25

When Saedii woke, she was in chains.

A heavy shackle secured around her right wrist kept her tethered to the ground, while a matching pair around her ankles made it impossible to force them apart. When she gave an experimental flex of her limbs, the raw skin beneath stung in protest.

Saedii groaned and opened her eyes.

All around her, a dark windowless cell slowly came into view. There were no lights inside, only the faint glow from a distant light down the hall that kept it from being total darkness. From the outlines, Saedii was just able to make out the damp stone walls and dull orange door beside her.

She sat up – and couldn't stop the gasp of pain.

All the wounds that had been inflicted on her at Tantis had not been healed. The cut along her shoulder and side, and the deeper one on her back, had been left untreated and throbbed sharply with every breath.

That wasn't a good sign. Krell had inflicted dozens of injuries, but had always allowed her to be healed. To leave her like this hinted at a worse sort of punishment. Something that made a faint layer of sweat break across Saedii's neck.

Cold air bit at the exposed wounds. Saedii shivered as she realized that she no longer wore her Inquisitor leathers – just the black tank top and shorts that had been beneath. Not nearly enough to keep her warm here.

Everything hurt as Saedii inched towards the door. She felt as though she'd been run over by a cruiser. When she reached a hand up to rub at her throbbing temple, crusted blood flaked along her brow.

Slowly, her hand began to trace over the rest of her in the dark. To take stock of her injuries. She hissed as she touched each lightsaber mark, gritting her teeth against the nausea that sat heavy in the back of her throat. Her hair, which had been taken down from the military-style braid she'd worn for Tantiss, hung limp and loose around her shoulders, hiding the circle of bruises around her throat. But when she felt beneath the curtain of her hair all the way to her left shoulder, she stiffened.

Damaged wires pricked against her palm where her prosthetic had been. With her fingers, she traced the outline and discovered that Krell had thoroughly ruined it, ripping it straight from the base. A thin layer of metal was still attached to her, from where Tech had fused a biotech layer. But even that felt like it had been destroyed – whole strips of the biochips had been broken and pulled out. Wires frayed and stripped, dangling like gnarled roots of a tree.

For the second time, Krell had taken her arm.

Saedii swallowed against the rush of emotion. The pain and fear. The dread.

She was a prisoner once again.

Somehow, Saedii knew this time would be worse. Without Omega to control her, Krell would get creative. Would find some new and terrible ways to torture her into compliance. She remembered Kalth's terrified words from weeks ago, of the horrors that waited for them if they were caught.

He can make you see things. Make your memories feel fake, and twist them until you remember something else. Until your mind is shattered and broken.

Is that what Krell would do to her now? Try to twist her mind? To break it?

As Saedii tried to keep her breathing even, her eyes adjusted further to the dark. Outside of her cell, there was another dull orange door across the hall. And beside it, another – though this one looked different. Bubbles rushed past the glass and a shadow waited just at the edge of Saedii's vision.

When she leaned forward to get a better view, her whole body went cold.

Floating inside, mouth open in a perpetual scream, was Zatt. Or his body, at least.

With a terrifying jolt, she realized the Force around her was icy cold and as dark as the deepest pits of space. Shadows moved within it, pulsing around Zatt's dead body. Power flared and beckoned along the hall, lingering like a sick puppet whose strings had been cut and still continued to dance.

Saedii knew where she was.

Krell had taken her to the tombs.

Down the hall, she could sense the dead bodies of the Jedi that had been forever entombed here at the Fortress. Could sense the Dark Side that flocked to their bodies like maggots at a carcass.

Bile rushed up her throat. She jolted to the side.

Tears rushed down her cheeks as she emptied her stomach – nothing more than bile that burned at her throat and her nose. Her coughs echoed far too loud along the empty corridor. Bounced off the tombs of brothers and sisters.

Fear that Saedii had never known flooded her body, making her dizzy. Her hand scraped against the stone as the walls shimmered, nails protesting.

Her conversation with Kalth rang in her ears.

"I have flashes of a room, deep in the dungeons of the Fortress. A stone table. Krell and another strapping me down."

"And then?"

"Then nothing. My mind goes blank."

A shudder raked its way down Saedii's spine.

Something scraped against stone nearby. Saedii flinched, turning back towards the hall. Tensing for whatever horrors Krell had planned for her.

But the hall was empty. No one was there.

It took Saedii a moment to locate the source of the sound. To notice the face that was now pressed against the orange door across from her.

A face that was very much alive.

