Unbroken

[Diana Veneris]

E S H A N​

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"Murder! There's been a murder! Draygar of House Veneris is dead!"​

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"It was his niece--the sorceress!"​

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​"Don't let her get away! Hurry, before she kills us all!"​

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"She ran down that alley!"​

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"After her, men!"​

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A crimson sunrise was breaking over Eshan when the clamor of voices rang out into the street. The voices were angry, frightened, and soon every door and window within shouting distance was flung open, bewildered residents peering out into the early morning light. The silhouettes of five strong Echani men stood out against the glow of the horizon, their chalk-white skin shining like marble, vibroswords drawn high above their silvery heads. The intricate insignia that gleamed proudly over the heart of their uniformed tunics would tell everyone that these men were soldiers, the prized jewels of warrior-centric Eshan. Their pale faces smoldered with fury. One of them, clearly the leader, stepped forward.

"Children of Eshan!" The officer bellowed. "There is a witch among us!" There were gasps, followed by nervous, confused chatter that rose over the street like a buzzing wave. Mothers ushered curious children back indoors, fathers reached for their blades.

"You know this witch!" The officer continued, surveying his audience, a look of intermingled contempt and satisfaction writ plain across his features. "She has been living here under your noses, in exile, for years! Do you not remember the death of Tristophan and Iona Veneris? Do you really believe that such a fearsome warrior, and such a noble politician, died in a freak house fire? Their daughter was born with strange and wicked powers . . . you have all witnessed or heard tell of her sorcery."

The onlookers exchanged meaningful glances, but the officer did not wait for them to respond. "You, Baelon!" The officer pointed a long finger toward an older man standing in the doorway of his home. "What happened to your children the day that Tristophan and Iona Veneris died?" The man named Baelon swallowed hard, turning his eyes toward the ground. "They . . . went to the medic bay," Baelon replied, quietly at first, then gaining momentum. "The Veneris girl . . . she snapped. I've never seen anything like it. Blew our home to pieces with a single glance. I nearly lost my sons."

"I remember," The officer murmured, nodding sagely before lifting his voice once more. "Diana Veneris is a cataclysmic force of nature whose powers cannot be controlled. I believe that she killed her parents all of those years ago--that she would have killed the sons of Baelon--and I believe that at dawn this morning, she murdered her uncle. Draygar's blood runs fresh down the halls of House Veneris as I speak!"

"Where is the girl now?" A woman's voice called out abruptly from a window high above. "Our children are not safe while she roams free!"

"Our forces are hunting her down this very moment," The officer replied, the faint glimmer of a smirk curling slowly across his lips. "We will not rest until we do what we should have done long ago--we will not rest until the witch is dead!"

With a great rallying cry, and nothing more, the soldiers turned and plunged forward in hot pursuit.

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"Come, Nairobi--there isn't time!"

Diana Veneris knelt to the earthen floor of some long-forgotten alley and opened the mouth of her rucksack, extending it forward as if in prayer. A small, white loth-cat with amber eyes pounced out of the shadows and leapt inside, mewling insistently at Diana as she yanked closed the strings of the leathery bag and threw it over her back. For a moment, the delicate girl remained kneeling as she squeezed shut her eyes, counting each heavy rise and fall of her chest and simply . . . breathing. She had done the unthinkable. She had purchased her freedom from her tyrannous uncle with his own life. Draygar was dead. For eighteen long years--since she was orphaned at the age of four--the man had ruled over her like a slavemaster. He had been afraid of her, and now Diana understood why. Diana was afraid of herself.

"Sorceress!"

Diana's golden head snapped to attention. At the end of the alley, stood a wall of steel-faced soldiers. Fear dropped heavy and cold into the pit of her stomach, washing over her body in a hideous wave of adrenaline that demanded fight or flight--that demanded survival. She attempted to rise, but her knees nearly buckled beneath her own petite weight. There was no escape. There was no escape at all.

"Quick, men--she's dangerous! Seize her at once!"

The soldiers rushed forward with their weapons drawn, and all Diana could do was stumble backward like a helpless doe in a thicket, legs trembling and round eyes wild. "Please . . . I'm not a sorceress!" She might have cried through the tumult, but it did not matter. They were closing in on her now . . . Diana fell hard against the dead-end wall of the alley, crumbling to the earth in a billow of silken robes.

"Diana Veneris," The officer growled, stepping forward and brandishing the pointed end of his vibrosword at the hollow of her swan throat. "You will answer for your crimes of murder and of witchcraft with your life. Do you have any final words?"

Diana curled against the wall like a fallen angel, the crowning glory of her moon-white curls splayed wildly around the curve of her pale shoulders, which shook like broken wings. Slowly, she turned her cheek to gaze up at her would-be executor. From beneath thick lashes, her eyes shone brilliantly with tears, but they no longer bore their crystal blue color. They had changed to an unsettling violet. Something inside of her was brewing, and she was helpless to keep it at bay.

It happened in an instant.

Without lifting a finger . . . without raising a hand . . . without meaning to at all, a burst of Force-driven power exploded forth Diana as if driven by a bottled-up storm. The violent surge of energy sent two of the soldiers soaring clear through the air to slam against the far opposite wall; the aftershock brought two more to their knees. The only one who remained standing was the officer himself. "Little witch!" He snarled, and made to bring the wicked curve of his blade down onto Diana. The girl cried out, and for a moment . . . the whole world seemed to stand still.

