Saving Sinya (Observer) [Sleheyron]

[Lemur, The Kool-Aid Guy]

It was late at night in Loro the Hutt's palace. Not the phase of the night when wild parties of debauchery were taking place, but the still and silent period afterwards, when every soul was asleep save for the guards. Well, the guards and Sinya'anu.

The Lethan Twi'lek was sitting in a dank dungeon cell with her bare back flush against the stone of the wall, her ankle chained to the wall, immobilizing her. It would have been chafing, but for once she had the presence of mind to be thankful for the showy boots that ran all the way up to her thighs, tight against her leg. It afforded her some protection from the cold metal.

However that was as far as the blessing was extended. The bare patches in her skintight dancer's costume were abundant, and it wasn't designed for chill weather. The sad thing was, Sleheyron wasn't even that cold. It was Loro's cruelty that kept the dungeons chill, so his prisoners couldn't have a moment of comfort. And so it was that Sinya sat in a barred cell shivering, staring out at an empty cell across the corridor patrolled by a brutish guard.

It would have been tempting to say she'd never felt so alone, except she almost always felt alone. There was no one else in her life. Only the dark recesses of her mind spoke to her, telling her all hope was lost.

Very softly Sinya started to sing, whispering an old Twi'lek lullaby her mother used to sing to her. It was the only thing she was aware of, and the melody filled her up. She listened to every single note, forgetting why she was in the dungeon completely.

Day and night, day and night, together, together...

The Twi'lek slave forgot that she'd recoiled from the hand of a guest who'd cradled her breasts, forgot that she'd begged 'no' out loud and embarrassed Loro.

Day and night, day and night, together, together...

Sinya forgot the fact that a guard had thrown her down steps and kicked her in the stomach, forgot the punch to the face, the cut to her lip. The crimson blood dried a darker shade than her red-pink skin, staining her small chin. The purple bruise across the left side of her face was the only other visible mark.

Day and night, day and night, together, together...

What were the words? Why couldn't she remember the rest? Someone had sung it to her once, but she couldn't remember who. What were the words?

The noise of a heavy door opening didn't even attract Sinya's attention, and she kept singing the same line of a lullaby over and over again like a malfunctioning droid, heedless of all else but the words, trying to remember where she'd heard it before.

[0bserver]

The dungeon was indeed a depressing place. No sounds, no light, no hope. Only these dingy gray walls. They have seen and heard many things. And if they were able to speak, they would tell stories that would frighten even the most stalwart men out there. Legitimate hell on earth - that was Loro's cellar.

But right now, sudden sounds echoed through this kingdom of stillness and hopelessness. Not even sounds, no, that word would not cut it. They were more like... slurs. Loud in variable, in twi'lek, basic and huttese, flowing like a neverending river, only frequently stopped by sounds of punches and manly grunts. The door to the dungeon cells flung open with a bang, and Sinya would become an unwilling witness to a particular scene...

The two guards had brought in another Twi'lek. There was a need for two as well, since the woman they brought kept trying to get out of their grasp, screaming, swearing and kicking all the time. The twi'lek looked older than Sinya, her armor stripped off of her, remaining only in her modest space-farer's lingerie. Her face already spotted a few bruises, one under the eye, and blood was coming down the broken lip, and from one of the nostrils. But even though beaten, the newcomer still had that burning hatred in her eyes...

- Thisssssss ssssshould teach you not to messss with ussss. You will ssspend the night here, before Loro will manage to get a look at you. - one of the guards, a tall and hulky trandoshan, hissed into her ear, as his companion, a dim-witted gammorean, was busy opening a cell that stood opposite to the red twilek's.

- Bastard... - the twi'lek hissed, spitting blood.

This dramatic scene was just one of possible ends to a likely scenario, and one of the most unfortunate ones. The life of a bounty hunter was susceptible to whims of fate - one day you hunt someone, and the other - you end up being hunted, and killed. Or captured like that. And it would be anyone's call to say which one was worse.

Nika's mind was a bit hazy from all of the heavy punches delivered mostly to her face and gut. She wasn't a wimp, but the re was only so much abuse her body could take at the hands of a lizard who was bigger than her, and trice as stronger. Her vision was blurry, and a bit red, and the blood flowing out of her nose kept getting into her mouth... And in her mind swirled only one thought:

It was a bad idea to pick a fight with that Trando...

She expected herself to be able to draw her blaster in time... She didn't, however. Which was why she was here. Simply kidnapped like that, in the middle of Sleheyron. And nobody batted an eyelash. Crime was the law here. Suddenly, she was ripped out from trying to remember what happened, by a large hand groping her where he shouldn't. Nika bumped her head against the lizard's chin, and received a strong blow in the face, so strong it practically threw her into the cell the gammorean opened.