A woman watched her from the adjacent cell. Short black hair haloed her face, which was gaunt and dirty. Dark skin stretched over her too-sharp cheekbones, somehow looking pallid and grey despite the orange light that gilded against her face. Her eyes – dark and fathomless – were taking Saedii in calmly.

Stained and torn robes hung off her frame. Jedi robes, Saedii realized after a moment. Recognizing them beneath all the grime.

"Are you an Inquisitor?" the woman asked. Her voice was deep. Even. Surprisingly calm.

"No," Saedii answered. Her voice was hoarse.

The woman's eyes took her in. "You wear their colors. The ones that brought you here called you Sister."

"I'm a Jedi," Saedii insisted.

"A Jedi who serves Darth Vader. Who fights for the Empire."

"I didn't do it by choice."

Pity filled those dark eyes. "Most of them don't."

Saedii moved closer, so that she could get a better look. Chains like the ones Saedii bore were closed around the woman's wrists and ankles. Her hands, Saedii noticed, were nothing more than skin and bones. Finger nails cracked and crusted in dried blood. Skin thin and decorated in scabs.

"I recognize you," the woman said suddenly, still without emotion. "You were Plo's Padawan. Aesaedii."

"Saedii."

Cracked lips lifted in a soft smile. "Yes. Little Saedii, he used to call you. He spoke of you often."

Saedii looked closer at the woman's face. Tried to imagine what she would look like if she wasn't so deathly thin. If her skin wasn't so pallid and lifeless.

"I am Master Cere Junda," the woman explained, perhaps realizing what Saedii was trying to do.

The Cere Junda in the cell across from her was nothing like the Cere Junda from Saedii's memories. Master Junda had been a gentle-natured woman. Soft-spoken and with kind eyes, she'd often been found in the Jedi archives, where she spent most of her time reading. Plo had often said that, apart from Master Yoda, Cere Junda was the smartest in the order.

The last time Saedii had seen her had been when she was still a youngling. When she'd visited the younglings at their afternoon training and had offered some kind-worded advice. She'd been healthy then – tall and strong and with eyes that made Saedii feel at ease.

And she hadn't been alone.

Saedii's mouth parted in surprise. "Trilla Sudari's Master?"

All of Saedii's memories of Cere Junda were entwined with flashes of Trilla. The two had been attached at the hip. Moving like limbs attached to the same body.

A flicker of some dark emotion fell over Master Junda's face. "Yes, I was. Though I believe she goes by the Second Sister now."

"How did you get here?"

"Same as you, I imagine. I was hunted and kidnapped. Betrayed by people I thought I could trust."

The gauntness of her cheekbones made Saedii add, "How long ago was that?"

Master Junda wet her lips. "I suppose that depends. How long has it been since Order 66?"

"Almost three years."

Those dark eyes suddenly became pits. Like two blackholes with no end. "Trilla and I were taken a few months after the order fell. I have been here ever since."

The anguish in her voice made Saedii's stomach churn again.

At that, Saedii's hand reached up to touch her chest, thinking briefly of Omega, who had never been on Wayland for long. Saedii had to believe that her friend had been reunited with the Batch. That she was now safe.

Her fingers brushed against something hidden beneath her tank top. Tucked into the compression bra.

Her necklace.

With shaking fingers, Saedii gripped the rock in her palm. She'd been so close to freedom. So close to escaping. To being reunited with her family.

She imagined what it would have been like, had she made it. Imagined taking Kalth to an uninhabited planet, somewhere far away. Imagined sending out the coded distress signals that Tech had taught her. Imagined how it would feel to see the Marauder swooping in from above.

Tears burned at her eyes before she could help it. In her vision, Wrecker's face smiled as he swung her around in a circle. Tech, pushing his way to the front to look at her prosthetic. Echo, gruff but choked with emotion, pulling her in to kiss her forehead. Crosshair, who hates hugs more than anything, pulling her in for a bone-crushing embrace. And Hunter, waiting his turn, letting the others get their reunion before he was able to hug her himself.

It was the vision she'd had thousands of times over the past year, sharper and more painful than ever before. She'd been close. So close. She and Kalth had nearly –

Kalth.

The image of his pale body flashed beneath her eyelids. His stillness. Krell's mocking last words: What a waste.

He couldn't be dead. Saedii hadn't sensed his soul separate into the Force. And even now, as she closed her eyes and let it drift down the hall, she couldn't find his body.

"When they brought me down here," Saedii began fervently, "did they bring another? A boy around my age?"