[member="Siobhan Kerrigan"]​

 

[Siobhan Kerrigan]

[member="Diana Veneris"]


The whole world seemed to stand still, both for the alleged witch and the self-proclaimed witch-hunter, whose aura burnt with a self-righteous flame. Time slowed around them. And the Paladin of Purgation realised to his horror that he was...


Unable to move his arm. Or any of his limbs, for that matter, The terrible swift sword that was supposed remove the witch's head from her torso and thus enact retribution for her crimes remained frozen in mid-air. The more he struggled against the unnatural, invisible grip, the more it pained him. One could hear the snapping of bones. Undoubtedly this was quite a distressing situation.


The Force was a remarkable thing. An energy field that pervaded the entire cosmos and bound all living beings together. Great and terrifying things could be accomplished by those who were gifted - or cursed - with its power. A multitude of Force traditions existed, though the most common were Jedi and Sith. They called upon the Light and the Dark, the Ashla and the Bogan, if you felt like using the Je'daii terms. Commonly stereotyped as Good and Evil. Some walked another path.


"Stand down. What's going on here?" the voice was undeniably feminine, but firm and cold. The figure that suddenly emerged on the stage was a woman of about medium height, wearing a fancy, expensive women's business suit. A breeze brushed against her coat, making it billow in the wind in a somewhat dramatic fashion. An elaborate lightsabre decorated with Eldorai runes rested upon her belt, presently unignited. A mane of scarlet cascaded about her shoulders, framing an attractive but deeply scarred face. There was a fire in her chocolate brown orbs. She was leaning on a cane, but an aura of power surrounded her.


"Let me go, sorceress!"


"I ask again: What is going on here? Don't try my patience."


"She's a murderous witch! A vile serpent! Look at the dead bodies, see the crimes she committed. Her hands are soaked in the blood her kin!" the man yelled, sounding almost hysterical. His face was red with rage.


The interloper looked upon the golden-haired girl. She could feel great power emanating from her. Power she did not have the discipline and training to control. The Lady also felt the fear and anguish, for both called to her through the Force. "She's no witch, fool. She seems more like a frightened girl with no control over her gifts."


"Justice will be serv..." To use the Force required focus, and as the interloper's attention, was upon the girl, the Echani warrior summoned his will and sought to break free. Alas for him, it did not last long enough. The same unnatural power that had kept him restrained now lifted him off the ground and hurled him through the air like a ragdoll. His eventual landing hurt. A lot.


"I said stand down. I can kill you at the speed of thought without any effort," interloper snapped acidly. "What's your name, girl? Is there any truth to these accusations? Speak honestly." Her tone was firm and serious, but laced with compassion. Something that seemed to be sorely lacking on this world.

 

[Diana Veneris]

Cowering on the ground with her small hands raised above her head like a shield . . . Diana waited for the blow that never came. She waited long enough to trace the dim outline of her parents' faces in her memory, praying that theirs would be the first she saw when the officer's lethal vibrosword transported her to the hereafter. For years, under the hellish torment of her uncle, Diana imagined that she would greet death like a friend when it finally came. Now, she realized with a hideous, awful dread, she was utterly unready to go. Diana felt incomplete. The galaxy was not finished with her yet.

"Stand down. What's going on here?"

The voice rang out into the alley like a call to arms. For a moment, Diana was unsure whether it was real. Had the blade already fallen upon her head? Was she delusional, dying? The girl attempted to move, to lower her arms to look upon the source of the blessed voice, but found that she was paralyzed. Fear pounded in her ears and ran thick through her veins, weighing down her slender limbs like marble, drowning out all sound save that of her beating heart.

Moments passed, and still the blow did not come.

The voice, however, did. The voice came again, and again, like a powerful sword in and of itself . . . until finally, the voice addressed her.

"What's your name, girl? Is there any truth to these accusations? Speak honestly."

This time, something deep inside Diana stirred. It's alright, child, the otherworldly sensation seemed to coax. I won't hurt you. Slowly, obediently, the girl lifted her shining blonde head. What she saw made her breath catch in her throat.

The woman was unlike anything Diana had ever seen. Her hair was red, instead of silver. Her eyes--deep brown, instead of crystal blue. From her proud head to her firmly planted feet, she was clearly not Echani. Diana had seen humans and other species before, but never this close. Her uncle had not allowed it. Of those she had seen, however . . . this woman was the most remarkable. She radiated power. Tremendous energy rolled off of her in waves, but instead of crashing into Diana, the energy melted into her. Diana wanted to drink in the woman's presence like water. She did not know how parched she was for compassion, until this woman looked at her like no one else ever had. She did not look at Diana with hate or dread. She did not look at Diana as if she were a monster. It was overwhelming.

So swept was the girl, that she did not feel the fresh baptismal of tears running freely down her cheeks, usually so porcelain and pale, now flushed pink with emotion. Her clear blue eyes gazed up at the woman with soulful desperation, blinking through her thick, wet lashes, as the full bud of her lips at last parted to speak.

"Diana," She murmured, her cultured accent hitting the air like the whisper of a bell, quiet and trembling. "Diana Veneris." To the untrained ear, her voice would sound soft, gentle, inhumanly sweet. The more perceptive would know that her voice was that of a girl who had been beaten into subservience, who had been bent by cruel hands, just barely unbroken.

Diana shook her head slowly, moon-blonde curls swaying with the gentle movement. She furrowed her brows as anguish washed over her face anew. "I didn't mean to," She breathed. "I swear it." Her voice broke, and her chest began to rise and fall heavily, slight shoulders shaking. "I can't control it . . . I'm a monster." She paused, surveying the broken bodies of the soldiers scattered in the alley, before lifting her crystal gaze to the woman once more. "You should have let them kill me."

