Hard Lessons (Darth Ferus)

[Kitty]

Kitty was hearing what Ferus was saying but not really understanding it. It seemed to contradict what she had seen personally. "And what about those that have done nothing to the sith that were just at the wrong place at the wrong time. You guys sure don't seem to have anything against killing them. Last I checked you don't even think twice about it. Defending yourself is one thing but you don't seem to care about anyone outside of the sith. Why do they have any less right to live than we do? What about their family and friends that are going to miss them all because what, they just happen to be in the path of your lightsaber oh well? Most of us don't even have family or people that care about us other than each other and even that is shallow very shallow. One could say we have less right to live then they do."
[member="Darth Ferus"]

 

[Darth Ferus]

"This is all true. All valid points on what makes a Sith, Sith. So, tell me [member="Kitty"] , why stay? Why do you suffer the darkness when you want nothing it can offer? The path of the Sith is the path to power. The path to control your fate and live truly for yourself. Why are you here?" Ferus's blue eyes turned icy as he watched the girl, waiting for an answer. He had ignored this question he had since he first found her, but now he had to know what she thought she was doing. The Sith would eat her up and spit her out without a problem if she did not have a reason to become stronger for herself, and no one else.

 

[Kitty]

Kitty couldn't help but give a genuine smile. Although her predatory physiology made her smile less heart warming as her sharp teeth were flashed. "I never said I wanted nothing it could offer. The power to control my own fate is exactly why I stick with the sith or rather the freedom to do what I want with it. I don't want those I care about getting hurt and I want the power to make sure that doesn't happen. The list of people I care about is rather short but that just makes them all the more precious to me. I believe the dark side is something that should be feared but I also believe it doesn't hurt to use it or at least as long as you don't use too much of it. I believe in the sith code in emotion, passion, and attachments. The jedi do not and ignore their own needs. That's just something I will never be able to accept. What I don't believe in is the people that make up the sith and what they do with the power they get and how they get so self absorbed they care for nothing outside their little bubble." Kitty said before taking a few sniffs of the air and paying extra attention to the sounds she was hearing. When she was positive nobody was nearby she would continue. "You're different though. You are quite like the other sith. And one of the reasons I stay is for you. I consider you my true father and I can't just leave you."
[member="Darth Ferus"]

 

[Darth Ferus]

"You will learn that my path means I do not needlessly kill, yes. But around other Sith, I cannot forgive. I cannot let people just go. Around fellow Sith, I have to be them. And this means you will too. You will have to harden yourself in a way most Sith don't, to do the acts most Sith do without reservation. You must hide in the darkness and change it from within. Are you prepared to sacrifice your morality to change the Sith into a group that won't needlessly slaughter?" If not for [member="Kitty"] 's ear twitches, Ferus wouldn't have known the area was clear. But with how casually she was talking the red man knew they were alone. "This is my goal child. And to do this, you will have to accept being a Sith means slaughtering those in your way. You cannot forgive, and you cannot forget. This doesn't mean you have to randomly kill people, but those who get in your way must be crushed underfoot."

 

[Kitty]

As Kitty listened to Ferus her smile holding. He spoke and as he did her confidence her father and in her life was only strengthen. This was by no means going to be an easy path, but its the only one that existed for Kitty it was the only one she wanted. "I'll try." Kitty said so happy she felt like she might shed tears of joy. She wondered how much she could milk this precious moment and decided to pull out a little something she had been saving for the right moment. "By the way I happen to come across a bunch of personal stealth generators. They were just lying around and I figured the assassins could use them. I have them sitting in my room." Kitty lied. Really she purchased them with the credits she had stolen just so she could help the assassins and get some praise from her master/father. She wanted his physical affection so badly right now. Just a couple pettings was all she wanted and she would be happy. Hopefully this gift would get that.
[member="Darth Ferus"]

 

[Darth Ferus]

A smirk formed on the Zabrak's face. By this point, he already knew what [member="Kitty"] had done. He wouldn't be a good master if he didn't at least know the illegal activities his apprentices did. But of course, he smiled at the fact that she had gotten the stealth generators. He reached out, patting her head gently as he nodded.