Master Junda's reply was soft. "No. You were alone."

No.

"Is there another place that they take prisoners? More cells, maybe, somewhere else?"

"I don't know. I have only known this."

"Please," Saedii croaked. Her eyes stung again. "Think. My friend – he was with me when they – when I was –"

"Krell brought only you."

The tears that had threatened slipped. She took in a shuddering breath, gripping harder to the necklace. In her own cell, Master Junda's impassive eyes turned pitying.

Far away, the distant sound of a door opening made Saedii go still.

Quickly, Master Junda hissed, "Whatever is in your hand, hide it. Before they find it. And wipe your tears."

Saedii tucked her necklace back beneath her shirt, but stopped as Master Junda said, "Don't keep it on you. Tuck it into a corner. Quickly."

She did as Master Junda said. In her haste, the leather throng snapped at the back of her neck and she nearly lost it in the dark. Scrambling with her good hand, Saedii swept it into the furthest corner.

Footsteps echoed down the long hall. Each one was like blaster fire to Saedii's chest – harsh and searing. Her heart began to beat erratically in her chest.

"Calm now, little one," Master Junda whispered so quietly that Saedii nearly missed it.

The breath in Saedii's lungs slowed. She made an effort to clench her trembling hand. When her hand wiped the tears from her cheeks, it no longer shook.

Into the dim light, Krell emerged with his hands clasped behind his back. Behind him, the Second Sister lingered, face turned in Cere Junda's direction. Master Junda stared back unflinchingly.

"Comfortable, Jedi?" Krell commented.

Saedii held up her chin defiantly, but said nothing.

"You'll notice this cell is far different than your last. In light of recent events, I believe this will suit you better."

The Second Sister snorted a laugh.

"All of your previous privileges have been revoked. There will be no more leaving the planet. No more lightsaber training. No more eating in my hall. Only this cell and your chains," Krell continued.

She had lived through worse. She would survive this.

As if he sensed her thoughts, Krell added, "Last time, you were given the choice to fight for the Empire. Now, you will not. Darth Vader has ordered you to serve, and serve you will. Whether you want to or not."

"I won't," Saedii finally said.

"You will. Once I am done with you, the black mantle of the Inquisitors will be the only thing you know. Everything you live for."

Something cold danced along Saedii's spine. A bead of sweat.

"Just ask the Second Sister. She was afforded the same training." Krell gestured to her, waiting obediently behind him. Smiling like a ravenous dog waiting for an order from its master. "We are very effective."

That thought was even more terrifying than what Kalth had warned her about. Trilla was absolutely devoted to the Inquisitors. Obedient and bloodthirsty. How had Krell turned her from a Jedi into that?

"Not always," a low, carrying voice said.

Krell and the Second Sister turned, smirking at the defiant gaze of Master Junda.

"Every flower blooms in its own time. You taught me that lesson," the Second Sister said, sickly sweet. "Your time will come, Master."

Master Junda's expression was unreadable.

"Where's Kalth?" Saedii demanded.

Krell turned back to her, smile falling. "Your friend is dead. Your little rescue plan lost me an Inquisitor."

Dead.

It felt as though a lightsaber had stabbed through her chest. An aching sort of pain throbbed against her breastbone, as sharp as the blades that had cut her skin. The breath in her lungs caught and she choked before she could help it.

Kalth couldn't be dead.

"In fact, your rescue plan was a complete failure. The little Clone you worked so hard to save has been dead a long time," Krell continued.

No.

No, he was lying.

Omega wasn't...she couldn't be...

"Her ship was shot down in its attempt to leave Wayland's airspace," Krell spat, flashing his teeth. "She never left the planet."

"No," Saedii choked. The walls of her cell began to spin. What little breath she'd had only moments before evaporated in her chest.

The look Krell gave her was like a chastising parent. Like he was merely sending her to her room. "Let that be a lesson for you. Escape is not possible. You will never leave the Fortress. Not alive, at least."

A low ringing sound was echoing in her ears, growing louder. Her head felt too heavy for her shoulders and she fell back onto her forearm, head bowed towards the floor. The stone was cold against the flushed, sweaty expanse of her skin.

Krell said something else, but Saedii didn't hear it. She was too lost. Her mind spun like a wormhole, threatening to consume her whole.

Kalth and Omega – both dead.

Because of her.

It was her fault. All her fault. Everything. All of it.

If only she hadn't tried. If she'd just been content to let it go – to continue to serve beneath Krell's thumb. To be obedient –

"Saedii!"