[member="Siobhan Kerrigan"]​

 

[Siobhan Kerrigan]

[member="Diana Veneris"]


The stalwart - and now very injured - witch-hunter groaned in pain after his presumably rather unpleasant landing. The Lady paid him no mind. He had been reduced to insignificant background noise.


The Lady could hear shouts and the roar of sirens. They reminded her that the brief respite would not last, which gave the situation a degree of urgency. But for now it was just her and the frightened, desperate girl. The Lioness and the Lamb.


Tears ran down the golden-maned girl's face, coating her flushed cheeks. Her words carried a strong note of desperation, resignation and fear. Someone less perceptive might have simply called it sweet and demure, but Siobhan could see past the pretty exterior.


The girl's scars went beyond the physical. She bore wounds that could only be inflicted if you'd been beaten into submission by cruel fists and been conditioned to think of yourself as lesser than others. But she had potential to be more than a victim.


"No. You're not a monster," the scarlet-curtained Lady's voice was soft, gentle even, but as firm as beskar. Unyielding. Anger swelled up inside her at the thought of what the girl must have been put through. Her aura was like a blazing nova. "I'm not going to let them hurt you." She limped slightly and her cane made little noise upon the ground as she approached the younger woman.


The background noise intensified, demanding her attention. She ignored it for the time being. "I can take you to a better place and show you how to control your powers," then she stretched out her hand. "My name is Siobhan Kerrigan. Come with me if you want to live."

 

[Diana Veneris]

Diana hesitated only for a moment. She regarded the woman's outstretched hand with widened blue eyes, emotion swimming in their crystal depths. To Diana, the hand was more than flesh and bone; it was freedom. It was the very thing that she had prayed, hoped, wept for--and been denied--every moment of every day since she was four. Now that freedom bore down upon her golden head, Diana felt afraid. There had been certainty to living in exile, a twisted comfort to life locked away in a tower. Even the abusive fist of her uncle had been hideously predictable. For years, Diana could count the four corners of her world by merely twirling in the center of her room. Now . . . the whole galaxy had burst open, with [member="Siobhan Kerrigan"] at the door.

Diana would follow her savior into the dark.

The girl slipped her small hand into the woman's palm and rose like a phoenix from the ashes. There was a strange spark of electricity between their fingers that made Diana jump, but it was not unpleasant. It was the same strange, Force-driven energy that Diana sometimes felt consume her whole, but between her hand and Siobhan's, it was warm and controlled. Diana might have ventured a quiet, subdued smile up toward the woman, might have parted her lips to whisper Thank you, had the sudden wail of sirens not screamed into the alley. Diana inhaled sharply, her gaze filling with fear as it flickered past Siobhan to the swarm of soldiers spreading out across the entrance, a burgeoning wall of armor and blades.

"You, woman! That girl is a criminal! Hand her over now--or die with her!"

Instinctively, Diana drew close to Siobhan, drawing herself behind the woman as if she were a shield. I'm not going to let them hurt you. The woman's words reverberated inside Diana's mind and, as the girl squeezed shut her eyes and rested her cheek against her savior's back, she prayed that they were true. "I would rather die than go back," She murmured, voice softer than a whisper. To her horror, she could feel the ever-familiar rise of emotion bubbling within her core, her powers threatening to explode with every terrified beat of her heart.

"Are you deaf or stupid, wench? You will pay for your insolence. Men, take the girl, kill the woman!"

[member="Siobhan Kerrigan"]​

 

[Siobhan Kerrigan]

[member="Diana Veneris"]


The brief moment of bonding was upset. Sirens screamed loudly, a horde of soldiers swarmed them, forming a veritable wall of armour and blades that gleamed in the sunlight. Their skin was white as marble, their eyes glowed with determination, duty and fury. In martial, warrior-centric Eshan, soldiers were prized above all. They spent years honing their skill in the martial arts, dedicating themselves to gaining honour and valour upon the field of battle.


Through the Force, Siobhan could feel their rage, though she only would have needed to look into their smouldering faces. Hatred emanated from them, so strong that it was almost palpable. In the minds of these men and women at arms, they were doing their duty by cutting down an evil witch who'd brought ruin and misery to her people. In their minds, they were the heroes of the story. Staunch defenders of light. As so often, good and evil were a matter of perspective.


Siobhan could not care less.


As the girl drew close to her, the Lady positioned herself in front of Diana. Resolve was written across her face. "You're not gonna die. Stay with me," Siobhan whispered quietly. Her words were only for the young Echani's eyes.


She dropped the cane. Then she raised her voice. "I'm leaving...with the girl. Get out of my way, and you live. Try to stop me, and you all die," she hissed. Her tone was as icy as a glacier. In a heartbeat her lightsabre's hilt was in her hand and a burning orange beam sprang to life.


Not a moment too soon, for it intercepted a slashing scimitar, cutting it in half. Blasters spat bolts of scarlet that sailed through the air with lethal intent, but Siobhan was already moving.


To haste she willed her body, filling it with the energies of the Force as one would pour water into a glass. Her blade moved in a blur, yet not one movement was wasted as it formed a wall of protection, deflecting the laser bolts. Projectils bounced off her blade, richochetted off walls or were reflected right back to the shooters.


Here and there, an Echani went down, struck by a reflected blaster round. A bold warrior came at Siobhan with a pike, then suddenly dropped the weapon and clutched his throat, when an invisible force lifted him into the air and choked him before smashing him into the ground with a resounding thud.