- Better get used to it, ssssssslave. Your body isssss not your property now. - the rough guard hissed again, as he locked a chain around her leg as well, the touch of cold steel making the twi'lek shudder. The gamorrean then left, silently, while the lizard closed the door, and pulled himself a chair, sitting on it, gazing dismissively over the two twi'leks, each in separate cells. A cocky smirk on his face and a gleeful stare, answered only by Nika's hazy gaze. She hit the wall with that last blow he delivered, and...

It was hard enough to assemble the thoughts back together...

[Lemur, The Kool-Aid Guy]

Sinya's voice faltered and finally stopped as the guards dragged another Twi'lek through the dank corridor. She was green, and full of life. That was always a bad sign, as Loro took a special delight in breaking his slaves.

Not one of them had the heart to look a stranger in the eye, least of all a guard. Sinya was no exception, and she didn't make eye contact with her struggling kin. She merely watched in silence, half-registering that the other woman was put into the cell across from her and shackled to the wall.

It didn't much matter that there was another slave now. Sinya was still alone, and she knew that if she tried to talk the guard would electrocute her with a prod he kept. There was the lekku language, but she wasn't sure what to say, or if the other woman even knew it.

No, it was best to stay silent.

The Lethan teenager stared at the floor between her feet, adjusting her position slightly to get more comfortable, shivering again as fresh cold seized her when her bare skin touched a colder section of the wall.

It was miserable, and yet as bad as it was, she knew it would get worse if she struggled, if she fought. No resistance was the path of least pain, and she was passive and docile around Loro and the guards. They'd already broken her, and she posed no risk, no threat. Sinya was harmless.

The other Twi'lek would, in time, become just like her. Yes, the green woman was older, stronger, and more vibrant, but they'd find ways to break her and to destroy her mind, to shatter her soul. Loro had found Sinya's breaking point at the very beginning, and every subsequent punishment was for his own pleasure.

Somewhere deep inside, Sinya felt a twinge in her heart for the green woman, frightened for her. When she went before Loro, when she struggled and spat, would he throw her to the guards to be hurt and degraded, to have her body violated? Would she be the next Sinya?

Sinya's sapphire eyes peered slowly at the other Twi'lek, and long minutes after her arrival she made tentative eye contact, the fear and concern easily evident in her gaze.

[0bserver]

The arrival to this dingy cellar was filled with much confusion and pain, indeed...

It all happened so sudden, that, in between struggling, fighting and screaming Nika did not have much time to realize what was going on... And now, as she was slowly regaining her senses after a literal knock-out, she was beginning to feel things... The first thing was...

Cold. Yes, it was cold, very cold. The touch of stone against her almost naked body. And in that coldness, the trickles of blood flowing down from her nose and lips, dripping down the chin and unto her bosom, felt unusually warm. She shook her head again, to make the dizziness go away. Damn, that hurts... And tried standing up. But then...

*YANK!*

The irritating sound of a chain was heard, followed by a thumping sound of the falling twi'lek. The chain was short, it was meant to not allow the prisoners even stand up. And Nika put too much force into it without knowing, ending up falling over as the result. Her ankle hurt from the restraint digging into it upon moving - the bastard obviously locked it on too tightly! I bet he did it on purpose... - an angry thought went trough Nika's mind. Yes, she was angry, bewildered, and... she didn't yet understand the graveness of her situation.

- Hey asshat, can you... AAAAAARGH!

The Twi'lek was not allowed to finish her insulting phrase, the tip of the shocking staff stabbing her right in the gut, sending powerful energy surge right through her. Her entire body fell limp, the female almost going out cold again from pain, only eyes moving, to see a pleased smirk upon the guard's face.

- No talking, ssssssslave. That wasssss your firsssssst warning.

- F*ck you.

And the dim darkness of the cell was lit up once more, several times, each when another electrical spark went through the disobedient slave's body. The trandoshan was angry at her, for talking back he was used to Sinya's unquestioning compliance and superstitious fear. He succeeded in shutting Nika down, for the time being. The impulses of pain were wrecking her nervous system, her lying like a lump on the floor. Thoughts were hard to concentrate again, hateful eyes slowly moving away from the abuser...