A grating voice tore through the shroud of panic and misery that weighed Saedii down. She blinked, panting. Tears pooling along the bridge of her nose.

The hall beside her was empty. Krell and the Second Sister were gone.

"Krell lies," Master Junda's voice hissed across the empty hallway. She was pressed against her cell door, stern eyes on Saedii as she crumbled beneath the weight of her grief. "You cannot trust him. His words are poison. He hopes to kill you with them slowly. To eat away at you from the inside until there's nothing left."

It was working. It felt like acid had been injected into her veins, melting away at her veins and her heart.

Kalth and Omega. Gone.

"He's trying to break you, little one. Don't let him," Master Junda ordered.

Saedii finally found her voice. "He already has."

"No, he hasn't. Look at me."

Saedii did, even though she didn't know how she found the strength for it. From behind her cell door, Master Junda's eyes were suddenly blazing with determination. The most emotion Saedii had seen from her yet.

"Only last week, Krell told me there were no more Jedi left. That I was the last. And then you showed up. What does that tell you?"

Word by word, Master Junda's statement began to sink past the ravening cloud of thoughts suffocating Saedii. Cutting through the layers of panic and grief and sadness.

Master Junda's lips were pale. "That is what he does down here. He feeds you lies until you crumble beneath them and give in. It's what he did to Trilla and what he's tried to do with me for years."

Saedii forced herself to breathe. To think. "Nala Se said that Omega escaped. That she was alive."

"There you go. Just think and breathe."

Omega might not be dead. Nala Se had been sure that she'd escaped with the help of the Batch.

Unless they were all shot down.

Saedii forced the thought away. That was what Krell wanted – he wanted her anguished. Distraught. Then she would be easy to break.

Omega couldn't be dead. And if Omega wasn't dead, then maybe there was hope for Kalth.

Finally, the erratic beating of her heart slowed. The terrible crushing weight of panic retreated and the tears stopped flowing on her cheeks. Saedii blinked and sat up.

"You're alright," Master Junda said approvingly. "You have to be strong down here. Krell feeds on your guilt. Your fear. He uses those emotions to twist your mind until you don't remember who you are anymore."

"How?" Saedii asked. Choked, was more like it.

Master Junda rubbed at her chest. "Even after all this time, I don't know how it works. My memories of that room are...clouded. All I know is that he can make you see things. Feel things. Things that aren't real but feel like they are."

Saedii suddenly remembered another time where she'd seen things – in a cave back on Ord Mantell. Where she'd seen images of Krell and Kalth and Plo. Things that weren't real but had nearly cost her life.

"You can't let yourself feel strong emotions. It will make it too easy for him," Master Junda continued.

"I don't know how to stop," Saedii admitted, feeling incredibly weak as she did so. "I feel so unbalanced."

So afraid.

So weak and helpless and lonely.

All she'd had left had been used to save Omega – and had been for nothing. Now, there wasn't anything left.

"What was that thing you were holding earlier? That you hid in the corner?" Master Junda's voice was suddenly eager. A spark of hope.

Saedii reached out for it. "A necklace."

When she found it, Saedii pulled it tightly into the closed cage of her fist and squeezed as hard as she could. As if the harder she tried to crush it, the sooner this nightmare would be over.

"A necklace." The spark of hope died in Master Junda's voice. She sighed. "Of course. They never would have let you keep anything of value."

"This necklace is valuable. To me, at least." Saedii ran her thumb along the rough face, feeling the uneven edges. It made her think of Omega.

Master Junda rubbed the inside crease of her elbow, hidden beneath the wilted and frayed layers of her Jedi robes. "Then you will need to keep it hidden. If Krell finds it, he will take it from you."

At the thought of losing her necklace – her only tie to Omega, to Hunter and the boys, to her life outside of these walls – a low tremor ran along her shoulders. Saedii curled herself around the rock in her palm.

"Master Junda –"

"Just Cere, little one," Master Junda said, and the sound of a faint smile in her voice made Saedii feel even more at ease. "Down here, there are no Masters or Padawans. Only survivors."

"Cere," Saedii amended. "Do you know if there are any other survivors? Any others down here beside you and me?"

Cere hesitated. "There have been others...but they have not lasted long. Perhaps a week at most. I am the only one who has endured."

A week. Was that all that Saedii had down here? A week before her mind was shattered and broken?

"You will survive," Cere insisted, sensing Saedii's distress. "You are strong."

No, she had been strong. Once.

Now, Saedii was broken.