"Kill the witch!" the apparent leader of the party drew her blade and charged, slashing at the Lady. When their blades met, her sword was not cut like butter. Instead, Siobhan's lightsabre was abruptly deactivated, for the armoursmiths of Eshan had forged a cortosis blade for the Echani paladin.


"You see, she's mortal!" Exploiting Siobhan's surprise, the silver-armoured warrior roared in triumph and pressed her attack. Her terrible swift sword sliced into Siobhan's upper left arm, scoring a cut, for the shiny fabric of the Lady's suit offered no protection.


Blood seeped out of the minor wound, fury washed over Siobhan like a wave. It found an outlet in a very literal wave of telekinetic energy as the Force exploded from the inner core of her being like a storm.


The shockwave was magnificient and terrible to behold: The air twisted in strange shapes, the ground in front of her was torn up and the Echani warrior-woman was not just sent flying, her body was ripped apart. Stalwart soldiers were blown away like ragdolls at the passage of the blast.


"Diana, take my hand!"

 

[Diana Veneris]

Stay with me. Diana would not have left the woman if she had been dragged--which she very nearly was. Chaos erupted into the alley, and for a moment, the girl could not tell the ground from the sky. The cries of the Echani rang out into the narrow space and reverberated off the hard stone walls, joined in chorus by the firefight of blasters and the deadly whistle of blades. Diana curled herself behind the protective wall that was [member="Siobhan Kerrigan"] and weathered the storm, splaying her small hands against the woman's back as they pressed forward through the fray.

So thick was the confusion, and so high was her emotion, that Diana nearly believed that the Force-driven power rushing out into near-electric atmosphere was her own—that she was the one whose otherworldly powers were choking the Echani soldier, suspending him in the air—until the girl ventured a glance upward and saw that the power was emanating from Siobhan. Diana’s heart stopped—blue eyes wide, plush mouth open. Stunned.

She’s like me.

For a moment, Diana could only stare.

The scarlet-haired, would-be goddess held one hand upraised in a pincer, while the other hand masterfully wielded a blade that Diana had only read about in her tomes on mythology: a glowing, humming lightsaber. It was real. Siobhan was real. The weight of it all might have crushed Diana, rooted her deep into the ground, had she not been snapped starkly back to reality.

Just as the Echani blade met its target in Siobhan’s arm . . . Echani arms met their target around the cinch of Diana’s waist. Soldiers yelled triumphantly and swore crudely in her ear as they attempted to rip the angel, twisting and kicking, from her protector’s side. “You’re too soft and pretty to kill—but captain’s orders,” One growled, sneering as Diana struggled. “ . . . Siobhan!” The girl cried, blonde curls falling wildly across her anguished face as she plunged forward again and again, to no avail. Death felt nearer now than it ever had. “Please . . . let me go!”

Like an answer to prayer, Siobhan came.

The seeming earthquake rolled and ripped through the brick floor of the alley, and as Diana felt herself flung out of her captor’s embrace, she knew that it was not an earthquake at all. Siobhan, in all of her glory, was a veritable force of nature. Any remaining soldiers were blown away by her manufactured shockwave . . . one of them even burst into pieces. Specks of blood sprayed out onto the curve of Diana’s cheek, gruesomely scarlet against her unsullied, porcelain flesh. The girl lifted a hand to her face, pulling it away and nearly choking at the sight of her reddened fingers. It was horrible.

But there was no time.

“Diana, take my hand!”

The girl snapped to attention. She made to rise obediently but stopped in her tracks at the sound of rustling in the corner—it was coming from her rucksack. It was Nairobi.

“My cat!” Diana cried, much like a little girl, turning over her shoulder and scooping up the rucksack into her arms and unlacing the top. The white loth-cat almost immediately pushed her head out and mewled disapprovingly—it was unclear whether the small creature was more offended at being kept away during the uproar, or at nearly being left behind in its aftermath.

Apologies would have to come later. Yanking shut the rucksack and slinging it back over her shoulder, Diana all but threw herself into Siobhan’s waiting arms. The Force-driven energy between them nearly exploded as their hands joined, but this time, Diana welcomed it and held on tight.

[member="Siobhan Kerrigan"]​

 

[Siobhan Kerrigan]

[member="Diana Veneris"]


In the aftermath of the otherworldly storm, silence reigned. Broken bodies lay strewn across the alley. One had been quite literally ripped apart and forensics had its work cut if it ever wanted to put the pieces together and identify the unfortunate paladin.


Siobhan looked upon the corpses and felt...nothing. They'd been given a choice, and chosen the path of folly. So they'd died. Shame really, for they'd had spirit. Now their souls had embarked on a voyage across the River Styx into the depths of the Netherworld.


Her wound itched and was covered in drops of scarlet. More ruby specks stained the pale skin of her face and fingers, though this was not her blood, but that of her enemies. One thing was certain: Her suit was a bit of a mess. Her firemane was tousled and wild.


The sound of rustling and then mewling got her attention. She turned slightly and beheld the adorable little cat. The small creature looked more than a little put out. "Hey there, little one," Siobhan said in a strangely gentle tone, the ghost of a tender smile dancing on her face.


Then the fleeting moment of tenderness was gone and her face was all business again. "Make sure the rucksack is strapped in well. Hold on tight, and don't look down. I won't let you fall, clear?" her voice carried with it the tone of command, that of a woman who'd stormed across the hellholes of the galaxy and lived to tell the tale, as if she was trying to pour steel into the veins of a new recruit and focus her.