"Good, we'll definitely be using those. You've done well child."

 

[Kitty]

Kitty beamed and purred leaning into her masters touch. This moment here and now is what she lived for. She wished it would last forever but knew it wouldn't. It seemed her strategy of holding something special for the right moment worked perfectly. She would have to come up with something else in the future.
[member="Darth Ferus"]

 

[Darth Ferus]

Ferus lowered his hand then, moving it to scratch his chin. [member="Kitty"] had earned herself a reward, but he wasn't too sure what to offer. But then it hit him. As she was to be an Assassin, she would need the gear necessary for suck a class. And more importantly, a secret weapon. "Child, show me your claws."

 

[Kitty]

Kitty was sad when Ferus drew back but she knew it had to happen eventually. Still she wished it could have gone on longer. The young feline was brought out of her thoughts though when her master made a peculiar request. He asked to see her claws and Kitty of course obliged. Holding her hands out Kitty used the muscles in her fingers to pull her claws out from their sheaths that made sure they stayed nice and sharp. "Why?" Kitty asked [member="Darth Ferus"].

 

[Darth Ferus]

"How would you like to be able to scratch someone with these and fill their body with poison? I can do such a thing for you as a reward for those stealth generators." Blue eyes twinkled as he offered the alteration. Ferus had always loved messing with the natural genome of practically anything. To make things different was always an exciting challenge to him.

[member="Kitty"] was soon going to find out how exciting first hand should she agree.

 

[Kitty]

Kitty didn't know what to say. The idea of being able to do that sounded strange to her. That and she didn't want to kill anyone. Then again she did just make a commitment to the sith and the unfortunate truth was she was a sith assassin and would have to do killing. She couldn't refuse or she would already be breaking her commitment at least for the reason she wanted to refuse.The feline supposed she could use this as a memento of this wonderful moment. "Sure I guess." Kitty said uncertain of how he planned to do such a feat. Was he going to give her a jar of poison she could dip her claws in or something? [member="Darth Ferus"]

 

[Darth Ferus]

"It's a simple process child. I will be changing your claws at an atomic level, and adding poison glands to them. It will be a poison your body creates. Naturally, your body will have to get use to it, and that will be painful." He took her hand in his, looking over each of the claws. "You ready?"

[member="Kitty"]

 

[Kitty]

When Kitty learned Ferus was going to be changing her body at an atomic level she got nervous. The idea he could change her body at all was unsettling. It was the one thing Kitty could wake up to and always know was the same, well this form or her large cat form. The idea that is was going to be painful wasn't helpful either. She didn't really want to turn back and say no all of a sudden either though. Besides she'd get use to it eventually right? Ferus looked over her claws and asked if she was ready. "No." Kitty said. "But go for it anyways" Kitty knew she was never going to be more ready than she already was. [member="Darth Ferus"]

 

[Darth Ferus]

Ferus offered a quick nod before his presense in the Force seemed to vanish. It was a literal thing, as he shrunk down his signature using the same ability he was about to use on her. His gaze narrowed down as he focused on her claws, and he could see everything. Flaws, cracks, blemishes. None were invisible to his enhanced sight.

Slowly he would reach out with the Force, beginning to tweak the felines natural weapons. The process would be slow, but he would make all of her claws hollow with a sack near the inside of her hand. As this really involved just moving some of her bones around, this was fairly simple for the red man to do.

But all good things must come to an end. Now, he had to get the poison into her system, without killing her with it, and getting her to form a natural immunity to it.

This was going to take a while.