Only too meet with the eyes of another twi'lek. Wait... Another twi'lek? I... I don't remember there was one when they dragged me in... - Nika's mind was rolling its boulders rather slowly, and she did not notice another slave, in between of being pummeled. For a second, she fixated on them, and then moving quickly towards the trandoshian. She was about to open her mouth again, but a look on that staff made her have second thoughts... A disdainful smirk was formed on Nika's face, as she looked at the red twi'lek again. Lethan... those are rare... well, that explains it... Heh, look at yourself, Nika. He shocked you once, and you're already afraid to speak... - she thought, eyes frozen on the other female...

How did she get here?

[Lemur, The Kool-Aid Guy]

Sinya's haunting gaze remained trained on the other Twi'lek, seeing the confusion apparent on her face. She was clearly hurt, crimson blood dribbling all over her. In comparison, Sinya's purple bruise seemed almost tame.

The catatonic dancer hadn't even noticed the guard's assault on her kin. It hadn't registered, she'd been too deeply buried in her own mind to register a thing until she made eye contact.

The Lethan Twi'lek stared at her green cousin and didn't say anything. In fact, her gaze became distant, and Sinya spaced out.

She'd remembered that song.

Her mother, also green.

Day and night, day and night, together, together...

She'd sung it every night going to sleep, how could Sinya have forgotten?

Day and night, day and night, together, together...

It was funny, but she could hardly remember her mother's face now. Or her father. They were like shadows in her waking mind now, wraiths of mist and vapor that withered and died under scrutiny, not tangible flesh and blood.

It was just as well that they couldn't see their precious daughter covered in blood and shackled to a dungeon wall. They wouldn't have been able to tolerate it.

Sinya blinked abruptly, and noticed she was still staring at the green Twi'lek.

"Who are you?" She asked silently through a series of twitches in her headtails, the old Twi'lek 'lekku language' that her parents had taught her growing up.

[0bserver]

After the thorough beating that Nika had to endure at the hands of the abusive Trandoshan... it sure became quiet. She did not dare saying a word, and the twi'lek in the opposite cell, probably knew better than try. Eerie silence was held over the place, only the quiet sparkling of the shock-staff breaking it...

But then it twitched.

Nika blinked, the sudden, subtle movement of the crimson twi'lek's lekku breaking her out of the state close to catatonia. For a second, she thought she was seeing things, but then it moved again. There was no mistake - it was a message.

The green twi'lek remembered that language alright. Even in school, they often used it to talk, while teacher was explaining things, without distracting or getting in trouble for that. The trick was that, in order to catch up what the other person tried to convey, one needed to keep much attention. And the teacher's attention was kept spread for the entire class. She shot a look at the Trandoshan, who seemed vigilant enough, albeit bored. He prolly does not suspect anything...

- I'm Nika. Nice to meet you... though circumstances suck balls. What is this place? - the green twi'lek transmitted through barely noticeable movements of her own lekku, while trying to seem as apathetic as possible, for the guard, not to draw any attention. And while she waited for an answer, her gaze drifted down, towards the lock on her knee...

It was an antique lock, which had to use a mechanical key to open. These were rarely used these days, except for some rural and primitive cultures, and same could be said for the cells - same locks + iron bars. Not very high-tech. Nika felt ashamed she got caught by such low-life scum. The Trandoshan, however, noticed her drifting gaze, and got suspicious.

- Hey! What are you looking at? There'ssss no essscape for you, sssslave.

- Nothing.

*ZAP!*

And, once again, the stabby end of the the shocker was thrust into her stomach, making her cringe and writhe, her nerves burning from the electricity, legs kicking and convulsing. The ugly lizardman grinned, sitting back on his chair, satisfied, and uttered:

- I ssssaid, no talking!

Nika groaned silently, and rubbed her eyes with a hand - god, that last one hurt! Enough to make her eyes draw tears. Her body ached from such abuse, making it hurtful to move, and she just hoped that the shocks would not leave any burns. But on the bright side that Nika did not even know existed, this ... distracted her from focusing more on just how deep in trouble she was... instead her mind was swarmed with all the nasty things she'd like to do to that trandoshan right now...

Nasty little bastard with no balls...

[Lemur, The Kool-Aid Guy]

This time Sinya was watching as Nika spoke up and was punished, and the Lethan Twi'lek squirmed uncomfortably as she watched her green cousin being shocked. It brought back memories of the last time someone had tried to escape with her.

She didn't know his name or who he was, but he'd shot a guard and grabbed her, dragged her towards a landing pad. She'd screamed, the guards had come. But Loro had been convinced she was attempting escape, and her begging didn't change his mind.