The electricity between them seemed to explode as their hands joined, then the deeper meaning of Siobhan's words became clear when they suddenly - and quite literally - shot into the air.


Their feet would leave the ruined pavement as they took off. At first, it was mere levitation, the sort of basic exercise anyone with some skill in telekinesis could learn though few would utilise it since it was frankly frivolous. But then, as the city grew smaller and more and more distant, Diana would probably realise that they were flying.

 

[Diana Veneris]

It all happened in an instant. The air rushed out of Diana’s lungs as her feet parted from the ground; she did not have time to register just how far off the ground her feet were, nor how increasingly far they were becoming, so fluid and so quick was Siobhan in sweeping her up into the clear morning sky. Adrenaline still clouded Diana’s senses, and, out of instinct, she wrapped her arms around Siobhan’s neat waist and buried her golden head in the woman’s shoulder. Smushed between their bodies was the ever-disgruntled Nairobi, her meows of protest drowned out by the powerful stream of Force-driven wind that carried the unlikely trio away from the alley—away from danger, bound for safe haven.

For a moment, Diana could neither think nor breathe. She could only feel.

Warmth from the strange, electric bond connecting her to Siobhan contrasted starkly with the cool air that swirled in and around Diana’s limbs, swaying the loose dangle of her feet and fluttering through her moon blonde hair, through the billowing folds of her gown. The sensation of butterflies began to fill her stomach and imbue her slight body with an uncanny sense of weightlessness—so uncanny, that Diana might have suspected that they were flying. Slowly, cautiously, Diana lifted her shining head a fractional inch off Siobhan’s shoulder . . . opening one blue eye, and then the other. The girl gasped.

They were flying.

She was afraid only for a moment. Tightening the circle of her pale arms around Siobhan, Diana pressed her head back against the woman’s shoulder but kept her eyes wide open. Far below them, as if it were a tiny, beautiful toy world, lay Eshan—Eshan, in all of its glory. It was magical, immeasurably more than anything Diana could have imagined possible. For the girl who had spent her life locked away like a little bird in a cage . . . to see the entire world laid out before her, to truly fly, was in fact more stirring to her blood than any imagining could have been. All at once, she felt some deep, indeterminable emotion rise in her chest, coming to sparkle in her eyes like liquid diamonds. From where her porcelain cheek rested against Siobhan—her mysterious, powerful savior—Diana finally smiled.

“Thank you,” She murmured, not knowing where they were going and ardently not caring. Questions would come later; they were not for this moment. “Thank you.”

[member="Siobhan Kerrigan"]​

 

[Siobhan Kerrigan]

[member="Diana Veneris"]


Siobhan allowed herself to smile, thinly. "It's alright, sweetie. I'll keep you safe." Could she? She'd failed Natoline, who'd been consumed by madness and fallen into the abyss. She'd failed at Kaeshana, which had fallen to the imperialists, even though she'd defeated every opponent who'd crossed paths with her, including Kaine Zambrano. The memories gnawed at her, being more painful than she liked to admit.


She flushed these thoughts of uncertainty and insecurity out of the metaphorical airlock. The powerful Force-conjured wind carried them through the sky, away from Eshan and its fanatical mobs. By now the city was far beneath them, looking tiny in comparison. She tightened her grip around the girl, wanting to make sure she was secure.


The titian-crowned Lady activated her comm device, hailing her vessel. "Harmony, I need pickup. Things got complicated."


There was a pause and some static before she got a response. "I got the bird in the air, Lady Mistress. What happened? Are you alright?" concern was evident in the woman's cultured voice.


"Fine. Saved a girl. Beat up a mob."


"Oh. The usual then," spoken very, very dryly. "We've tracked your location. The Revenant is on the way. Try not to...stir up more trouble." With that, the line went dead.


"My ship's coming. I'll steer us towards it, the hatch will open and we'll board, alright, dear?" Her tone was soft, gentle even. She could be a veritable force of nature that destroyed all opposition, a raging tempest, but also kind and loving. In the distance, the shape of the stealthy transport could be made out as it shot through the air towards them. Its bay would open, like a nest awaiting the return of two birds.

 

[Diana Veneris]

Diana gazed in awe as the sleek transport zoomed into view through the clouds, sunlight glimmering off its polished metal. She had never seen a starship so close, much less boarded one—especially not from thousands of feet above the ground. There was no time for her to fully absorb the novelty, however, as the top hatch of the ship was already opening beneath her dangling legs, ready for her to drop safely inside. Diana faltered only for a moment, reluctant to loosen her grasp from the comfort of Siobhan, but one searching glance up to the titian-haired Lady was enough to embolden the girl to do as directed.

With one great breath, Diana released her embrace and allowed her pliant body to fall into the gaping mouth of the Revenant’s bay, her gown billowing and her flaxen curls wild, like an angel tossed from heaven. She tumbled to the floor with relative ease, rolling one shoulder over the other until she lay splayed out on her back. For a moment the girl lay motionless, but as she regained her bearings, Diana slowly pushed herself up to seated, propping herself on one small hand and curling her slender legs beneath the pooled fabric of her gown. Blood still stained the moon-white curve of her cheek, and her petite frame had begun to tremble from the traumatic aftershock of rapidly drained adrenaline. She drank in her surroundings with widened blue eyes.

She had done it. She was free.

“My Lady,” Her darling voice ventured gently, as she lifted her clear gaze to Siobhan. “I owe you my life. I will never be able to repay you.”