[member="Kitty"]

 

[Kitty]

Kitty didn't even notice as her claws were hollowed out. They didn't have any nerve endings and it was only a small hole so her claws weren't any less durable nor was the loss in weight significant enough to notice. It was a long process just to do that and besides Ferus's extreme focus she couldn't tell anything was being done. Regardless Kitty sat there patiently waiting while Ferus did his thing. He said there was going to be pain, but maybe that was just to scare her.

Kitty found out shortly after it was no scare tactic as Ferus moved on to the formation of the poison sacks. Her insides were moved around to make room for the individual sacks behind each claw. It was arranged in such a way that little muscles were added to squeeze the sacks and so that just moving her fingers around wouldn't squeeze them. Kitty winced and bit down on her own tongue to try and distract from the pain. Even after he finished the pain was still there as her body protested the adjustment. If she thought puberty was bad it was nothing compared to this. "How much longer?" Kitty asked the pain evident in her voice.
[member="Darth Ferus"]

 

[Darth Ferus]

"Well, my part is done. But, the poison isn't. Your body will have to become naturally use to it, meaning that it will infect your body. You will have to channel this pain into the Force to keep yourself awake. For if you sleep, your body will die." This was no joke as the Zabrak spoke. [member="Kitty"] would find this to be her first true trial of the Dark Side, and in true Sith fashion should she fail she would die. The training wheels were finally off for his apprentice.

 

[Kitty]

Kitty looked up at Ferus with fear in her eyes. He hadn't told her this modification could lead to her dying. He just said there would be pain not that she would die. "How-how long will it take?" Kitty asked again this time referring to her body getting use to the poison or venom or whatever. [member="Darth Ferus"]

 

[Darth Ferus]

"Minutes, hours. Maybe a day. The more you lesson the pain, the longer it'll take. The less you resist, the larger chance you could die. It's your choice, endure it for a long time, or for a short time." With that, the Zabrak would leave [member="Kitty"] to the room alone, and to the pain she was about to endure. This was a trial of strength for the female, one that every Sith had to do. If she was to survive, it would be on her own.

He would, though, sit just outside, being sure to mask any way for her to know he was to give the illusion of being alone. That's how the Sith worked after all.

 

[Kitty]

"What no don't leave me." Kitty pleaded as Ferus got up to leave the room. Already a dull pain was beginning to start in her fingers. Ferus seemed to ignore her as he left the room and quickly closed the door behind him. The feline tried to follow behind him but when she put her hand on the door know and tried to turn it a sharp strong pain shot through her hand like electricity on fire. Kitty cried out in pain and recoiled. The constant dull pain continued to spread up her forearms. At the same time the constant pain began to increase and she began to feel a burning sensation in her hands and fore arms. The young sith tried clenching her muscles as if that would help relief the pain, but it actually had the opposite effect. Every time she tried to move any of those muscles she was met with that same burning and painful electric shock she had felt. Kitty leaned her shoulder against the door tears already welling up. "Don't leave me. Don't make me go through this alone." Kitty shouted. She wasn't able to lean against the door long though as the pain made its way up the rest of her arm and into her shoulders.

Kitty continued to cry out for Ferus even using the word father or dad a couple of times. Eventually though the pain spread to every corner of her body and breathing alone was insanely painful. Even the tears that ran down the now matted fur of her cheeks hurt. In Kitty's heart this felt like a deep betrayal. She had opened up and he had welcomed it only to turn around to stab it. Still Kitty wouldn't give in. Ferus told her to live and live is what she was going to do.
[member="Darth Ferus"]

 

[Darth Ferus]

Tradition dictated that a Sith was to face their trials alone. Without the help of their master. [member="Kitty"] was not the first to have to go through this, but she was perhaps the first to still find assistance. The Zabrak, sitting just on the other side of the door, was not so heartless as to make her go through it all alone. His mind would reach out to hers, the only true way he could show her he was there without the Sith thinking them weak.

'The Sith will not allow me to be in the room my child. You must face this alone, but know that I am here. Be strong, be resilient. I know you can make it through this.'