – as he'd beaten her and broken her spirit again and again. As he'd stood above her – Saedii bloodied and bruised – and taunted the ways that he'd hurt Omega for her failures if she didn't get up. As he'd demeaned her – told her she was nothing, that she would fail, that Omega would die and it would be her fault.

Saedii straightened. If it was no mercy he wanted to see, then she'd show him. She knew a thing or two about being merciless.

Traitor.

In front of her, Jek took a slow, lazy step to the left. He was confident – already convinced that he'd win.

But Saedii had endured worse than him. Had spent every last moment of this past year fighting for not just her life, but Omega's.

She'd be damned if she let him win.

Jek jumped forward, going for an aggressive press. Saedii had anticipated it and ducked beneath his swing, coming up behind him to punch him across the face. Hard.

Blood squirted from Jek's nose. He stumbled back a step, looking at her in surprise. Perhaps he hadn't expected her to be to fast. Or to go for a quick counter attack.

Saedii leaped forward, striking so fast that her lightsaber was a wave of red light before her. Jek frowned as he fought to drive her off – surprised once again. This time by her ferocity.

She was relentless, swinging hard and fast. This kind of fighting was nothing like what she'd done with Ahsoka and Anakin and Obi-Wan. That had been a dance – moving gracefully between defensive and offensive forms.

This was brutal. Savage. Merciless – just as Krell had demanded.

Jek stumbled back before her, trying to keep up. But speed was not his strength, and though he was far stronger than Saedii, he could not keep up with her. He grunted in anger as she drove him back towards the wall of light before kicking out, striking him in the chest.

The Force launched him into the wall, so hard that the lighted dome shivered around them. Jek rubbed at the back of his head and his hand came away slick with blood.

Moving before he could recover, Saedii leapt high, swinging down towards Jek's head. He dodged at the last moment and a shower of red sparks danced as Saedii's blade connected with the dome of light.

Spinning, Jek tried to take advantage of Saedii's miss. But she had anticipated his move. Had known that, the moment he saw her back, he would strike. She easily ducked beneath his swing and swung her blade.

A terrible scream bounced inside of the dome as Jek's blood pooled from the strike at his side. It was deep enough that Saedii could see she'd grazed his hip and rib bones – white flashes in the otherwise dark space. The putrid scent of burned flesh filled her nose.

Murderer, the voice in her head shouted. Butcher. Assassin.

As Saedii went to deliver another blow, something yanked at her foot, sending her to the ground. She glanced up, only just masking her fury as she found Krell with a hand out. His eyes glittered with mischief as he knew she'd caught him.

Jek's knee came up to collide with her face. Pain exploded along her cheek. Down her nose and lips. She tried to scramble back, but he landed another blow, this time with his foot. Blackness danced at the edge of her vision as she belly flopped onto the ground.

Get up!

It was her only thought – drowning out the negative voice that had heckled her the past few minutes. Saedii flung her body to the side, rolling. Light scraped against stone behind her, sending more sparks into the air.

Saedii flipped up onto her feet, taking an uneasy step to balance herself. Her head spun from the blow. Face throbbing. But she gritted her teeth and slid down into a ready position, facing Jek as he approached, one hand clamped tightly to his bleeding side.

He swung at her with too much force – overcompensating for his wound. Saedii moved out of the way, slipping beneath his reach to land a devastating kick to the side of his knee.

Bone crunched. Jek dropped to the floor, a hand bracing the side of his misshapen leg.

From outside the dome, Krell's smile widened. He was enjoying this – enjoying watching Saedii be ruthless and cruel. Taunting her prey. It was everything that he'd taught her in the past year.

Buried deep down, Saedii's instincts screamed at her. This was an opponent who was already down. She'd won. She needed to stop.

But to stop would mean Omega's death.

"Wait!" Jek said, desperate. He held his hands up, pleading. "Saedii, please! I know you!"

Saedii said nothing. Only watched as he held his blade before him, spinning it so it created a shield of impenetrable light.

Then, with a quick flick of her blade, she struck. Another scream split the air as Jek's hand fell to the ground. His lightsaber tumbled out of the grasp of his severed hand, metal bouncing against stone, before the blades fizzled out and went dark.

Her cold eyes slid up to his. He began to cry.

"Don't kill me!" Jek begged.

A voice deep inside echoed his pleas. He's innocent. Unarmed. A friend. Jedi do not harm the innocent.

Her body stilled for just a moment.

But then she looked up and met Krell's eyes. Saw the promise there – the desire for her to fail.

Showing mercy would earn Omega pain. Failure would earn her death.

Saedii silenced the voice in her head and lunged.

Her blade stabbed through Jek's chest, right where his heart would have been. A surprised gasp whistled from between his teeth, and his mouth hung open in shock. As if he couldn't believe that she'd actually done it.

Somewhere deep in her gut, something churned. An emotion that stung. Saedii buried it deep, refusing to look away as Jek's hands reached up for the blade in his chest.

When she yanked it out, dark green blood pooled down his chest. Thin trails of smoke slithered out from his skin and he coughed, splashing blood along Saedii's pants and shoes. One hand reached up towards her, shaking.

Then, he dropped to the floor. Dead.

Saedii disengaged her lightsaber, waiting for Krell's next move. Around the room, the shadowy forms of the Inquisitors began to whisper excitedly. Their voices rose like the hissing of snakes.

The dome disappeared. Krell observed her, mouth quirked to one side.

"Well done," he said coolly. "Sister."

Sister.

The word stabbed deep between her ribs. Pierced her heart so deep that a blade could never reach. Sliced right into her soul.

It was the moment she'd dreaded all year. The moment where Krell finally promoted her into their ranks. When she officially became what she hated most.

The First Brother reached over and took the lightsaber from her. It took every ounce of strength that Saedii had not to ball her hands up. To carefully hide the turmoil that raged in her gut. Blood dripped down from her nose. From her lip.

"Kneel," Krell said as he stepped before her.

Thoughts of Omega wound through her head – the only thought as her knees dropped to the stone and Jek's warm blood soaked through the fabric of her pants. She kept her eyes purposefully forward, unable to look at the body beside her.

The body of an innocent man.

A man that she'd killed.

Omega. Think of Omega.

Krell reached down and scooped a handful of Jek's blood, holding it above Saedii's head so that it saturated into her hair. Dripped down her forehead and into her face.

A memory flashed before her – of Jek visiting the younglings when he'd been promoted to Padawan. Showing Saedii his braid. Smiling as he pulled her up on his shoulders so that she could hold it in her hands and look at the silver beads within it.

She'd killed him. A man she'd liked.

Murderer.

Her gut churned. Something burned behind her eyes.

Omega. It's all for Omega.

She steadied, tipping her head back as Krell placed a bloodied hand on her forehead. As he announced to the room, "Today, we welcome another sister to our ranks."

Traitor, a voice whispered harshly in her head. It was her voice. Murderer. Betrayer.

It was for Omega, she argued back. Trying to drown out the sound of her own disappointment. Her own shame.

The other Inquisitors fell silent as Krell pulled his hand away. As he smiled down at Saedii, all cruelty and triumph.

"Welcome to the Inquisitors, Twelfth Sister."