[member="Siobhan Kerrigan"]​

 

[Siobhan Kerrigan]

[member="Diana Veneris"]


Slowly the wingless, crimson-crowned angel descended from above and landed in the Revenant's bay. As soon as her feet touched down upon the ground and the ship's gaping mouth swallowed her, the hatch closed.


Siobhan breathed in heavily. The nova-like aura of power withdrew from her being and she leaned heavily on her cane. Force Flight was more tiring than she liked to admit, and she was no longer the young woman she'd been a decade ago. Blood still seeped out of the cut the Echani's blade had inflicted upon her. That would have to be taken care of.


She sucked in air greedily, then turned her gaze towards Diana. The ghost of a smile danced around her lips. "I'm sure you'll find a way. Glad I was there to help," she said indulgently, patting the girl on the shoulder. It only now occured to Siobhan just how...beautiful the girl was. Long golden hair, smooth porcelain skin, enticing curves...Siobhan, keep it in your pants and don't scare the poor lass.


"You and I need to talk. About why that mob wanted to kill you, and your the nature of your gifts. I have a proposition for you. But first you must get washed and get some clean clothes. Have you eaten anything?" her voice remained gentle, but there was a commanding tone in it. This was a woman who was accustomed to being obeyed.


At this moment, the door to the bay opened and Harmony stepped in. The Dahomian looked relieved to see her boss was alright and gave the newcomer a warm smile. Her attire might make Diana blush. See, her duties involved...attending to Siobhan's needs in any way. This was not limited to bedroom activities, but those were a big part and it was no secret that the Countess had a roving eye and loved what was colloquially called eye candy.


It was likely that no flight attendant would wear heels this fancy, a leather mini-skirt this short or a nice blouse that showed off this much regal cleavage. She had enough curves to rival a scenic highway. "Lady Mistress, I'm glad you're alright...and that you have not lost a single limb!" Harmony exclaimed in a voice that somehow managed to be both reverent and cheeky. Siobhan tolerated a lot of snarkiness from 'her' girls as long as her needs were met. Her boys, on the other hand, had to act as if they were in awe of her all the time, which was probably quite tiring.


Her chocolate brown eyes turned towards Diana. "Hello, dear. My name is Harmony. I work for Lady Kerrigan. Don't worry. You're safe now," she said in her gentlest tone.

 

[Diana Veneris]

Diana gently shook her head no. She had not eaten in two days—her uncle, before his untimely demise, had made sure of that—but the adrenaline from the remarkable events of the day had suppressed the pangs of hunger that might have gnawed at the pit of her belly. Even now, the girl was too distracted by the appearance of Harmony to notice how her own body trembled and quaked, still coming down from the high of her great escape. Never had the young Echani seen a woman with skin so beautifully dark—nor so scantily dressed. Diana lowered her thick lashes abashedly, a blush rising up her swan throat, before she slowly ventured her eyes back up to the two women. The combined presence of Siobhan and Harmony was intimidating and powerful, yet utterly magnetic; she wanted to drink in the comfort of their strength like water.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Harmony,” The girl murmured politely, unable to mute her noble upbringing even under such exigent circumstances. “I’m indebted to you and your Lady for your kindness.”

Harmony smiled warmly. “Nonsense—and there’s no need to be so formal.” She bent her supple legs to help Diana rise from the floor. “Let’s run along and fetch you some fresh clothes. I know just the thing for a pretty kitten like you . . . ” Diana obediently gathered her rucksack—and the squirming Nairobi—and followed the dusky woman into the depths of the sleek ship. Harmony led her to a small but posh back-room and flung open a wardrobe . . . full of articles even scantier than the ones that she herself wore. “Your tiny little hourglass would look divine in this.”

As the woman brandished what could only be described as an utterly transparent slip, Diana widened her blue eyes and very nearly choked, shaking her fair head vigorously.

“No? Ah, well, can’t say I didn’t try. Something more modest then for the angel? How about this?” Harmony dug around in a drawer and presented a shell pink lounging set, still quite girlish but vastly more conservative than any of the alternatives. Diana reached out an exploratory hand, running her fingers along the impossibly soft material, then smiled up to Harmony. “It’s perfect, thank you.”

Harmony beamed. “You’re quite welcome. The washroom’s just through this door here—you’ll find everything you need to bathe already set out. Do you require any help?” Diana flushed once more and hugged her rucksack tighter against her chest; this was the final straw for the thoroughly disgruntled Nairobi, who leapt from her mistress’s arms and slunk off to hide beneath a plush chair. Diana watched her go before returning her flustered gaze back up to Harmony. “No—no, thank you. I can manage.” With that, and nothing more, Harmony nodded and left the girl in privacy.

Slowly, Diana undressed. The flowing silk of her gown dropped to the floor and pooled around her bare feet; she stepped out one foot, and then the other, before folding the dress neatly on the counter and pausing to regard her reflection in the mirror. Petite curves, aching limbs, the bruises and lesions from the alley that decorated her otherwise unspoiled skin—all were set free at last.

Steam began to fill the small washroom as Diana lowered herself into the warm bath. She wasted no time in scrubbing her body clean until the soap bubbled up to her chin, allowing her white-blonde head to fall back into the rosewater. A faint smile ghosted across her lips as she worked through the tangles of her long, thick curls. For a moment, she could not help but close her eyes and sigh—too weary to think.

Diana could have luxuriated in the bath for hours, but her repose was over in minutes. She rose from the tub like Venus from the sea, soap and water trickling pleasantly down her shining body before she toweled off and dressed. When the girl emerged from the washroom, she might have glowed. Instead of ash and blood, tinges of fresh pink colored the apples of her cheeks, while her hair dripped like molten gold. She felt strangely content—almost reborn—but it would take more than just a bath for her to process how starkly different her world was now than it was when she awoke this morning, still her uncle's slave. It would take time, and the guiding hand of her red-maned savior, to understand the meaning of freedom.