Sinya had watched on as the guards tortured and killed the man. Now she was watching the guard torture Nika, and she couldn't take her blue eyes off of the scene, the horror of the moment and the suffering being burned into her mind's eye.

The reddish-pink Twi'lek dancer pulled her knees up to her flat stomach, her legs splayed out at an odd angle, and she waited for Nika to look at her again, which took a few minutes as the green woman was recovering from electrocution.

Somehow, miraculously, Sinya was lucid enough to remember the conversation that they'd been having, and she picked up where the green woman had left off.

You're in Loro the Hutt's palace on Sleheyron. Don't say anything unless Loro asks you, otherwise they hurt you.

Sinya's headtails stopped their subtle twitches, and she stared across at Nika awaiting a response, a little surprised she was actually communicating. Normally she would have stared at the wall or been singing. Perhaps it was the promise of pain if she uttered a single note that diverted her attentions elsewhere.

[0bserver]

Sleheyron...

It was when that word was relayed, a twinge of fear sparkled in Nika's eyes. Sleheyron ... home of those vicious and ruthless creatures known as the Hutts. The twi'lek hated that race with a passion - they were the mascots of slavery, ugly and disgusting creatures that deserved to be wiped out from the face of the Galaxy. And she was in one's place. Suddenly the pictures, rough treatment and words began making sense. Eyes darted left and right, panicky, as if looking for a way out.

But there didn't seem to be any... Nika wanted to struggle in her chains a bit more, but the subtle movement of the sparky shock-staff made her reconsider the idea. Seriously Nika, you're not gonna escape that way... only shocked... But... how? Ugh...

The green twi'lek loathed slavery. And least of all wanted to become one. She was trying her best to suppress her urge to scream, and maintain her cool, but was doing it... rather badly. Her eyes were still darting left and right, and her face looked like she was about to cry. But one short look at the lizard, and she forced herself not to, eyes squinting, and eyebrows furring in a frown. No, no you won't see me doing that, you filthy bastard... - she thought, her fear becoming anger really soon. She even stopped for a bit, to feel it burning inside, somewhere at her chest. Loro... she never heard of that one, but judging from how she was being treated... yep, typical hutt. Just another scum in the galaxy. Nika spitted blood again, a stain on the floor remaining from it, before her gaze returned to the other twi'lek.

She looked... oddly calm. In her eyes, the green twi'lek could see pity and a twinge of fear added to the mix, but those were dulled, somehow... As if she was used to such things. And Nika shuddered at the thought. How much would one need to endure to get used to abuse? And... she could not understand how could one dare to raise a hand on such a, well... beautiful creature. Hutts indeed did not have any common sense. Looking down, a bit guiltily, Nika asked a mute question, with her lekku's twitching to form a language:

- How long have you been here?

[Lemur, The Kool-Aid Guy]

Sinya stared blankly.

How long had she been here?

The Lethan Twi'lek hadn't always been a slave, but she couldn't say how long it had been. She'd lost track of how long it had been, and she didn't even know how old she was. There were no calendars after all. It was just a blur to her, a big, amorphous blob without any semblance of form.

Sinya was as likely to remember something from her childhood as she was to remember something from three years ago when she was free. Both were a lifetime ago to her.

I don't know, She signalled, the look of confusion apparent on her face.

Her eyes stared at the floor for a moment as she wondered how old she was. She'd been a teenager when she'd first come to Loro, and now she was what, an adult? Maybe she was thirty? If she'd been forty Loro would have sold her.

It was impossible for her to say how much time had passed, as it was a fluid unknown for her.

Sinya stared at Nika again, 'speaking' once more, offering what advice she could. Had she spoken aloud, her voice would have been a fearful whisper.

Don't fight them, it makes it worse.

[0bserver]

She didn't know...

And with that, Nika looked around the cell, to understand what she meant. There were no windows, no clock on the wall either. Lightened with dim torches, time seemed to be frozen still in here, impossible to tell day from night. You could think you stayed here for a day, while in reality it could've been weeks...

- Well, what was the date when you got captured then? - Nika inquired, wishing to deduct the term of the other girl's sentence that way. After all, she knew what date was today, approximately, so... it should not be too hard. Though, the second warning she was given was nothing short of creepy...

Don't fight them. Or it would get worse. Common sense, isn't it? And yet... Nika could not just agree and obey with it. She was a strange twi'lek - the cultural obedience and following the flow did not stand for her. Her very being was revolted at the thought of obeying... of belonging to someone... Ever since that time when her friend was grabbed by slavers...