[member="Siobhan Kerrigan"]​

 

[Siobhan Kerrigan]

[member="Diana Veneris"]


While Diana successfully kept her modesty intact and washed away the grime and blood that today's tribulations had inflicted upon her, Siobhan had not been idle. Instead, she'd stripped out of the rather soiled, blood-stained suit and was letting another of her 'attendants', this one being a young woman called Hestia, tend to her arm wound. It was just a cut, but nonetheless.


Siobhan was quiet while Hestia cleaned, disinfected and bandaged it. She could see the gears moving in the young woman's mind though. She doubted anyone who met the shy, slightly timid attendant would realise that once upon a time she'd been an evil slaver queen.


Till the Lady Kerrigan toppled her régime, captured the queen and reeducated the tyrant. Brainwashing was such an ugly word. "You want to say something, Hestia? Speak your mind."


"Uh, nothing earth-shaking, Lady Mistress. I just...feel sorry that poor girl. She reminds me of myself...when you saved me from the Queen," Hestia replied gently. "You did a good deed rescuing her, but she'll need a lot of help. She's like a caged bird."


You were the queen. "Yes, well, she'll learn to fly now."


"Yes, Lady Mistress." There was a pause as Hestia kept working. "Pardon me for asking...but will you invite her into the family? She's all alone and..."


"No," Siobhan cut her off in an unusually harsh tone that made the servant girl wince. "I was naive in my younger years and didn't realise how much family can hurt. Nato went insane and betrayed me, Aba abandoned us because her Silver cult was more important to her and Riona is dead," her tone was laced with bitterness. And I don't even hear much from dear wifey. All the work is left to me. Her marriage with [member="Tegaea Alcori"] might not be on the rocks, but it was not in a good place either.


Hestia looked very contrite. "Forgive me, Mistress. I did not mean to upset you. None of this is your fault. You did all you could."


"Which was not enough," her tone was sharper than she intended and Siobhan felt bad about it. Not the least because being cross with Hestia felt a bit like kicking a puppy. "She is strong in the Force and I shall train her to control it. Her power can be a gift or a curse."


"You're a great teacher, Lady Mistress. I could not think of a better one for her," Hestia said encouragingly.


Siobhan arose from the bed in the medical room. "I will not repeat the mistakes of the past. Nato and Charlyra were gifted. But they never learned discipline, prudence or moderation. Or common sense, for that matter. It went to their head. Nato fell into the abyss and Lyra died bravely - and pointlessly. If she cannot control her gift, I will take it from her for her own good, before it becomes her undoing," she slipped on a purple kimono robe that Hestia had laid out for her, then headed to the lounge Harmony would have guided Diana to.

 

[Diana Veneris]

The lounge was opulent and plush, bursting with cushioned seats and velvety chaise lounges that spoke to Lady Kerrigan’s eye for beauty. Diana, freshly bathed and clothed in the soft pink lounging set, sank down into a pillow and immediately felt exhaustion flood through her limbs like lead. Her eyelids grew heavy, and all at once she found herself lowering her smooth porcelain cheek to rest against the back of her palm. It was as if the weight of her shattered world had finally caught up to her—the girl was tired. Too tired to keep running . . . too tired to think. Moon blonde curls fell lovingly around her peaceful face as her breathing grew deep and steady, feathering lightly past the full bud of her lips.

Diana was drifting off.

Before the girl could dream, however, there was a rustling at the entrance of the lounge—light, unobtrusive, but enough to bring her back to the world of the waking. Diana's thick eyelashes fluttered once before they lifted, crystal blue eyes pushing through the misty twilight of sleep as her vision came into focus. There stood the striking, masterful figure of the Lady, clad in gleaming violet. Diana, abashed at being discovered in her state of slumber, immediately pushed herself up to seated.

“My Lady,” She ventured, her voice still laced with the faint traces of sleep. “I apologize.” There was a long moment of pause as the girl took a proper look around the lounge, before returning her gentle gaze up to Siobhan. “I’ve . . . never been on a starship before. Are they all this lovely?”


[member="Siobhan Kerrigan"]

 

[Siobhan Kerrigan]

[member="Diana Veneris"]


"No, not all. Most are...not designed for comfort. You could say this is a luxury transport with some extras," Siobhan responded evenly as she stepped into the lounge. "Sleepy? I won't keep you awake for long. You had a big day and we'll have plenty of time to chat." That was probably stating the obvious since she'd just caught the golden-maned Echani napping.


"Hestia, get Diana a blanket, and tell Harmony to make her a hot chocolate and order the cook to hurry the hell up," she ordered the servant girl, realising that Diana would probably not be used to how cold space was. For her part, the Lady sat down on a couch opposite of where Diana had settled down. The Lady took off her shoes, allowing her bare, elegantly pedicured feet to touch the fine carpet that lay beneath them.


A sigh escaped Siobhan's throat, then she reached out with her hand to gently pat the younger woman's moon blonde curls. The Revenant had not been idle, in the meantime. Eshan had grown smaller and smaller, and soon they'd left the planet's atmosphere entirely, emerging in the cold, endless void that was space.

 

[Diana Veneris]

“No,” Diana answered softly, when the Lady asked if she was sleepy, but the girl quickly faltered. “—well, yes,” She admitted, lowering her lashes for a moment, then slowly lifting her clear blue eyes back to Siobhan. Her gaze was shy, but curious, as she ventured a gentle exploration over the woman’s face. “ . . . but I want to talk to you.”