She remembered it well. It was what started her crazy journey, stowawaying to Naboo and desperately trying to seek help, help she did not find on Ryloth. It was something she despised in her own kin. Complete lack of balls. She looked down, angrily, and relayed another message to the reddish twi'lek.

- I don't like obeying anyone. Or being a slave. I will find a way to escape this putrid bantha hole. - Nika 'said', a determined look appearing on her face. It was good to be determined in face of such crisis... Or at least, she tried to look that way, the suffocating feeling of a closed cell slowly getting to her. Yeah, she said she would escape, but ... how?

- Somehow...

Nika let out a soundless sigh, and continued to study her surroundings. Now that she looked closer, the walls of her cell were not as monotone as she at first thought. If paid attention, she could see... scratches, four lines, with fifth crossed over them. And another set of lines, another... many, many... Across the entire wall! As if someone was trying to keep count of days. And nearing the floor, there was a sign scratched over, saying one, harsh phrase:

"f**k it, I'm outta here."

Nika blinked, looking back to the red twi'lek, and asked, breaking the non-verbal silence:

- Who did this cell belong to?

[Lemur, The Kool-Aid Guy]

Sinya answered the second question first, as she actually knew the answer. In a manner of speaking at least.

I don't know whose cell it was...

She'd only been down in the cell for a day. Maybe two. She'd probably stay down there until the bruises started to subside, then she'd be put back onto the dancefloor.

The petite teenager stared dumbly for a few seconds as she tried to remember the last time she'd seen a calendar. She'd been somewhere singing, and it had been on the wall. It was holographic, with a little picture of a palm tree next to a display, showing the month and the year.

Sinya relayed the date in her mind, one almost three years prior. For her it could have been an eternity.

Then the Twi'lek teenager stared vacantly at the wall of her cell, trying to remember something besides the palm tree. She couldn't remember much though. Just shadowy figures really. It was like the memories of an infant, fuzzy and distorted. It rarely came to her in waking hours.

Sinya gave up on her thoughts and stared at Nika again with distant blue eyes.

[0bserver]

She did not remember who's cell this was?

Well, that could mean that she wasn't here for too long... Or that this cell has been empty for a long while. - a logical rebuttal came from the back of her head. True, this was too little of a clue to try figuring something out. Still, it puzzled Nika. The sign, that is. What did it mean? Was there a way out? Or...

Or the person killed itself...

The twi'lek froze from a grim guess that she did not expect herself to have. And ... she could understand it as well. Being a slave was horrible, she could imagine. The cage and the rough guard were only her first 'taste' of it, the worst parts surely were yet to be seen. Nika could only guess what they could be, and shuddered again. No, she'd rather not do that again...

The female's attention was returned to the reddish twi'lek, because... well, the answer about the date came about. Years. She was here for years. And this gray mansion was the world for her. Nika could not imagine herself lasting that long. No, she would rather gut herself with a dull kitchen knife... Or a spoon. But that would hurt. A lot.

Now the girl was just staring at her, hauntingly, something unsettling in that gaze, something broken. A bit worried, Nika wanted to ask if she was alright, but realized that ... she did not even bother to ask the girl's name!

- I'm ... sorry to hear that. What's your name? - she asked, if only to snap her out of that stasis.

[Lemur, The Kool-Aid Guy]

Sinya'anu, The Lethan Twi'lek signalled, providing her name in the proper Twi'lek fashion, using both the given and clan names.

Sinya, darkness. Anu, desired. Together her names meant the darkness that one desires, but she felt no such desire in her heart. Only Sinya resounded deep in her being, as her whole life was deep darkness without the promise of light. Clouds covered the stars and the moons, and there was nothing but night.

Nothing at all.

The Twi'lek shivered again, her mostly-bare body reacting poorly to the cold.

Her headtails twitched out another message though, this one the first curiosity she'd shown in a long time.

How many years has it been?

[0bserver]

- Sinya'anu... That's a nice name...

Nika tried 'sounding' comforting to the reddish twi'lek, momentarily forgetting that has in about the same situation. This girl, she looked like she barely hit 18, 19 maybe, which meant she was captured at around 16 years of age. Or so the green twi'lek estimated. She was older. Almost a decade older. And being such, she felt it was her responsibility to... help out. Or try, at least. Not much she could help out with at the moment.

- And it's been roughly three years, maybe less... So these bastards had a hold of you for a while now... What's your job around here? Are there any other slaves? - the green twi'lek asked without saying. She looked down, when seeing Sinya shudder. The poor thing was cold. Nika felt cold as well, but tried not to shiver, not to give the satisfaction to this bastard of a trandoshan, who was now looking at the red twi'lek, oggling her with a lewd glint in his eyes, as she shivered. And a toothy grin on his face. Something was on his mind...

[Lemur, The Kool-Aid Guy]

Three years...

Sinya was a little surprised, surprised it had been such a short time. She would have guessed it had been at least twice that, but here she was, still a teenager after all. She had to be 19 then.

It was like looking into a mirror when you hadn't seen your own reflection in a very long time, and you could vaguely tell it was you through context, but you had trouble recognizing the truth you knew. In much the same way Sinya was having troubles accepting that it had just been three years. Everything else was all but forgotten now.

Nika asked what she did, and Sinya was sending out the answer, that she sang and danced, when the Trandoshan guard stared straight at her, and Sinya froze up with wide eyes.

"B*tch," He said to her coldly. "If I see you wiggling your headtails around one more time I'll come in there and make you wish you'd never been born."

The red Twi'lek lapsed into an essentially catatonic state at that.

Every single time a guard made threats, it brought Sinya back to the tortures and the degradation she'd suffered, especially the very first time. And that made her paralyzed with fear, her eyes wide and her heart pounding against her ribs.

Faced with fear and no way to fight or to fly, the Lethan teenager did little more than quiver uselessly on the floor before lying still, cowed into compliance effortlessly.

Only an hour later when the guard's comm chimed and he headed out the door did Sinya begin to perk up a little again, looking furtively around and listening before directing her gaze onto Nika and wondering if the woman would talk to her, either aloud or in the lekku language.

[0bserver]

Filthy bastard...

Nika angrily stared at the guard's back as he made threats to Sinya, which immediately brought her to compliance, shivering like a leaf in the wind. The bastard noticed their lekku language after all. Hnh, took him long enough. The green twi'lek prepared to scream out something insulting, should he would go to actually making his threats a reality, in order to distract the lizardman's attention, but luckily, it did not come to that. Instead, the radio bleeped, calling him away, which gave a bit of a breather.

- That was close... - she relayed a message as soon as he left, and making an indecent gesture to his back, when trandoshan didn't see. Talking normally would've been too dangerous - they could've been heard! Nika's hands moved down, towards the lock around her ankle, and tried to pry it open, pulling the jaws of the mechanism apart. Useless, she wasn't nearly strong enough. And had no pin to try opening the lock...

- Blasted thing... And sorry... we were talking too much, and it almost got you punished. Let's talk only when general Scalie is not here to watch us... - Nika said, a small shudder coming across her body. It was getting colder here, sitting only in her lingerie like that. She shot another glare at the reddish twilek, and her previous phrase was shortly followed by a question:

- Do all twi'leks sing and dance here?

[Lemur, The Kool-Aid Guy]

No, Sinya signed back.

Not all Twi'leks danced. There were other less glamorous positions. Some slaves were domestic, and others were used for terrible things. Loro's cruelty knew no bounds, and Sinya knew if not for her skin color she might have been one of them, at the mercy of the guards.

In fact, now Sinya had to advise Nika, to tell her green cousin what was important.

Don't resist Loro when they take you to the throne room. Pretend you're broken and have no will. Then he might make you a dancer or a cleaner. If you fight him he'll hurt you, he'll give you to the guards and- and-

Sinya started to shake a little as she thought about the way she'd been hurt. Pinned by strong arms, helpless. Her pleas for mercy stifled and subdued by hands wrapped around her throat. Agony, fear, self-loathing, and the feeling she'd never be clean again.

For the first time in a while, the pink-red Twi'lek's eyes started to mist up, and a few tears slid down her cheeks as she shook silently. It was the covert crying no one noticed. If she was audible, then people might hurt her.

Day and night, day and night, together, together...

She started to sing softly in Ryl, staring at the floor, repeating the same phrase over and over again. Even when the guard came in she didn't notice, and she kept up the mantra.

Day and night, day and night, together, together...

Only when the Trandoshan opened her cell and kicked her in the stomach did she notice, slumping over weakly and falling into a subdued silence.

"No talking," The guard repeated, kicking Sinya in the stomach one more time for good measure before returning to his post and sitting down.

[0bserver]

Oh God...

Nika swallowed, and looked away, fearfully, when Sinya relayed the grim information to her, and started shaking, shivering, tears at her eyes, when she reached the words about 'terrible things'. Nika was not stupid, he figured out EXACTLY what it meant. And, judging by the reaction, the red twi'lek was forced to go right through it...

Bastards... There's a special place in hell for the likes of you... I... can't stay here! I need to get away... Poor thing...