It was a small plea. Diana had lived as an island unto herself for all of her life, locked away like a pariah for the preternatural gifts that, according to her people, made her unfit for society. She might have continued to believe their lies were it not for Siobhan. The fire-maned Lady had immense powers of her own—powers that far surpassed anything Diana was capable of, powers that Diana could not begin to understand. Boundless questions hurtled through the girl’s mind now that she and the mysterious woman were alone.

“You have powers,” Diana breathed. “You’re . . . like me.”

As Diana spoke, the Lady had begun to run an idle hand over her soft white curls; the warm spark of Force-driven energy emanating from the woman’s fingertips only fueled their bond and strengthened Diana’s strange notion of belonging. She took great comfort in this, her blonde head coming to rest gently against the cushioned back of the couch.

“What are we, my Lady?” The girl asked, her eyes wide and imploring. “What am I?”

As soon as she posed the question, however, the ship gave a mighty leap into hyperspace. Stars rushed by in vivid, elongated streaks, and the atmosphere grew suddenly cold. Diana nearly jumped out of her pale skin, a hitch of breath catching in her swan throat as she threw out a frightened hand to grasp whatever was closest-by as an anchor.

It was evident that Diana had never flown before—had never left Eshan—and could not help the wash of wondrous fear, of paralyzing awe, that flooded her system and inundated her soul from the inside out. So taken was the poor child that she did not even notice when Hestia returned with a blanket and draped the fabric over her trembling shoulders. Her attention was stolen by the stars, as she looked upon them for the very first time.

[member="Siobhan Kerrigan"]​

 

[Siobhan Kerrigan]

[member="Diana Veneris"]


Siobhan was taken aback by Diana's reaction to the sudden transition into the dark blue tunnel of hyperspace. In a way, the mixture of fright and child-like wonder reminded her of how her Xioquo and Qadiri minions reacted the first time she took them into space.


Diana had not lived on a primitive world whose inhabitants still considered the stars to be the domain of gods and demons, but she had been caged. Trapped in a swamp of bigotry, oppression and superstition. There was a common basis there.


"It's amazing, isn't it?" she said quietly. "I don't really remember my first time in space. It was so long ago. I believe I was scared." She'd just been a frightened girl who'd stowed away on a freighter after escaping her home's gladiatorial arenas. She did not like remembering those days.


"But don't be afraid. This is hyperspace. It's the realm starships travel through to move faster than light, from one star system to another." That was a fairly basic explanation, but Siobhan did not really understand space physics. Her hand travelled from Diana's soft golden, almost white, curls to her cheek, touching the smooth porcelain skin in a gentle caress.


"You're not a freak. Or a monster. By some twist of fate, you simply have powers normal people don't have. Just like I do. Contrary to what that bigoted mob of imbeciles thought, it's not witchcraft. We call it the Force. It is energy that permeates the entire universe. A select few can tap into it."

 

[Diana Veneris]

Lady Kerrigan’s hand called Diana’s attention back from the stars. She had never been handled so tenderly, or at least not since she was very small; her uncle had only used his hands to strike. The girl turned at the feeling of the warm fingertips and gently ventured to press her cheek into the woman’s palm, gathering strength from the current of energy between their skin. At this, her nerves settled, but her wonder did not. Space was beautiful.

“ . . . I never knew what I was missing,” Diana whispered, more to herself than to Siobhan, widened blue eyes traveling away from the glittering viewport and back to the comforting splendor of her savior’s face. “Where will we go now? How large is the galaxy? Are there others . . . like us?”

Questions poured out of the girl’s soul like molten honey, but it was here that she paused. Timid apprehension filled her gaze, as if she were afraid of her next inquiry. The cushion of her lips parted, and then closed, only to part once more.

“ . . . where will you leave me?” She asked quietly at last, bracing herself for the inevitable. A life of exile had thoroughly ingrained the notion into Diana’s psyche that she was a burden—that she was utterly unwanted—but the girl suddenly found that she balked at the idea of being separated from Siobhan.

Siobhan did not think that she was a freak or a monster. Siobhan held all of the answers—the secrets of the Force, of the whole galaxy, and Diana along with them—in the palm of her hand. Diana only prayed that she would not let go.

[member="Siobhan Kerrigan"]​

 

[Siobhan Kerrigan]

[member="Diana Veneris"]


There was an awkward pause. Strictly speaking, Siobhan could drop the girl off on the nearest civilised planet, give her some clothes and enough credits to get by. It was more than a little tempting. You've had bad luck with your waifs and strays. How many of them did not disappoint you? How many did you not fail?


The image of a band of Firemane soldiers turning traitor on Kaeshana and stabbing their comrades in arms in the back was etched in her mind. As was that of traitors being executed by firing squad on the Phoenix' hangar deck while she watched impassively, with a wrathful fire in her eyes. Despicable backstabbers who'd thrown in their lot with fascists and Sith.


But Siobhan did not have the heart to send the girl away and leave her adrift in the cold, bleak galaxy. "I won't," she finally said. "You're staying with me. I'm taking you to my home. One of them, at any rate." Not once did she raise her voice, but it was firm and commanding.


Perhaps this girl was a chance for redemption for her. A chance to set things right. "The galaxy is vast and there are many Force-users, though they're only a fraction of the galactic population. Some use their powers for good, many don't. I will show you how to gain control over your powers." And this time I'll do it right. "But you must obey my commands."