But the scene of anguish did not stop at that point, gritting her teeth, and hatred burning in her eyes, Nika was forced to watch the trandoshan kick Sinya twice, for just singing a lullaby. That evil man... He must have been among those guards, who... who...

Nika's teeth gnashed, audibly enough for the guard to hear it, turning the attention to her instead. He could read the emotion in her stare, and the absolutely vicious scowl she was wearing. And cackled, meanly, standing up, and picking up his shock stick. Nika's eyes narrowed, as he approached, and opened the door, walking up to her.

- I recognizzzze the sssssstare. But ressssst asssshured, you are not going to essssscape. You will watch me punisssh your kind, and there'ssss nothing you can do about it!

The green twi'lek was sick and tired of this ugly bastard's gloating, of his hissing voice and of his complete lack of heart. Gathering the blood and the snot in her mouth, she waited for the right moment, and then spat straight at his face, the disgusting goo splattered all over. A little comeback, for me and for Sinya. - she thought to herself, as she started laughing, half-eager, half-hysterical. It was what made the guard completely mad. Wiping out the spit from his face, the lizardman growled:

- You will wisssssh you haven't done that...

And the electric staff was raised in the air once more...

Soon, the empty halls of the dungeon were filled with screams and sounds of zapping electricity once more...

[Lemur, The Kool-Aid Guy]

Sinya stared at the patch of floor in front of her, deaf to the torture, blind to the sadness and horror. She was more than willfully blind. For her, it was as if nothing was happening, all was silence, and she was completely alone in her mind.

Despite her bruises, Sinya emerged again two days later, feeble and weak though she was, and she swayed in the throne room of Loro's Palace, singing a popular song Loro was fond of, her blue eyes lifeless and staring straight ahead.

Part of her registered that Nika was there, and she realized the Twi'lek woman must have played broken before Loro in order to spare herself a fate worse than death. For that, Sinya was a little grateful. By and large though, she kept her mind largely vacant as she danced, as she sang.

Her melodious voice filled the chamber for her full fifteen minute performance, which was met by applause, and then she made her bow and stepped off of the stage, where she was met by guards. However, rather than take her back to her slave quarters, Loro motioned for her, and they walked her over to the slimy Hutt.

With a shove, she collapsed onto his bulk, and his stubby arm pulled her in close to his flabby body, running along the curves of her body.

He, at the least, didn't seem to mind her bruises.

Sinya tuned it all out, and for all practical purposes she stopped existing. Her mind became a completely blank canvas, and she focused only on her breathing. She couldn't say how long it lasted or what happened during it, but it lasted for six hours.

A whole outrageous party came and went before Loro finally got bored and released her, and Sinya came back to her senses when she went tumbling off of Loro's throne and fell onto the floor.

A guard picked her up and started to take her away, but Loro whispered something to the Major Domo, who motioned to the guard.

The guard stopped and grabbed Nika, prodding her with a blaster and getting her in front of him, then marching her and Sinya down towards the slave quarters.

"You impressed Loro greenie, you get to be roommates with his special girl. Maybe she'll teach you a few tricks."

Sinya walked along, barely registering his words. If true though, that meant it was the very first time she'd have anyone else in her own private slave quarters.

[0bserver]

These two days... they felt like they lasted for an eternity.

At least, that was true for Nika. Her last stunt managed to get the guard against her, and the Trandoshan was a vicious thing, and remembered ill done to him very well. And he made sure to make the twi'lek's life a living hell, in any ways possible. He ignored Sinya largely, knowing she was an obedient little sheep, and instead focused on Nika, who's will and resistance he sought to break, and to get back at her for that spit she gave him.

He was looking for an excuse to punish her. Sometimes inventing ridiculous and contradictory reasons. Like, asking her a question of some sort. If she answered - he would punish her for talking. And if kept quiet, he would punish her for not talking! But the end of each day the Twi'lek was either paralyzed from so many electrical discharges burning her system, or out cold. During a few short breaks, Sinya told her that he kept torturing her even as she laid on the floor unconscious.

And, by the looks of it, the tortures were working. Nika was becoming more obedient. No longer she shot fiery stares at the lizard guard, no longer spat, kicked, or tried to get out of her restraints. More and more, she was becoming like Sinya, apathetic, and obedient. By the time she was called to Loro's chambers, in front of him stood a completely will-less, obedient twi'lek... Or so it seemed. The Hutt liked the willingness with which Nika fell to her knees, and called him master, and didn't even twitch as he groped her breasts and buttocks. The slimeball had 'mercy', putting Nika in the same group with Sinya, to entertain him with dancing. Thinking that the amount of psychological torture was enough to make a pet out of her...

Stupid hutt...

He was wrong. Because he was seeing only Nika's body, but could not take a look into her mind. And the obedience was just a shell, because... well... It takes a lot more than two days of unimaginative torture to break me...

The green twi'lek was amazed and disgusted at herself at the same time. Obeying... was not actually hard for her. Maybe the twi'lek genes were at works. But she stabbed herself mentally a thousand times, while Loro was groping her, and always kept her eyes locked on the floor. Guards and the hutt have seen it as act of obedience - Nika did so to hide the obvious deathwish for all the people around here, that her eyes were expressing. And the more acquainted with the 'regime' she was getting, the more she understood one thing. I will not survive here... I will get away, or die trying.

But in order to do so, she needed a plan. An occasion, during which it would be more convenient to try breaking out. Nika was preparing for it. She memorized what little she had seen of the palace perfectly, in order to aid in her escape. All, in complete secrecy, not shared even with Sinya. She did not want to share hopes in case they were false. But very soon, the day has come...

An important guest were to arrive at Loro's. And for such an occasion, the ugly space-slug did not spare any cash - he threw what Nika swore was the largest feast she had ever seen ... anywhere. There were dozens of guests, many tables, crammed with food and drinks. It was muchly like a Ball, only the contingent was most loathsome. And it was getting worse the more drunk the guests were going...

Sinya, maybe, have not been noticing Nika, but the green twi'lek was having her in her sights all the time, being the back-stage dancer rather than the lead. After the main 'part' was over, she was doing a bit of a solo in front of an interested, and drunk, human, who kept touching her in wrong places at all times. Ugh... I feel so ... dirty...

Nika did a lap dance for him, rather amateur-like too, but he did not seem to care much for class in his intoxicated state, rather enjoying her half-naked body rub against his. The twi'lek half-suspected where this would be going, and made sure the human could not walk on his own by the time she finished dancing, pouring into his cup more and more exotic drinks. And I hope you choke on them, you perverted bastard... And as she was 'entertaining', the guest, she unnoticeably slicked one of the table implements into her glove...

By the time Party was finally considered over, the place... looked more like a battlefield. Guests were lying here and there, drunk senseless, hugging the leg of a chair, each other, and the occasional slave. The guards were not very disciplined as well - many of them had to lean on walls and other straight objects to look like they were standing straight. And the guard that took the girls away to their cells was not the paragon of sobriety either... It was not the lizard, but rather... one of Domo's men.

- Of course, sir... I am eager to serve. - she said to the human, tongue as sweet as she could muster it at the moment, but inside...

Ugh... I swear, if I say it one more time, I am gonna vomit...

The way back took longer than it usually took. The guard was not in a hurry, and had to periodically grab at the wall with his spare hand. Nika kept her earcones open, as they went by. The place was ... quiet. Quieter than most. And, as they went by, she did not notice any guards around... Except... ah! Here was the lizardman. Sleeping on his chair, way away from the slave quarters, with a bottle of booze in his clawy hand. Eyes narrowing, Nika had understood... This is my chance.

The trio have walked to the door, which would lead to Sinya's 'private quarters', and the green twi'lek shot a gaze at the red girl. She looked like she wasn't there, stare being absent, and eyes blank. It was her self-defense mechanism, Nika understood. To pretend she was not here. Heck, I would do that too, if I were forced to be here for 3 years... Ugh...

- Arright, lemme just open this door for you, ya little tail-sleepers... - the human grunted something disrespectful, as he hid the blaster, and took out his keys, trying to fit the wrong one into the lock. He did not expect any of the twi'leks to do anything at all, thinking them to be willing slaves, like Loro did. That... proved to be a mistake, as something shiny slid out of Nika's glove, and into her hand, and she stepped forward, her footstep unheard, lacking shoes. And then....

- AAAAAAAAH! MMMMFFFM!! - the human screamed out, as Nika viciously stabbed the dull table knife to the side of his throat. The green twi'lek's eyes widened, as she covered his mouth with her hand, to prevent from screaming more, and stabbed a few more times, pinning the struggling and convulsing body to the floor. Blood gushed everywhere from the broad and ugly wounds at the neck, covering the twi'lek's hands, chest, and a few drops landing on her cheeks. Finally, at the end, the man stopped moving, dead, as the knife cut through one of the major arteries. Breathing heavily, Nika finally let go of the knife, eyes still wide as she stared at the corpse. And at the blaster.

He had a blaster...

This was a chance... now, or never.